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Dive Report: Updated June 21st, 2011
There are lots of changes to our normal dive conditions
as of today. As of now Steamboat's Inc. is in the same location on Dakota
Ave. and we are open for business. It is entirely possible that we may be
forced to close shop and move if the flood worsens. Lighthouse Point by
Spring Creek is our backup location.
The Oahe Tailrace has been closed to all diving activities, along with the
Face of the dam. From the Oahe Tailwaters to St. Louis MO is closed to all
boating and diving due to flooding. Lake Oahe has a quarter mile stretch
of closure from the face of the dam going up the lake 1/4 mile. This is
due to the forces at work due to the high releases through the turbines
and the Stillin Basin. Please stay off and away from the these closed
areas.
Visibility on lake Oahe varies from less than 1 foot to the best visibility being reported as 6 foot. The water temperature is hovering between 56 and 62 degrees. Walleye are being shot in depths less than 12 feet. Lots of divers are asking is it worth it to come to Pierre to spearfish? The short answer is YES! There are lots of walleye, all the boat ramps are open and so are the resorts. The fish are shallow in trees making it very fun hunting.
Spearfishing Report: last updated MAY 19TH 2011
Opening day for spear fishing game fish is right around the corner,
June 15th to be exact! By the looks of it everyone is more excited than
ever. Our charter service is nearly booked solid for the summer and folks
are flooding into the dive shop getting ready. The lake levels are
extremely high and the Corp of Engineers is running the dam and the
stilling basin pushing a lot of water down stream. The tailrace dives will
undoubtedly be great.
There is concern for Lake Oahe, although the lake level is high the Corp.
has been attempting to lower the lake at least 1 foot, at this point the
runoff from up north in ND and MT has been high enough to counter this and
in fact the lake has came up a little. This is really good news, if Lake
Oahe was to drop during this time it could be disastrous for the smelt.
Smelt are back to being the primary source of food for game fish. The GF&P
along with the Corp. is monitoring this situation and all appears great
for the future stocks of fish on Lake Oahe.
Attention the rules have changed for licensing spear fishermen, you now need to purchase a $5.00 spear fishing add on. This is so the GF&P can take accurate surveys of our activities, which in turn will help defend our sport. Caleb and Ben Gilkerson were present at the commission meeting where this rule was passed. The commission indicated they did want to gather more information along the lines of how many people spear fish and how successful they are, but they also wanted the Conservation Offiicers(CO's) to have another tool to catch spear fishermen that are harvesting their limit and other people limits of walleye. This practice is not legal and we ask anyone who does this or knows someone that does, ask them to stop. Spearfishing is a privilege not a right and we must band together to minimize any potential law violations in order to protect the lifestyle and sport that we treasure. We ask for you cooperation with the South Dakota Game Fish & Parks, give them as accurate of info as possible so they can say with absolute certainty that we are not affecting the fishery in a negative way but in fact we are helping Lake Oahe. This is to all of our benefit.
UPDATE APRIL 11TH 2011: Lake Oahe's water level has raised considerably. The lake looks as if it will hit maximum capacity and we will enjoy plenty of structure to dive. The Walleye report is better than last year, the preliminary thinking is that there will be more slot fish.(20 in and under walleye)
January 16th 2011:The lake level has dropped considerably, but there is a lot of snow! The lake has frozen over and dark house spearfishing is taking off. We believe that the lake will reach maximum capacity by June 15th, 2011 just from all the run off. Looking forward to an awesome summer of spearfishing.
Attention the rules have changed for licensing spear fishermen, you now need to purchase a $5.00 spear fishing add on. This is so the GF&P can take accurate surveys of our activities, which in turn will help defend our sport. Caleb and Ben Gilkerson were present at the commission meeting where this rule was passed. The commission indicated they did want to gather more information along the lines of how many people spear fish and how successful they are, but they also wanted the Conservation Offiicers(CO's) to have another tool to catch spear fishermen that are harvesting their limit and other people limits of walleye. This practice is not legal and we as anyone who does this or knows someone that does, ask them to stop. Spearfishing is a privilege not a right and we must band together to minimize any potential law violations in order to protect the lifestyle and sport that we treasure. We ask for you cooperation with the South Dakota Game Fish & Parks, give them as accurate of info as possible so they can say with absolute certainty that we are not affecting the fishery in a negative way but in fact we are helping Lake Oahe. This is to all of our benefit.
UPDATE AUG, 19TH 2010:The summer has shaped up to be one the best that we have ever seen. Spearfishermen have found walleye at depths from 4ft to 45ft. The most common depths have been between 17ft and 25ft. The points and areas near shore have had visibility from a couple feet to 25ft of visibility!
Our spearfishing charters have been operating three to four days a week with great success. This has been the best year we have experienced, we have not had visibility under 6ft, and most of the time it has been 8 to 15ft. Our group sizes have ranged from 10 to 18 spearfishermen. The walleye and smallmouth have been more cooperative than any other year! Limits of walleye have been more common than not.
The walleye all appear to be in great shape, most have stomachs full of smelt and appear to be resting during the day in shallow waters in or near trees. The Spring Creek area has allot of walleye that are 20 to 20 1/4 inch long. So Spearfishermen need to be very careful when shooting these fish. You are only allowed one walleye 20 inches or greater. There are so many walleye that you can be selective in what you choose to harvest. Smaller walleye have also been plentiful.
The reports from Spring Creek to the Oahe dam have been good. There are allot of fish but most of these fish are over 20 inches long which poses a real problem for spearfishermen. We are not recommending spearfishing on the Lower end of Lake Oahe. As it is very difficult to shoot a full limit of Walleye while following the slot limit.
Get out diving have fun, be safe, and stay legal! We all love this great sport and will do nothing to jeopardize this privilege we all enjoy.
How we operate spearfishing:
We begin the day with you with a morning briefing where we cover aspect of
the boat, weather and water conditions. On the "dive site" the master
diver will cover the depths and topography with structure you should
encounter during the dives. Normal depths are 15 foot to 40 feet deep. The
boat will deploy a camera in order to establish whether there is
visibility or not for the dive. Most spearfisherman will be diving "solo"
but "buddy diving is required until your skill level is high enough for
solo diving. Typically we do not "back dive" a location although
occasionally the walleye are plentiful and curious enough that we can put
groups of divers on the same spot over and over producing fish!
Normally we "live boat" meaning we do not drop anchor, instead when we
reach a dive site we will drop each diver or pair for a predetermined
amount of time. We require each diver to follow the state law wich simply
put says, "you must be within 75 feet of your recreational dive flag".
Our primary target fish is the "Walleye" They are without doubt the best
eating freshwater fish. Walleye tend to be elusive and require a skill set
for for scuba divers and free divers that can only be acquired with
experience and guidance. There are several other species of fish to
spearfish but the small mouth bass is a good eating fish, especially when
they are from the clear waters of "Oahe". Experience spearfisherman
treasure the opportunity to tackle one of our "monster" large mouth
buffalo carp. They can and do top more than 50 pounds! And of course
walleye regularly are taken over 8 pounds. Your chance for a trophy
Walleye or Norther Pike is the highest later in the season during
September or October when the bait fish have moved from the depths to
shallow water and the large game fish follow them.
If you have a large group of 8 to 14, our 34 foot long 12 wide fiberglass
dive boat will enhance your diving adventure. This boat is highly
specialized for diving and spearfishing, and can carry more than 40 tanks.
Smaller groups of 2 to 6 enjoy our 20’ center counsel boat, equipped with
a 90 hp four stroke engine which will get you to the most untouched
areas in a flash. There is a minimum person requirement of two people.
Group rates are available for groups of eight or more.
Please call Steamboat’s or email
caleb@steamboatgf.com to inquire for group rates and availability.
Steamboat’s is your exclusive contact when diving in central South Dakota.
Steamboat’s Skin & Scuba is here to serve you, our friendly staff and
knowledgeable guides enjoy helping others enjoy our area of the world. We
are extremely lucky with the resources we have and we want to share them
with you!
While spearfishing is our primary focus, don’t think we don’t know how to
have fun without a speargun. We offer a kick ass drift dive, that you will
want to do over and over again. Also, we run charters to the dive park,
and we will help you get those underwater pictures you’ve been looking
for.
A regular fishing license is required for spearfishing in South Dakota. For
all rules and regulations pertaining to fishing in South Dakota see the
South Dakota Fishing Handbook .
Spearfishing rates are based on the dates between June 15 and September
15, a minimum of two people, and allow up to two tanks per person. Rates do not include
gear rental. All dive and spearing equipment is available for rental if
needed.
Guided Spearfishing Rates
| 2 tanks full day | $85.00+ tax |
Includes two tanks-boat-captain-divemaster-fish cleaning and packaging-lunch-transportation to and from our store.
The guides at Steamboat are constantly finding new points and sunken islands to hunt walleye. As the reservoir’s water level fluctuates and winds change, so do the hot spots. We are known well throughout the community as a top notch charter service, which leads to our customers returning year after year.
2010 Schedulebr /> MINIMUM 6 DIVERS
| Monday |
Off |
|
| Tuesday |
Off |
|
| Wednesday |
10:00 am |
|
| Thursday |
Off |
|
| Friday |
10:00 am |
|
| Saturday-Sunday |
8:00 am |
1:00 pm |
| Night Dive |
30 Before Sunset |
|