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Pactola Reservoir Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Oct 23, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

Pactola Reservoir: an 825-acre Black Hills reservoir west of Rapid City with stocked rainbows, lake trout and a new kokanee program.

3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Flow
17 cfs
Air / High
72 / 73 F
Wind
WSW 18 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 06411500, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
23
October 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

3/5Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Pactola Reservoir is in its winter mode: slow, deep and deliberate. The release below the dam is running 17 cfs, steady over the week. Today brings clear skies, wind WSW around 18 mph, steady pressure near 1002 hPa and a high of 73. Water sits around 47 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 9:30 AM-11:30 AM and 10:01 PM-12:01 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Rainbow troutExcellent

In cold water rainbows use the deepest pools in rivers (Vermont), so slow, deep drifts there are the usual approach; Michigan DNR notes lake rainbows are also taken with bait or by jigging through the ice.

Brown troutExcellent

Below 50°F, fish slowly through the deeper pools; in early spring on the Great Lakes, Michigan DNR notes browns are often caught inshore before other species start biting.

Northern pikeGood

Ice season: tip-ups with live bait near weed beds; where water stays open, slow live-bait presentations.

Lake troutGood

Winter: Vermont says most of its lake trout fishing is done through the ice, and Michigan anglers jig spoons tipped with cut bait in deep Great Lakes bays.

Tomorrow: Cooler at 58 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Before you go

South Dakota requires a fishing licence from age 16, from $41.00 for residents. What a South Dakota licence costs and where to buy it →

Chasing rainbow trout here? Check the size and bag limits with SD GFP before you keep anything. The season dates for South Dakota, read off the agency, are on the South Dakota seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings from Rapid Creek below Pactola Dam.

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 06411500.

19232717 cfs09/2310/0310/1310/23

Today’s flow against 83 years of October 23

At 17 cfs, the flow at USGS gauge 06411500 (Rapid Creek below Pactola Dam) is at the 31st percentile for the date: normal. In half of the 83 years of approved record the daily mean on October 23 was below 22 cfs; the highest was 170 cfs and the lowest 6 cfs.

p10 13median 22p90 54

Percentiles of the daily mean flow for this date, from the USGS Water Data Statistics API for gauge 06411500; today’s reading is the latest instantaneous value. Classes follow the ones the USGS used on its WaterWatch maps (retired at the end of 2025): below 10th, much below normal; 10th–24th, below; 25th–75th, normal; 76th–90th, above; over 90th, much above.

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp72 F
High / Low73 / 52 F
WindWSW 18-34 mph
Pressure1002.2 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 5%
Sunrise / Sunset07:19 / 17:56
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~47 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Which day to fish Pactola Reservoir this week

The best day on Pactola Reservoir this week looks like Thursday Oct 29, at 4 out of 5, against 3 today.

Best day this week: Thursday, Oct 29 — good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Oct 23 — Fair

A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Solunar majors
9:30 AM-11:30 AM and 10:01 PM-12:01 AM
Minor period
3:55 AM-4:55 AM
Sun
07:19 to 17:56
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Overcast, 19 mph
Rain chance
5%

Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out: how the score is built.

Species guide

The species that matter on Pactola Reservoir: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Rainbow trout illustration

Rainbow trout

Spring and fall in most lakes; rivers fish year-round while the water stays cool

A cold-water trout native to Pacific drainages from Alaska to Baja California, now stocked in most states and fished in rivers, tailwaters and lakes. In cold water rainbows use the deepest pools in rivers (Vermont), so slow, deep drifts there are the usual approach; Michigan DNR notes lake rainbows are also taken with bait or by jigging through the ice.

Brown trout illustration

Brown trout

Spring along Great Lakes shorelines; low light and overcast days in rivers; fall spawning runs

A European trout first stocked in the US in 1883 and now fished in rivers and lakes nationwide; it tolerates warmer water than other trout, and mature stream fish feed mostly at night. Below 50°F, fish slowly through the deeper pools; in early spring on the Great Lakes, Michigan DNR notes browns are often caught inshore before other species start biting.

Northern pike illustration

Northern pike

Best: cool water, from ice-out through spring, in fall and under the ice

A long, duck-billed predator of weedy lakes, slow rivers and backwaters that ambushes fish from vegetation. Wisconsin DNR points out that, unlike most of the state's common game fish, pike do their best feeding in cool water. Ice season: tip-ups with live bait near weed beds; where water stays open, slow live-bait presentations.

Lake trout illustration

Lake trout

Spring and fall in shallow water, deep in summer, and through the ice in winter

Lake trout are slow-growing chars of large, deep, cold lakes, native from Alaska and northern Canada to New England and the Great Lakes, and introduced in many western lakes. Winter: Vermont says most of its lake trout fishing is done through the ice, and Michigan anglers jig spoons tipped with cut bait in deep Great Lakes bays.

When to come: the Pactola Reservoir calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Rainbow trout
Brown trout
Northern pike
Lake trout
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 47 F (estimated, not a reading).

30405060JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~47 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Pactola Reservoir today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Oct 22

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at excellent. High of 77 F, wind to 13 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at excellent. High of 69 F, wind to 10 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Rainbow trout led the card at excellent. High of 72 F, wind to 9 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
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Before you go

License

South Dakota requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

South Dakota fishing license. Black Hills Fish Management Area rules apply; Rapid Creek from the Pactola stilling basin to the Placerville Camp footbridge is catch-and-release, artificial lures only. Confirm limits in the current SD GFP fishing handbook.

Access

Three boat ramps, two campgrounds, picnic areas, a beach, visitor center and marina (Reclamation); Reclamation lists no entrance or launch fee.

About this water

An 825-acre Bureau of Reclamation reservoir on Rapid Creek, Pennington County, South Dakota, 18 miles west of Rapid City (SD GFP).

Fishing Pactola Reservoir: the full guide

The reservoir

Pactola Reservoir, 18 miles west of Rapid City, holds back Rapid Creek behind a Bureau of Reclamation dam built between 1952 and 1956 for the Rapid Valley Unit. SD GFP lists 825 acres. Reclamation's recreation page lists 14 miles of shoreline, three boat ramps, two campgrounds, a beach, a visitor center and a marina, with recreation managed by the Black Hills National Forest.

Trout and pike

GFP stocks rainbow trout every year (21,254 large fish averaging 2 pounds and 62,601 juveniles in 2024) and says anglers do well in the bays near the boat ramps shortly after stocking. Its 2024 gill nets caught lake trout of 22 to 31 inches, brown trout all longer than 16 inches and northern pike of 20 to 43 inches. Kokanee have been stocked since 2022 but had not yet appeared in surveys or catches.

Panfish and bass

Bluegill are abundant, mostly 4 to 8 inches; black crappie and yellow perch are scattered in the bays; anglers report largemouth bass, though recent surveys have not caught them.

Rapid Creek below the dam

A South Dakota GFP rule finalized in 2022 made Rapid Creek, from the Pactola stilling basin to the footbridge at Placerville Camp, catch-and-release with artificial lures only. USGS gauge 06411500, Rapid Creek below Pactola Dam, reports the release on this page.

Common questions

Are there lake trout?

Yes: GFP's 2024 gill nets took lake trout from 22 to 31 inches.

When are rainbows easiest to catch?

Shortly after stocking, in the bays near the boat ramps, according to GFP.

Can I keep trout below the dam?

Not from the stilling basin to the Placerville Camp footbridge, which is catch-and-release with artificial lures only.

Is fishing good at Pactola Reservoir right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Nearby waters

Sheridan Lake7 miBelle Fourche Reservoir47 miAngostura Reservoir50 miGlendo Reservoir131 miLake Oahe155 miMerritt Reservoir165 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

River and reservoir readings
USGS 06411500 — Rapid Creek below Pactola Dam
Read from the USGS Water Data API (api.waterdata.usgs.gov). Latest value timestamped 2026-10-23 at 19:15 UTC.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 44.0700, -103.4800 in this water's own timezone. A model, not an observation.
Moon and solunar windows
Calculated on this site
Astronomical calculation from these coordinates and the date, not a third-party feed. How much weight it deserves.
Pages checked
The facts in the written guide were checked against these pages, from the agencies and operators that manage the water, on October 5, 2026. Anything we could not verify was taken out.
The written guide on this page
Pablo Ruiz Quintero
How this page was made. The daily report is computed by our scoring engine from live readings; nobody types it. The written text was drafted with AI assistance from the official pages listed above, and its facts were checked against those pages by automated verification on October 5, 2026; anything that could not be verified was taken out. Pablo Ruiz Quintero sets every guideline, the data-verification system and the minimum standards a page must meet to be published, reviews page structure and approves what goes live; the responsibility is his, and the AI carries out the work. We work this way because it is how one person can keep every page current with named sources. Errors are published in the verification log; the full policy is in the editorial policy.

Readings refresh on a 30-minute window. The full method, with every figure and its source, is on how our reports are made. Something wrong here? Tell us and it goes in the log with the date.