What's New North of Hill City in 2026: A Local's Read on the Highway 385 Corridor
July 9, 2026
July 9, 2026
Ask a local what's new in Hill City SD, and the answer north of town is not a long list of grand openings. The bigger change is more practical: Highway 385 is beginning to work as one connected local corridor again.
That matters if you use this road for a Sheridan Lake afternoon, a stop at Three Forks, a meal or drink at Cohort, or a drive toward Pactola. After seasons shaped by closures, pilot cars, blasting and changing road surfaces, the conversation in July 2026 is shifting from “Can we get through?” to “What should we expect when we do?”
In ranch country, we tend to judge a road by what it lets us accomplish. Can you pull out safely? Can you see the next curve? Can you reach the lake without building half a day around a detour? By that measure, the Highway 385 project is starting to show its purpose.
The local read is simple: the corridor is more usable now, but it is not finished.
As of July 10, 2026: The active construction area between Calumet Road and Pactola Dam had an oiled blotter surface with pavement markings. Minor construction continued, and final surfacing remained scheduled for summer 2027.
One of the most useful distinctions is geographic.
Driving north from Hill City, you reach the business cluster around Three Forks and Cohort before entering the main 2026 construction zone. The active section begins at Calumet Road near the south end of Sheridan Lake and runs north to Pactola Dam.
That means a Hill City resident heading to Three Forks Country Store, Three Forks Bar and Grill or Cohort Craft Brewery does not need to pass through the Pactola-to-Calumet work zone. That is not a promise against an unrelated delay, but it clears up a common source of confusion.
| Northbound stop | What to know in July 2026 |
|---|---|
| Three Forks junction | South of the main Pactola-to-Calumet construction section |
| Cohort Craft Brewery–Black Hills | Also south of the active section and operating at 23845 US-385 |
| Sheridan Lake and Calumet Road | The southern edge of the active project area |
| Veteran’s Point and Pactola | Accessible, with road and trail work still affecting parts of the area |
This distinction helps explain why some nearby businesses remain easy to reach even when the words “Highway 385 construction” appear in a travel alert.
According to the July 10 project update, the full driving surface between Pactola Dam and Calumet Road was oiled blotter with painted pavement markings. SDDOT describes blotter as a hard, packed surface that resembles asphalt.
It may look close to finished from behind the windshield. It is not the final surface.
The blotter can feel slick, especially when wet, so drivers should leave more stopping room. In mid-July, extreme heat was also softening the oil blotter between Pactola and Sheridan Lake. The road remained open, and crews were placing sand to keep the oil from sticking to tires. Motorcyclists were advised to use extra caution.
That heat notice is a current condition, not a permanent description of the highway. Check the official Highway 385 project page before relying on it for a later trip.
The construction schedule carries another important distinction:
So, no, the project will not be entirely complete by the end of this summer. The disruptive rebuilding is moving toward its final stages, while the permanent driving surface comes later.
A fresh layer of pavement would not explain a roughly $72 million project. The deeper work is in the road geometry, drainage and access.
The full project covers about 15 miles. Its first 5.7-mile phase ran from Pactola Dam north to the Pennington-Lawrence county line and was completed and surfaced in 2025. The active second phase covers about 8.1 miles from Pactola Dam south to Calumet Road.
SDDOT’s account of the project identifies changes that residents will notice long after the equipment leaves:
Those improvements matter on a mountain road lined with private approaches, recreation access points and steep rock faces. For a landowner pulling a trailer onto 385, a driver entering from a side road or someone meeting a bicyclist near a trail crossing, visibility and shoulder room carry more weight than cosmetic changes.
This is why the corridor may feel different even before the final paving arrives. The road is being rebuilt around how people actually use it.
There is one clear change in the business routine north of Hill City: Cohort Craft Brewery–Black Hills is now established in the former Miner Brewing property.
Prairie Berry Winery and Miner Brewing closed at the end of 2024. Cohort acquired the Miner Brewing building, surrounding land and brewing equipment in 2025, then held its ribbon cutting on July 11 of that year.
In 2026, Cohort’s Hill City-area location is operating with on-site brewing, outdoor seating, food service, scheduled events, mead and nonalcoholic selections. The change is best understood as a familiar gathering property finding a new operator, rather than the start of a large commercial expansion.
That continuity carries weight along a rural corridor. A property can go dark quickly when a longtime business closes. Bringing activity back to the site keeps a recognizable stop in use and gives residents another reason to turn north out of town.
Three Forks remains the practical anchor nearby. The Hill City Area Chamber lists Three Forks Country Store and Three Forks Bar and Grill as open year-round at the US-16 and US-385 junction. Fuel, diesel, propane and food make it the sort of stop people use because they need something, not because it appeared on a travel itinerary.
The construction years have produced a mixed business story. Three Forks Campground owner Kristen Kilcoin told South Dakota News Watch that uncertainty about closures and pilot-car delays caused a slight drop in tourism customers during the first two construction seasons. Highway workers staying at the campground also brought meaningful off-season business.
That is a more honest picture of the corridor than saying road work was simply good or bad. It disrupted familiar traffic while creating a different kind of demand.
For residents, the best measure of progress may be how easy it is to plan a lake day.
Sheridan Lake remains the first major recreation anchor north of Three Forks. Its south-shore complex includes camping, beach access, a boat ramp and access to the Flume Trailhead. Calumet Road sits near this southern end of the lake and marks the beginning of the main construction section.
At Pactola Reservoir, the project’s 2026 guidance says both the north and south boat ramps are fully accessible. That is a meaningful improvement over the closure-heavy stages of construction.
Access does not mean every nearby facility is untouched. Veteran’s Point is in the middle of a separate rehabilitation project that began mobilizing June 11. Work includes:
The site and lake access remain open, but sections of the main trail may be temporarily affected. The dirt trail leading directly to the lake remains accessible. Completion was anticipated by mid-October 2026.
Veteran’s Point parking can also close temporarily during rock blasting. If you are towing a boat, meeting family at the lake or trying to arrive at a set time, checking conditions before leaving home is still the sensible move.
The road is usable enough that most trips no longer require a detailed strategy. A few habits can still save frustration.
US385 to 605-566-4041 for major project traffic changes, and consult SD511 for current road conditions.The timing carries a bit of local meaning. Hill City is marking its 150th birthday in 2026, and the Heart of the Hills Lumberjack and Logging Days returned in May as part of that anniversary season. The event revived a logging competition tradition that had last been held in 2014.
That working-history thread fits this stretch of road. Highway 385 has never been only a sightseeing route. It serves residents, businesses, campgrounds, private property, trail access and two of the area’s best-known lakes. Its value comes from connecting all of them reliably.
The biggest news north of Hill City is not that the corridor has become something unrecognizable. It is that familiar places are becoming easier to use together again.
Cohort has brought activity back to the former Miner Brewing site. Three Forks continues doing the year-round work of a rural highway stop. Sheridan Lake and Pactola are accessible. Veteran’s Point is receiving overdue trail improvements. Beneath all of it, the rebuilt highway is gaining better sight lines, shoulders, drainage and property access.
The final pavement will wait until 2027. The practical change is already taking shape.
If you have questions about a home, acreage or lifestyle property along Highway 385 or elsewhere in the Southern Black Hills, local knowledge includes more than a property line. It includes the roads, access points and everyday routines that make the land work.
Ready for a grounded conversation about your next step? Black Hills Southern Realty invites you to Work With Amanda.
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