Left Tailrace Campground
Lake Sharpe · South Dakota · 91 sites
Photos: US Army Corps of Engineers via Recreation.gov
Overview
Left Tailrace Campground is a US Army Corps of Engineers campground in Lake Sharpe, South Dakota, with 91 sites in 5 loops. Mostly open: only a few shady sites. T-Mobile, Verizon and AT&T report coverage at every site.
10 of 88 sites shaded
64 of 88 sites in full sun
86 of 88 sites with clear sky
Map of the campground
Every site from the Recreation.gov listing. Choose a layer to see it across the campground; tap a site to open it in Roam.
Layers
More in Roam Premium
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Questions
Which sites at Left Tailrace Campground are the shadiest?
Only a few. 10 of 88 sites have good shade; most sit in the open.
See the tree canopy in RoamWhich sites at Left Tailrace Campground get the most sun?
Plenty. 64 of 88 sites are open to the south and the sky — easy for solar panels, and warm on cool mornings.
See the tree canopy in RoamWill Starlink work at Left Tailrace Campground?
Easy here. About 86 of 88 sites have open sky for a Starlink dish, and 2 more have a partial gap. Satellite texting on a phone needs less open sky, but still works best from the most open spot you can find. This is our estimate from tree heights — check with the Starlink app's obstruction check when you arrive.
See the tree canopy in RoamWhich sites at Left Tailrace Campground are the most level?
62 of 88 sites are flat, and 24 more have a gentle slope most RVs can level with blocks; 2 are steeper, better for tents. Sites that take RVs or trailers fit rigs up to 80 ft.
See the slope at each site in RoamDoes Left Tailrace Campground have cell service?
Yes. T-Mobile, Verizon and AT&T all report coverage at every site at Left Tailrace Campground. That's the coverage each carrier reports to the FCC, not a measured signal, so under trees or below a ridge it can be weaker.
See the coverage map in RoamWhat’s the weather like at Left Tailrace Campground in October?
In October, expect highs around 62°F and lows around 36°F, with about 1.7 inches of rain over the month. Every month’s averages are in Roam Premium.
Open Left Tailrace in RoamCampground facts
- Sites
- 91 in 5 loops
- Kinds
- 79 for RVs or trailers · 12 tent-only
- Hookups
- 79 with electric
- Longest rig
- 80 ft
- Accessible
- 2 sites
- Elevation
- 1,369–1,376 ft
- Every site
- Picnic table · Pets allowed · Campfires allowed · Check-in 4 PM, check-out 4 PM
- Managed by
- US Army Corps of Engineers
- Booking
- Reserve on Recreation.gov
How we know Sources and limits
Shade, sun and Starlink are our estimates from Meta and the World Resources Institute’s canopy-height model (about 2 m pixels, from satellite imagery calibrated with space lidar; CC BY 4.0). From 2 m above each site we trace 72 lines out to 60 m and note the tallest tree in each direction. Shade counts trees overhead, the canopy within 30 m and how much of the afternoon sky is blocked. Sun counts how open the southern sky is. Starlink needs open sky above 35°, with the northern half counted twice because US dishes tilt north, and we keep the best spot within 8 m of the site’s post. The model sees tree heights only, not trunks, buildings or hills, so check with the Starlink app when you arrive.
Slope is the ground at each site’s post over about 4 m, from USGS 3DEP 1 m lidar: level under 2%, gentle to 4% (most rigs level on blocks), sloped to 8% (fine for a tent), steep beyond.
Cell coverage is from the FCC Broadband Data Collection (carrier filings as downloaded May 2026): each site is tested against each carrier’s modelled outdoor 4G/5G coverage. It is what the carriers report, not a measured signal.
Weather is NOAA’s 1991–2020 climate normals for the campground. Sites and facts are from Recreation.gov’s open data (July 2026). Map imagery: USGS The National Map. Photos: Recreation.gov.
From the campground’s Recreation.gov listing: “Left Tailrace Campground offers 81 electrical hookups and 12 non-electrical tent sites. Electrical sites have a 30 and 50 amp pedastal, paved pull-thru and back-in sites. Left Tailrace Campground also offers men's and women's comfort stations with showers and toilet stalls. Each site has a picnic table and most with shelter covering, fire ring and shade nearby. Tents sites have fire rings and picinic tables. The area also offers large day use areas with shelters and grills, play grounds and a nine-hole disc golf range. Left Tailrace Campground is located in central South Dakota, three miles from the town of Fort Thompson, 20 miles from Chamberlain and 65 miles from Pierre, which is the state capitol. Lake Sharpe was the last of the Missouri River reservoirs completed and follows a serpentine course of 80 miles between Big Bend Dam and Pierre, SD.”
Page data as of October 15, 2026. Full source notes are in each layer’s info in the app.