Places on the MNRR: A Beautiful Day in the Fort Randall Dam area

The Fort Randall Dam area, at the upper end of the 39-mile stretch of the Missouri National Recreational River, provides rich opportunities for boating, fishing, hiking, picnicking, camping, and plain old daydreaming. Saturday, May 28th, marked a great start to the 2022 Memorial Day Weekend and was a sunny reminder of the pleasures of being on the MNRR! Green grass, blue skies, and an open river — what else would anyone need?

A number of families launched boats from the Randall Creek Recreation Area boat landing on the southwest side of the dam, others fished from the piers or along the embankment, and a few looked out over the river from the eagle viewing area. If they wanted to learn about in the history of the area, some people stopped at the nearby Fort Randall Historic Site and the Fort Randall Cemetery.

On the southeast side of the dam, at the end of a road off Highway 281 through Pickstown, people launched their boats from the landing in the Spillway Recreation Area, fished from the river bank, or enjoyed a picnic.

There are 29 MNRR Water Trail River Access points between Randall Creek and South Sioux City.  For more information, go to: https://www.nps.gov/mnrr/planyourvisit/riveraccpts.htm#randall.

Note: You will need a South Dakota state park entrance license to access boat ramps inside the boundaries of all South Dakota state parks and recreation areas as well as some lakeside use areas