Best Cabin Camping near Frenchville, PA

This 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!

General: 73-site campground; most have electric hookups, and some are FHU. 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). 

Site Quality: Pads are gravel and most appeared to be level. Site 70 was at the end of the loop which is why we picked it. A picnic table, fire ring, and lantern hook complete each site. 

Bathhouse: As has been our experience in all PA state parks, the bathhouse was pristine, and the shower (for no additional cost) was clean with plentiful hot water and was very much appreciated. 

Activities/Amenities: Coin-operated laundry. A playground is in the campground and there is an additional one at the swimming beach. The swimming beach is open from mid-May to mid-September, from 8 am– sunset. Electric motorboats are permitted on Moshannon Lake. Boat rentals are available in season. Permits are required. 24 miles of hiking trails, including two trails directly from the campground to the lake. In the summer, there is a camper store/concession stand. Hunting is allowed in season. There are 4.3 miles of mountain biking trails. 

I used to think Oregon State Parks were the best, but Pennsylvania State Parks have them beat by a mile. We have yet to be disappointed by the amenities(especially the clean bathrooms) offered at the half-dozen state parks we have visited so far.

Nice, clean, friendly/accommodating staff and the prices were reasonable for the accommodations. My Outdoor Adventure Algorithm is:(Drink+Fire+Lean-To)-(Rules+Regulations+Fees)/(Crowd-Privacy)*(Isolation*Acceptability of loud, primal, Forest-Man behavior)=Camping. While you won't mistake yourself for a member of the Donner Party, you'll also be comfortable, watching Dish, cooking on a gas stove or microwave inside(fire-ring out), with cold food/drinks and ice from the'big' mini-fridge. Bunk room had 2 bunk beds, each with a full size mattress AND room to move, plus good natural light. Living/dining area is large with a wall-mounted tv, rustic wood dining set, storage room and hooks/hangers, good natural light, as well as sufficient artificial direct and ambient lighting.Comfortable couch pulls out into a comfortable bed. Large covered front porch with again more lighting and a hanging swing. Parking is driveway-close, and they're pretty mellow about blazing conflagrations(IF it's under control) so you can get a REAL bed of coals to properly cook.They also have used/re-purposed camping/RV/tailgating items for sale( some free). It would even make a good event-specific yard-sale trip. Overall, a damned nice hotel in the woods. Not a survivalist challenge or hXc camping experience; just a clean, safe getaway for a game, Arts Fest, or just a time-out

General: This Park is spread out along the Clarion River and, as such, is deceptively large. There are electric and non-electric sites, as well as cabins. On a Friday night in late October, it was nearly full. One man we spoke with said he raised his kids coming to this campground and that it is often challenging to reserve a site unless done far in advance (I believe I reserved about three months ahead of time). 

Site Quality: The sites vary in size and quality. All have either rock or grass “driveways”. A picnic table, fire ring, and lantern hook complete the site. Some sites are tucked in among large pine trees, some are directly on the river, and the non-electric sites are up a hill away from the river and shaded. 

Bathhouse: The one at the very end of the campground was modern and very clean. The showers looked very clean, but we did not use them. 

Activities/Amenities: Several hiking trails, a disc golf course and, in-season, a swimming pond and canoeing. Unfortunately, we woke to rain the next morning that looked like it was going to stick around for a while, so we did not get to explore as much of this park as we would have liked. 

Conclusion: Our stay was nice but brief and it would be nice to return.

A Pennsylvania favorite, Clear Creek State Park is a beautifully maintained, scenic park, right on the Clarion River in the Clear Creek State Park. The Park offers movies on an outdoor screen, regular nature talks and walks and has an onsite museum. The park has tent sites, RV sites and cabins. Clear Creek runs through the campground and is a perfect spot for a BBQ or Picnic. It also has a designated swimming beach with sand. There are multiple hiking trails leaving the campground. There is a general store just 5min from the park, plus multiple private firewood options on the road in. The park also sells firewood bundles. The Clarion is a crystal clear, shallow, rock bottom river perfect for a cool off, fishing or kayaking. There are two kayaking/tubing companies in Cook Forest to hire watercraft to float the river. Both floats don’t go as high as Clear Creek State Park so you won’t float past the campground, with the longest being 9 miles. The facilities are always clean, with large shower areas and always fully stocked with tissue. All sites have fire rings with adjustable grills. The best un-powered RV site is site 40– private and waterfront. The best powered-RV site is 39– private and waterfront. There are also two very private tent sites that are waterfront(classified as Kayak In tent sites) numbered CR-001& CR-002. Both waterfront, shaded with fire rings. Excellent tent sites! Note you can only book them for 1 night at a time. No phone reception at this one! They welcome furry friends at selected sites!

The park is on the scenic Clarion River and offers tent camping, some sites are paddle in only, RV sites, small and larger rustic cabins, and even a couple of yurts. It’s very well maintained, including the restroom/shower houses which were very clean. The upper loop tent sites are a bit more secluded and there is plenty of space for the larger cabins. The smaller cabins are more clustered but we enjoyed staying in them on a couple occasions. Be sure to bring kayaks or inner tubes for lazy hours on the river. There are kayak rentals nearby also. The Clarion River is full of wildlife including bald eagles hunting the river and an occasional black bear nearby.

Be sure to visit Beartown Rocks that is close by. It offers a nice view of the rolling hills of Pennsylvania.

While I understand that Memorial Day is a very busy camping weekend, I was hoping that due to the coronavirus that this spot would be less crowded given the restrictions in place.  Our loop had approximately 50 sites with roughly 200 people on it, minimum.  The concept of social distancing here is a joke and the only evidence of there being a pandemic was the sign in the bathroom that stated to stay 6 feet apart and masks being a requirement in all park buildings… with no enforcement whatsoever.  That said, sites are on the small side with a fire ring and a picnic table.  All vehicles MUST back into the parking spaces, and all parking spots are blacktop.  There is a camp store and a bundle of decent hardwood will cost $6; they do accept cards with a $10 minimum.  The city of Altoona is about 30 minutes away for more extensive shopping.  There is a marina and boat rental on the lake about a 10 minute drive away.  Bathrooms are very clean and the push button showers have excellent water pressure.  Drinking water is dispersed throughout each loop.  Pets are allowed on certain loops.

Stayed for 5 nights with a partial hook up for our brand new 32 foot travel trailer. Other reviewers had mentioned that sites were small, so we specifically asked for a larger site. We ended up getting a corner site right on the edge of a hill looking down on the main office and playground. It was perfect. Playground was huge with multiple playsets suitable for all ages. Bathrooms/showers we're clean and well kept. There was a basketball court, shuffleboard and carpet pool that you could borrow equipment for. Our son and his family rented a wolf den cabin and it was very clean as well. Internet access was spotty, as expected but WiFi at the main office was good. We enjoyed the small, but very clean pool. Would definitely go back. Pet friendly, but there isn't a dog park/off leash area. Staff were friendly and helpful. Right across the street from little pine state park.