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Crooked Run Campground at Prince Gallitzin State Park accommodates tent campers, RV users, and cabin guests with pets in designated loops. The pet-friendly Red Oak loop features clean, level sites with convenient access to a modern bathhouse containing shower facilities. All dogs must be leashed throughout the campground, with visitors noting the well-behaved canine population despite the constant foot traffic along the main loop roads. Seven Points Campground and Blue Knob State Park Campground also welcome pets with various accommodation options including tent sites, RV hookups, and pet-friendly cabins. The Dyrt includes reviews of campgrounds near Dysart, Pennsylvania.
Hiking trails around Gallitzin State Park's 26-mile shoreline provide excellent pet exercise opportunities, though some areas restrict dog access. Campers should obtain clear maps showing where dogs are permitted before setting out on trails. The spacious lake offers recreational options with minimal crowds even during holiday weekends. Prince Gallitzin features a camp store that sells reasonably priced camping supplies and firewood with delivery service to campsites. Seasonal considerations affect pet comfort, with temperatures near the lake typically 5-15 degrees cooler than surrounding towns. Wildlife encounters are minimal at the campground, creating a safe environment for pets without nighttime visitors to campsites.
"This campground is perfect for people who are looking to get away from busy city life or just want to relax next to a lake."
"We stayed in one of the pet friendly loops of the park. We had a great time in our PUP....bathhouse was clean and well maintained."
from $20 - $57 / night
Check Availability"Adjacent huge cemetery site is accessible via a goat path at the back of the campground and provided a great place to walk our dog every day."
"Located in Rock Run Recreation park, our site (#14) was not the greatest, it had a lot of length, but no real level side room, fell downhill when exiting the camper lol."
from $20 - $35 / night
Check Availability"The grounds are open to hunting and we were surprised by a bird hunter and his dog who was running around off leash, creating a little havoc for us while walking our two dogs on the trail."
"You can go to the beach, kayak, hike, or go outside the park to explore some caves or a bat church. We will continue to come here every year!"
from $70 - $75 / night
Check Availability"Ridge camp is the furthest away from the marina and the public swimming area. However it's the closest to the Allegrippis Trail system and from the entrance of the camp loop there is a trail head!"
"It’s close to bathhouse and playground if you want those. There is parking at every bath house. There is trash receptacles at the entrance to the loop as well as firewood or sale."
from $28 - $200 / night
Check Availability"it’s small, with shaded sites around the perimeter and two walk in sites just left of the entrance."
"The hiking here is really spectacular with lots of scenery, overlooks, and side trails that extend many miles out into state forest lands which are adjacent to the park."
from $20 - $108 / night
Check Availabilityfrom $99 / night
Check Availability"Both RV sites and lots to rent to pitch your own tent, fishing, huge lake with beach, lots of activities for the kids throughout the summer, one of the nicest parks we have camped at!"
"Fantastic lake side camping resort. Best for campers or using their cabins but it has freeway access to the lake and beautiful views."
"The section we were in was “no pets allowed”. My kids loved the beach, swimming was not deep. Beach was big with adjacent playground. Lots of pavilions all over."
"Pets are only permitted at selected sites. There are also 20 (13 rustic and 6 modern) cabins. Cell service is extremely limited to non-existent (Verizon). "
from $20 - $87 / night
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GuideOne of the best campgrounds I have stayed at so far the pond is nice and has a 1/2 mile walking path around it with trees and beaches to stop and sit dog park is big and has a place for small or large dogs there is 3 play grounds all different and all well kept
GuidePreface: if your main objective is activities for children, you have come to the right place. This place is loud and full of kids.
We booked a site but chose not to pay to select which one. All the pictures looked great! We ended up on a grassy hill in the back. The spot was so unlevel there were 19 inches between my bottom step and the ground. This site was the same price as level ones closer to activities.
Also bathrooms were outdated. They had older residential toilets that plugged constantly. The day we left 2 of the 3 in our nearest bathroom were out of order.
Aside from all the above, the Dog Park is awesome. It’s the size of a real, normal dog park. The ice cream on site is also a nice perk.
TravelerMy 3 year old cat and I had a wonderful time staying here. It was incredibly quiet, no cell service (we use total wireless which uses Verizon towers), and I couldn’t hear any of the neighboring campsites (I stayed at #7) even though they were all full. Highly recommend this spot.
It rained almost every day but only for a half hour or so and went back to being sunny. Bring bug spray and tick collars for your pets.
I would recommend bringing firewood with you, as there wasn’t much to collect that was already dead and dry enough for burning. Several of the local gas stations sell some if you want to bring some on the way.
ScoutClean and well taken care of, pretty quiet. Would definitely stay here again but a few things to keep in mind.
For kids the play grounds are run down. Also no real “dog run”. All in all if your a couple wanting to go relax its great, but if you have pets and or younger kids there isn’t much on the grounds.
TravelerThis is one of our favorite campgrounds. Very neat & clean. Full hookup sites & pet friendly. Close to dam where the fish are plentiful. Nice level sites.
TravelerWe stayed during Bigfoot weekend. It was super fun as our family likes bigfoot fun. We started out Friday night getting the offered $12 bbq plate that included pork burnt ends, beans and potato salad that were "oh it's so good". On Saturday was rock painting and then bingo and ended the night with a DJ dance party. The pavilion where all those activities happened were right next to our site (22 with the doggie den). Then Sunday we had pancakes and later a visit from RayCEP which is an education program that PA DNCR provides talking about various outdoorsy type things. This is primarily for kids, but we sat and listened too and our 17 year old helped out with the craft.
After the weekend though, all the activity slows down. There are seasonal campers that stay around, and they're constantly working on improving and fixing up sites during the week. Expect lots of quiet time just relaxing during the week. There's the pool, dog park, bounce pillow, playground, but not tons to do which if you're looking for is great. Raystown Lake has multiple access areas that are probably 15-20 minutes away - we fished at Tautman Run and Aitch - both were accessible and had lots of bluegill to steal our worms.
Now to the site description: Site 22 is a deluxe patio back in site with a patio, 4 nice Adirondack chairs, a double glider, a weber propane grill and built in fire pit AND a dog fence just for that site that was maybe 6 ft x 6ft. it was big enough for our 2 labs to fit into when we fed them. The site wasn't hard to level our RV but overall the sites are hilly and in fact the whole park is on a hill.
The owners and workers were friendly and great hosts! We love what they're doing there.
One last tip: if traveling from the Altoona area, go out through Martinsburg over Cove Mountain Rd - it saves you 30 minutes to an hour.
LegendThis park is a little different and has some fairly interesting history. There are some old ruins as well as an old quarry site. The grounds are open to hunting and we were surprised by a bird hunter and his dog who was running around off leash, creating a little havoc for us while walking our two dogs on the trail. If you visit in the fall, be sure to bring some hunter orange if you plan on exploring the trails.
Now onto the cabins- these are quite nice! They have nice bathrooms with hot showers, a common area with a lot of furniture, a kitchen with large table and full sized appliances. The cabin we stayed in was pet friendly and had two rooms, one with a full size bed and a second one with 2 sets of bunk beds. The heat was quite efficient and kept us warm on some cold nights.
These cabins are not equipped with any type of consumables, cookware or linens. You really need to bring everything if you're planning on actually using the bathroom or kitchen. There is toilet paper though :) We chose to stay here due to its proximity to several National Park sites in the area and it was perfect for us! We will be visiting another state park with similar cabins next year, too!
ScoutThis campground is perfect for people who are looking to get away from busy city life or just want to relax next to a lake. Even though you can't see the lake from every site you can be there within a 10 minute walk. They have pet friendly sites, bike trails, and you can canoe, kayak, and take boats out on the lake. There are specific swimming areas and you can fish just about anywhere. Little to no cell service and there are some local stores/restaurants around the lake within 5-10 miles of the campground but most things close between 8-10pm. There is a camp store with food and supplies available sonif you show up with a text and a sleeping bag they can help out with the rest. Keep in mind being in the woods and by the lake it Ian always 5-15 degrees cooler than the surroundings towns so I feel you are leaving and want to explore the areas outside the campground be prepared for it to be much warmer than expected. I've been going here my whole life (32 years) and it is always clean and the people who work/volunteer there are super friendly and helpful. I've been there during every month they are open and each season is a new and exciting experience. They have a lot I feel family oriented activities and so you don't need to leave to find something to do.
GuideThis campground was our least favorite of the many we’ve been to this summer, in large part because there were so many people! We stayed in 103 RedOak loop because we had our dogs. The site itself was fine, and there were no hook ups - which we knew- in that section. The mix of tents and smaller pop ups was nice. But, if you want to get away and be in nature this may not be your spot. The sites across/diagonal to us started playing movies on their big screen projector Friday and Sat. nights. If I wanted to hear my neighbors movies I would have stayed home. And others in our loop arrived late, close to 11 pm and spent the next hour hammering stakes for their tent. Everything just felt so loud. Because it was pet friendly there was a constant barking festival - our dogs included- because you were basically on the main loop road where everyone walked their dogs with little privacy.
We also hoped to work on Friday during our stay given they advertise WiFi. We paid for WiFi for the day and couldn’t get much work done. We won’t make that mistake again. There was little to no data for AT&T.
We spent a day on the lake on a pontoon that was from 1972. The younger staff were great and all respectful wearing masks. The lake was fine but nothing like Deep CreekMD or Summersville, WV. People were average friendly. The trails were nice enough but they were walking trails around the lake. Our dogs liked that.
If you want to kayak or fish, that’s the adventure you’ll get here. And you will be in campground Americana with 300 other people.
Prince Gallitzin State Park sits at about 1,610 feet elevation in the Allegheny Mountains of Pennsylvania. Campers near Dysart can access several state parks within 30 miles, with temperatures that vary significantly between valley areas and higher elevation campgrounds. Fall camping often brings nighttime temperatures in the 40s while summer days reach the 80s.
Lake activities: Try Raystown Lake, where according to Judy H., there's a "huge lake for water sports, scenic trails, small dirt bike oval track." Crooked Run Campground offers "a beach on the lake, affordable boat rentals, BMX track for kids," notes Jackie W.
Mountain biking: Explore dedicated trail systems at higher elevations. Travis S. mentions that at Seven Points, "the mtb trails begin just above the upper camp loops and provide a full day of fast flowing singletrack." Ridge Camp is "the closest to the Allegrippis Trail system and from the entrance of the camp loop there is a trail head!"
Stargazing: Take advantage of darker skies in less developed areas. Ann P. notes that Canoe Creek State Park has "fairly decent stargazing despite its proximity to Altoona's light pollution." The open areas at Meadow Camp provide unobstructed sky views on clear nights.
Disc golf: Play a round at several nearby parks. Canoe Creek State Park features "an easy disc golf course, which was a nice little amenity," according to Ann P.
Clean facilities: Most state parks maintain good bathhouses. At Black Moshannon State Park, Lisa L. found "spaces are clean and spacious, bath house is very well kept." Nicole F. noted that Crooked Run sites were "clean, decently level area for tents, accessible to potable water and bathrooms with showers."
Multiple accommodation options: Choose from various camping styles to match your needs. Raystown Lake Recreation Area offers a range of options from Sarah C., who stayed at Blue Knob State Park cabins: "They have nice bathrooms with hot showers, a common area with a lot of furniture, a kitchen with large table and full sized appliances."
Wildlife viewing: Watch for birds particularly around lake areas. Travis S. describes Black Moshannon as having a "nice campground with quiet 250 acre lake for kayaking. Good birding." The "big sky view for star gazing" mentioned by Denise D. makes evening wildlife spotting possible.
Educational programs: Participate in ranger-led activities at several parks. Lisa L. notes that Black Moshannon "runs a ton of classes for different things like fly fishing, hiking, etc." Nicole F. shared that "Rangers were wonderful to work with in setting up teaching opportunities for the girls."
Terrain challenges: Some campgrounds feature significant elevation changes. Mary C. at Lake Raystown Resort warns: "Our site had a gravel pad. But the surrounding area was not level and you had to climb up a 2-3' incline to get to the fire pit area. Gets very slick because it doesn't dry out."
Site selection matters: Review campground maps carefully before booking. At Blue Knob, Laura notes "Site 5 was slightly sloped. It's listed as tent-only because there isn't really a parking spot for campers, we just parked on the grass." Travis S. adds there are "two tent only sites that are not very flat (choose another site if possible)."
Weather variations: Mountain weather changes quickly. Brian S. advises at Blue Knob State Park: "Clouds blowing east from the Midwest tend to break on the mountains here, so short little bursts of rainfall are frequent, and they don't always show up on weather apps. Come prepared for short rain showers, chilly air even in the summer."
Dog friendly campgrounds near Dysart: Check pet policies for specific loops and rules. Mark S. mentions at Crooked Run: "We take our dog so there is a restriction on where you can camp."
Group camping: Book organized sites for youth groups. Nicole F. recounts at Crooked Run Campground: "We used the group tent sites for our Girl Scout weekend. It was a fun weekend. We participated in the Outdoors for Everyone event."
Dedicated kids' areas: Find campgrounds with playgrounds. Tim J. notes at Seven Points: "Valley Camp was a single in/out with a loop around the playground." Jackie W. adds that Crooked Run is a "great place for kids! We love staying at crooked run campground."
Beach access: Choose sites with swimming options. A.R. R. recommends Crooked Run: "It's perfect for families. Good trails, kayak rentals, and a private beach for the campgrounds make it a nice vacation spot."
Camp programs: Look for structured activities. Sarah P. visits Canoe Creek State Park annually: "We come here every year for a family reunion and always rent one of the cabins. The park is huge and there are lots of things to do. You can go to the beach, kayak, hike, or go outside the park to explore some caves or a bat church."
Dump station quality: Check facilities before arrival. Tim J. shares about Seven Points: "On our way out, we visited the dump station again and got in one of the 4 lanes with no wait. The dump station had wide lanes and made the experience an easy and clean one."
Site leveling: Research site specifics for larger vehicles. Tim J. continues: "We pulled into Ridge Camp and drove a little bit down a hill to our site. One backup attempt into the site and (according to our LevelMatePRO app) it was perfectly level...that was definitely a first for us."
Power reliability: Be prepared for outages in remote locations. Mary C. notes at Lake Raystown Resort: "We lost power twice. Once a meter overheated and melted. Took a few hours to get that replaced."
Pet-friendly campgrounds near Dysart: Check site layout for dog safety. Steve A. at Crooked Run says: "Really like the layout here, and the k9s love it. We couldn't see the lake from the camper, but in the woods we could see the lake and the camper from the same spot."
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular dog-friendly campsite near Dysart, PA?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular dog-friendly campground near Dysart, PA is Crooked Run Campground — Prince Gallitzin State Park with a 4.3-star rating from 26 reviews.
What is the best site to find dog-friendly camping near Dysart, PA?
TheDyrt.com has all 93 dog-friendly camping locations near Dysart, PA, with real photos and reviews from campers.
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