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Home › Waters › South Dakota › Rapid Creek below Pactola Dam
Tailwater · Pennington County in the Black Hills, the bottom-release reach below Pactola Dam running east toward Silver City and Rapid City · South Dakota

Rapid Creek below Pactola Dam Fishing Guides

The Black Hills' best trout tailwater, catch and release with artificial lures only for two and a half miles below the dam, and fishable through the winter.

Mist over a green river between wooded banks
Gauge location. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Guides on the Rapid Creek below Pactola Dam

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About the Rapid Creek below Pactola Dam

Pactola Dam sits on Highway 385 about fifteen miles west of Rapid City, and the water it releases makes the reach below it the most consistent trout stream in the Black Hills. This is a true bottom-release tailwater. Cold, stable flows come out of the reservoir year round, which holds summer temperatures down and keeps the creek from freezing hard in winter, and that combination grows brown trout well beyond the regional average.

Wild, naturally reproducing brown trout are the main draw and fish approaching eighteen inches are a realistic target. Rainbow trout are supplemented by the state, which stocks eleven and fifteen inch fish at the bridges between the parking area above Silver City and the gauging station downstream. Brook trout are present as well, and cutthroat turn up occasionally. The browns are the fish that make the reputation.

The regulation on this reach is the single most important thing to know before travelling. From the stilling basin below Pactola Dam downstream to the footbridge at Placerville Camp, roughly two and a half miles, the water is catch and release only with artificial lures only, and the use or possession of organic bait within one hundred feet of the stream is prohibited. That is stricter than the general Black Hills rules and it is enforced. Below the footbridge the standard regulations resume.

Access is good. The stilling basin immediately below the dam is the top of the special regulation water. The Black Hills National Forest maintains a Rapid Creek Trailhead fishing access, reached by turning onto Pactola Basin Road at the dam and running half a mile downhill, with seasonal toilets but no drinking water. Silver City sits further down, and well below all of it the creek runs through Rapid City itself, where urban brown trout are a genuine and underrated fishery.

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5. What we may do

We choose which photos to publish and may decline any submission without giving a reason. We may crop, resize, sharpen or colour-correct a photo for display, and we may remove a photo at any time. We will not alter a photo in a way that misrepresents the fish, the water or you.

6. Your details

We keep your name, email address, the credit name, the water and date you gave us, and the network address the submission came from, with the submission record, as our evidence of this license. We hold that record for as long as the photo is published and for the retention period described in our privacy policy. Location data that your camera or phone embedded in the file is removed before the photo is published.

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Posting to Rapid Creek below Pactola Dam.

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Reader photo license v1.0 — the short version:

  • You grant Guided Floats, LLC a non-exclusive, royalty-free license to publish, resize and crop your photo on guidedfloats.com and in GuidedFloats’ own social posts and apps. You keep the copyright and can use the photo anywhere else.
  • You confirm that you took the photo yourself, that publishing it does not infringe anyone else’s rights, and that anyone recognisable in it (or a parent or guardian, if they are under 18) is happy for it to appear here.
  • Credit is printed beside the photo wherever it appears on the site, using the credit name you give us. Leave it blank and we use your name; write “Anonymous” for no name. Your email address is never published.
  • Withdrawing is one email to hello@guidedfloats.com naming the photo. It comes off the site within 7 days.
Read the full license

Version 1.0, dated 6 September 2026. Applies to every photograph submitted to GuidedFloats through the contact form, a species page, or the community board.

1. What you give us

By ticking the box on the form you grant Guided Floats, LLC (“GuidedFloats”, “we”) a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to store, copy, resize, crop and display your photograph on guidedfloats.com, in GuidedFloats’ own social media accounts and mobile apps, and in material that promotes the site itself, in connection with the fish, water or community feature you sent it in for. The license lasts until you withdraw it (section 4).

You keep the copyright. The license is not exclusive, so you can use the photo anywhere else and license it to anyone else. We will not sell your photo, license it on to anyone else on its own, or use it in paid advertising for a third party.

2. What you confirm

You confirm that you took the photograph yourself (or otherwise own the rights to it), that you have the right to grant this license, and that publishing the photo does not infringe anyone else’s copyright, privacy or other rights.

If any person is recognisable in the photo, you confirm that they have agreed to its being published here, and that a parent or guardian has agreed on behalf of anyone under 18. Please do not send photographs of other people’s catches, screenshots, or pictures copied from other websites or social media.

3. Credit

We print the credit name you give us beside the photo wherever it appears on the site, and record it as the photo’s creator in the page’s structured data. If you leave the credit blank we use the name you gave us on the form. Write “Anonymous” if you prefer no name at all. Your email address, phone number and the exact spot the photo was taken are never published.

4. Withdrawing the license

You can withdraw the license at any time by emailing hello@guidedfloats.com, or by using the contact form, and telling us which photo you mean. We will remove the photo from guidedfloats.com within 7 days of receiving your message and stop using it in anything new. Copies that are already outside our control — search-engine caches, social posts that have already gone out, printed material already produced — may take longer to disappear or may not be recallable, and we are not responsible for those.

5. What we may do

We choose which photos to publish and may decline any submission without giving a reason. We may crop, resize, sharpen or colour-correct a photo for display, and we may remove a photo at any time. We will not alter a photo in a way that misrepresents the fish, the water or you.

6. Your details

We keep your name, email address, the credit name, the water and date you gave us, and the network address the submission came from, with the submission record, as our evidence of this license. We hold that record for as long as the photo is published and for the retention period described in our privacy policy. Location data that your camera or phone embedded in the file is removed before the photo is published.

7. Versions

The version of this license you accepted is stored with your submission and printed with the photo. A later version does not apply to a photo you have already sent unless you agree to it.

Flow alert

Tell me when the Rapid Creek below Pactola Dam cfs

Now: 17.4 cfs, read 5:15 pm CDT, Sun Oct 18, 2026 (USGS 06411500, RAPID CREEK BELOW PACTOLA DAM, SD).

We never use this address for anything else and never share it. See the privacy policy.

Access

Pactola Dam stilling basin - the top of the catch and release reach, directly below the dam.
Rapid Creek Trailhead Fishing Access - the forest service access off Pactola Basin Road, half a mile downhill from the dam.
Placerville Camp footbridge - the downstream boundary of the special regulation water.
Silver City - the small community on the creek below the special reach, with roadside access.
Highway 385 - the road over the dam, and the main approach from Rapid City or the northern hills.
Rapid City and Founder's Park - the urban reach well downstream, holding brown trout through the city.
Pactola Reservoir - the lake above the dam, with its own trout and salmon fishery and full facilities.

Seasons

Spring: cold, clear and productive, with the tailwater fishing well before freestone streams in the hills come into shape.
Summer: the release keeps the water cold when the rest of the Black Hills warms, making this the reliable summer choice.
Fall: brown trout colour up and move onto spawning water, giving the best fishing of the year through October.
Winter: one of the few streams in the region that stays open and fishable, with midge fishing on mild days.

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Questions

What is the current flow on the Rapid Creek below Pactola Dam?

As of Oct 18, 5:15 pm, the USGS gauge RAPID CREEK BELOW PACTOLA DAM, SD reads 17 cfs. Conditions update every 15 minutes.

What species can you catch on the Rapid Creek below Pactola Dam?

Anglers target Brook Trout, Brown Trout, Cutthroat Trout, Rainbow Trout on the Rapid Creek below Pactola Dam in South Dakota.

Where can you access the Rapid Creek below Pactola Dam?

Pactola Dam stilling basin - the top of the catch and release reach, directly below the dam. Rapid Creek Trailhead Fishing Access - the forest service access off Pactola Basin Road, half a mile downhill from the dam. Placerville Camp footbridge - the downstream boundary of the special regulation water. Silver City - the small community on the creek below the special reach, with roadside access. Highway 385 - the road over the dam, and the main approach from Rapid City or the northern hills. Rapid City and Founder's Park - the urban reach well downstream, holding brown trout through the city. P...

When is the best time to fish the Rapid Creek below Pactola Dam?

Spring: cold, clear and productive, with the tailwater fishing well before freestone streams in the hills come into shape. Summer: the release keeps the water cold when the rest of the Black Hills warms, making this the reliable summer choice. Fall: brown trout colour up and move onto spawning water, giving the best fishing of the year through October. Winter: one of the few streams in the region that stays open and fishable, with midge fishing on mild days.

Where are the fishing regulations for the Rapid Creek below Pactola Dam?

Regulations change by season and section. Read the current rules on the South Dakota agency site: https://gfp.sd.gov/pages/regulations/