Nebraska Tailwaters Campground, Lewis & Clark Lake

I left Winnie Dam, MN ahead of my brother and his wife, and headed to our next campground in Nebraska 7.5 hours away. Stopped at the El Toro Mexican restaurant in Wahpeton, ND, for lunch: I was impressed by the interesting and artistic interior, especially the colorful chairs and tables; could not remember much about the food though 😄 .

The weather has gotten hot and was predicted to be even hotter over the weekend, with highs expected to reach 106 the next day. The Nebraska Tailwaters Campground, managed by the US Corps of Engineers, is near Crofton, Nebraska, sitting high on one side of the Missouri river. Yankton, SD is across the river, past the one lane Gavin Point Dam bridge (3rd photo below). The Chief White Crane Recreation Area on the other side has access to the river as well as marshy areas that looked promising for fishing.

There were lots of fishing opportunities in this area, I could see fish breaking surface and huge long fish (either pickerel or paddlefish) from high up next to the dam. I was told that the boats on the river were hunting paddlefish with bows and arrows, since June 1-30 was open season on archery paddlefish near the dam. It was interesting to note that non-residents fishing across the campground (past a certain marker) have to get a SD fishing license, instead of (or in addition to) a ND license.

The campground was pretty, although the sites we reserved (no. 3 and 4) had very little shade, the ones further along the road, closer to the bathrooms and showeres were more shady. Best of all, there were no mosquitoes! However, we were pretty much camped out by now and the prospect of fishing in the heat was not appealing. When my brother and his wife arrived in the late afternoon, they decided to just keep driving back to Dallas, stopping overnight in a motel instead. I stayed just one night instead of the two scheduled. The sunset that evening was beautiful. I slept well (the bathrooms and showers in the campground were great) and left early next morning, heading for Denver to visit my son.