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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 people for diving lake Oahe, the
"Horizon" our 34 foot long 12 wide fiberglass
dive boat will enhance your diving adventure. This boat was custom built
for diving and spearfishing the costal waters along with the open ocean, and can carry more than
60 tanks.
The "Capital City Queen" our 36 foot long and 14 foot
wide river boat is used for diving on the river. She is a 36 passenger
custom built river boat with plenty of room for the family, friends and
equipment.
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 | $255+ tax |
| Night Dive | $185 + 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.
MINIMUM 8 DIVERS