Dakota Digest
Dakota Digest
Does the NWS record hail as snowfall? Yes. The National Weather Service in Sioux Falls announced a record snowfall amount had been set for the city on July 9 after pea-sized hail fell. The hail was marked as a“ trace” in the snowfall column on a day when the minimum temperature reached 64 degrees.
Tim Masters, a hydro-meteorological technician with the Sioux Falls NWS office, said that all frozen precipitation, such as snow, ice or hail, is counted as snowfall.
“ The overall rule is that hail is just a trace( of snowfall), unless you get into a situation where you get a ton of hail like Denver or Cheyenne. Then you measure how deep the average depth is,” Masters said.
Six record-setting days in July at Sioux Falls have received a trace of“ snowfall” in the history of NWS record keeping. Rapid City has eight days of record-setting snowfall of a trace in July.-- Michael Klinski, South Dakota News Watch
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Mentored Hunting Program Changes
With the passage of legislation back in 2008, the mentored hunting program was established with the goal to introduce youth and continue the strong hunting heritage in South Dakota. Over the past 17 years, thousands of youth, known as the mentee, have created just as many memories with their mentor.
For youth 15 years of age or younger, GFP was looking to simplify the licensing process and regulations to assure participation is understandable and not an impediment to participation.
During the 2025 South Dakota Legislative Session, GFP sponsored a bill and Senate Bill 41 amended South Dakota Codified Law( SDCL) to modify the requirement of the mentored hunter license that resulted in the following changes:
• Mentored hunting license will now be issued to the mentee. Previously, the mentee hunted under a license held by the adult hunting mentor.
• Fees, species, and season restrictions will be established by the GFP Commission.
• Consent from parent or guardian can be written or verbal( previously required written consent).
• Remove hunting party size limits( previously six persons maximum).
• GFP Commission shall promulgate rules to establish criteria and conditions of mentored hunting seasons.
The changes will go into effect for the 2025 fall hunting seasons and the mentor deer applications are now available in Go Outdoors South Dakota.
Recreational Areas at Lake Oahe
PIERRE, S. D.- The U. S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District’ s Lake Oahe Project reopened Beaver Creek and Hazelton recreational areas, located in North Dakota, on Aug. 14 to Sept. 30, 2025. The Cattail Bay primitive camping area also reopened Aug. 14.
Reservations for Beaver Creek and Hazelton recreation areas are now being accepted through www. recreation. gov or by calling 877- 444-6777. Questions regarding these recreational areas can be directed to John Voeller at 701- 989-6430.
Lake Oahe is the fourth largest reservoir in the country and provides recreational opportunities for 2 million visitors annually to include camping, picnicking, fishing, hunting, boating, water skiing, swimming, bird watching, hiking, biking and photography.
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Page 32, Dakota Country, September 2025 www. dakotacountrymagazine. com