Big Sioux River in South Dakota
Around here
Around Big Sioux River
Public land: USGS PAD-US
About this river
Big Sioux River is a 62.1 mile river. Streamflow is measured at the USGS gauge Big Sioux R at North Cliff Ave at Sioux Falls, SD (site 06482020). The National Hydrography Dataset places it at stream order 6. Reach geometry comes from the USGS National Hydrography Dataset.
Typical flow by month
1972 to 2026
Big Sioux River typically runs highest in May, at a median 1,080 cfs, and lowest in February, at 94 cfs. The highest flow on record for any single day is 24,300 cfs, in 2019.
Show the numbers
| Month | Typical (cfs) | Usual range (cfs) |
|---|---|---|
| January | 101 | 31 to 177 |
| February | 94 | 29 to 196 |
| March | 554 | 222 to 1,220 |
| April | 967 | 358 to 2,685 |
| May | 1,080 | 340 to 1,920 |
| June | 794 | 253 to 1,555 |
| July | 479 | 136 to 1,050 |
| August | 261 | 99 to 730 |
| September | 185 | 67 to 488 |
| October | 190 | 76 to 489 |
| November | 230 | 72 to 430 |
| December | 150 | 55 to 348 |
Typical is the median of each month’s daily median values, and the usual range runs from the median 25th to the median 75th percentile, across about 54 years of record. Statistics published by the US Geological Survey for Big Sioux R at North Cliff Ave at Sioux Falls, SD (site 06482020). Conditions on any given day can fall well outside the usual range. Check the current reading before you go.
Boat access nearby
8 mapped launches sit in the mapped area of Big Sioux River, all of them public access. Ramp data comes from the USGS national boat-ramp inventory.
- Rollings Public Water AccessPublic
- Oakridge Public Water AccessBig Sioux RiverPublic
- Oakridge Public Water AccessPublic
- Newton Hills State Park - Lake LakotaPublic
- McKee Public Water AccessPublic
- Big Sioux Wildlife Area - Highway 18Big Sioux RiverPublic
- Klondike Public Water AccessPublic
- Alvin Public Water AccessPublic
Embed this gauge on your site
Paste this snippet anywhere, an outfitter page, a club site, a trip report, to show Big Sioux River's live streamflow, water level and 7-day trend. It reads the USGS gauge directly, updates itself, and links back here.
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