Best Tent Camping near Girard, PA

the tent site had biting ants, poison ivy, and no privacy. hated it.

Fantastic camp ground for anyone looking to rough it a bit, they have cabins and rv/tent sites located on Elk Creek great area for fishing and great people.

We have been tent camping here since the 90's it was r&k campground back then . We would stay in the honey moon sight. Completely surrounded by trees bath rooms where clean . Cant say anything about the place now hope its the same or better

Quiet park. Some road noise from campsite J100 but US route 322 is lightly traveled. Typical tent site with fire ring and picnic table. Across street from bath house with shower and toilet which was clean.

The sites are huge. The dog park is amazing. Theres so much to do here. Swimming, boating, fishing. We love it. Only bad are no real bathrooms except at the front of the park. No place to wash dishes. Rough if you're tent camping. But we love the sites so much that we keep coming back.

We tent camped here in early June.  GPS had a hard time as there are so many locations referred to as "Pymatuning State Park."  Campsite was fine other than trying to find room to put our big tent.  The showers were great--roomy and well maintained.  Wish there were more hiking trails; unless you fish or boat, there isn't a lot to do.  The Ohio State Parks website is a bit clunky!  Very little, if any cell service.

Stayed here for a girls weekend in Geneva at one of the tent sites. The tent area was small (this is mostly an RV Park), but it was a good spot to stay! Showers and bathrooms available as well as electric hookups. Located within a matter of minutes to several wineries in the area. Entertainment provided during the summer time. Several lakes for swimming and fishing.

Had an amazing 1 night tent camping. When we arrived it was just after a big rain storm and at check in she warned some spots can be flooded. We went to look at our reserved spot and it was super wet muddy and almost under water. They let us pick a new spot that was dry. It was really peaceful. The bathrooms were insanely clean. Didn't check out the showers but I imagine they were just as clean

The location of this Campground is great! Right by the lake with plenty of beach within walking distance! The scenery is amazing and I'd recommend it! The attached restaurant is also very good! We eat there every year as a tradition when we visit Presque Isle. There is also an awesome water park/amusement park called Waldameer just down the road!

The facilities are good and the campground is very nice and clean. However if you are tent camping, it's not really meant for it.. The sites are small and kinda boring. However the location definitely makes it worth it.

Sites are tight but nice because of the gravel. Keeps everything clean. Across the street from the Lake Erie beach. At the entrance of Presque Isle park. There is a a couple restaurants connected to the park and a little store for any needs you may have.

The office is across the street. There is tent camping on the shores of Lake Erie, first come, first served. Staff is remarkable

Bring your bikes if you like to bike.

If you have kids this is a great place. Water park right next door

Only downfall, some of the seasonal sites look pretty bad.

Place was horrible. We were tent camping and the area they offer for that is up a muddy hill in a mud pit. Getting stuck is likely. Even without that, the seasonal campers are nuts. I was driving slowly up the road and this lady ran out in front of my car and stopped (which I was clearly able to do because I was going very slow) and she screamed that I needed to slow down and that I was "driving too fast." I am guessing she was on some kind of substance or something. Don't ever go to this dump.

This was my second time staying here, I felt the need to write an updated review. I stayed in cabin 4 and was very impressed very clean and spacious probably could sleep 8 people. If you are looking for a place to stay while fishing for trout and steelhead this is your spot. They are directly on elk creek for the finest fishing imaginable. Campsite offers tent camping but it’s mostly in a open field. If your going to stay there don’t mess around just stick with the cabins. Uncle Johns is run by husband and wife, doesn’t seem to be any other staff so you need to have some patience.

Relax, breath, and camp. Perfect spot.

This Campground is quiet, full of fun, for families or older people. Beautiful area.
Many pull through lots, with patios. 50. 30. Full hookup, (sewer and Electric) back in, pull through, tent sites, cabins, teepees. Swimming pool, private bathrooms and showers. Fishing lake, swimming lake, trails. Children play areas. Basketball, bad mitten/volleyball, Dog wash, dog parks (2), private fenced dog sites. (2)- pull through site. Golf cart rentals, and seasonal sites that are being updated, but all are decorated nicely, and kept up.
KOA is revamping some of this campground. Work in progress, but awesome stay.

First, I’d like to inform everybody reading that the pictures listed here are NOT from this campground. I have reported the pictures to Dyrt as well. This is the absolute worst campground I have ever stayed at. Driving up to the entrance, I would bet my life that this is a junkyard. It is full of rundown and rusty vehicles and trash. We were brought back to our tent site all the way in the back (we were the ONLY tenters and there was only one RV spot rented so obviously locals knew something we didn’t). Staying there was so unsettling due to the trash, lack of amenities, and uncleanliness that we ended up leaving our site at 2am and sleeping at a truck stop. Consider that - we preferred sleeping at a truck stop Ford Focus to staying here. (The pictures I posted were taken from a google review to show you the actual state of the site).

Wolfkiel is one of two hike-in areas along the Gerard Hiking Trail, in the Oil Creek State Park. Wolfkiel is made up of six(6) Ariondack Shelters and a tent camping area. The Adirondack shelters are perfectly positioned to be private from one another, each looks out over the forest. They are a raised timber platform with a slanted roof and stone chimney with fireplace. There are two shelves and several hooks on the wall. Each shelter has a picnic table. The platform is large enough to sleep 4 people in sleeping bags or set up a two person tent. 

The tent section is cleared and grassy with communal firepit and picnic table. Lots of trees to enable hammock set up. There is a supply of firewood in a covered shed for a small donation and two(2) drop toilets. Water is available in the summer months. The shelters are approx. 15min walk to the creek& Miller Farm Bridge, which joins the Oil Creek State Park trail. It’s a stunning walk with lots of small swimming spots along the way. 

The shelters are approx. 10min drive from Titusville, PA. The walk-in from the carpark is approx. 15min– slight downhill on the way in.

I knock off a start for the neighbor who apparently stays there annually, who stumbled into our campsite in route to annoy other campers. She was visually drunk and kinda ruined our last night. But on the lighter note the man who is the caretaker and owner is a nice man he was kind enough to get us firewood on a night we came back later and had forgot to stop along the way. The lady who works the front desk is very blunt and a business only kind of gal which I like but others may find rude. The grounds were beautiful and for the most part quite. The restrooms near the entrance are their main with showers and in the ladies room one stall. They are dated but function well regardless, there are port-a-John’s around the tent sites that are closer but they are what they are. The owner told us best time to come back is fall/winter and the cabins are heated. We would come back if the lady is evicted or if we can find a spot further away from permeant tenants.

My family has visited Pymatuning park many times now and try have used a variety of spots at Jamestown campground. It is large, offering multiple options for campsite types. It’s a standard PA state park campground offering bathrooms (bathrooms are older, but are being renovated July-August 2021) showers, fire ring, picnic table, etc. Campsites J-106 thru J-116 are well shaded, but are alongside route 322 which maintains consistent traffic at all hours. If the noise is not an issue, this run of tent sites are well spaced, and offer easy access to the facilities. To be away from the road (and nearer to the lake) sites J-120 thru J-128 are closer together but can be quieter (depending on your neighbors…)

The beach area is clean, and raked often. It has a playground and volleyball court. On Friday’s they have a family movie night at the amphitheater. Most Saturdays in the summer they offer crafts and activities for kids at the beach.

The surrounding area also has plenty of activities to offer: Local restaurants, ice cream, hiking, kayaking/boating, fishing, etc.

This was our second time to the Wolfkiel Shelters in Oil Creek State Park. Wolfkiel is one of two hike-in camping areas which consists of six(6) Ariondack Shelters and a tent camping area. The road in was snow covered but easily navigated. The Shelter carpark is small and was almost full the day we arrived. The track from the carpark to the campground is beautifully graded making it easy to pull a sled in with extra supplies. The walk in is less than a mile(~15min). The drop toilets were open, but probably wise to BYO toilet tissue. The shelters have hooks that allow you to hang a tarpaulin to help keep the heat in your shelter, although not necessary, especially if the nights are still. Snow did blow into our Shelter in the morning but was minimal. There is a self-serve timber stack which was fully stocked. A donation is requested. It’s wise to bring your own kindling, or an axe to cut some from the larger pieces. The shelter fireplaces have hooks for hanging pots and pans over the flames. Even in Winter, the shelters positioned so you do not look at other shelters. They are a raised timber platform with a slanted roof and stone chimney with fireplace. There are two shelves and several hooks on the wall. Each shelter has a picnic table. The platform is large enough to sleep 4 people in sleeping bags or set up a two person tent. These shelters are very peaceful in the winter and would highly recommend them if you are keen for some“winter camping” but not keen to sleep in a tent or be completely exposed. The shelters are approx.15min walk to the creek& Miller Farm Bridge, which joins the Oil Creek State Park trail. The shelters are approx. 10min drive from Titusville, PA

They gave us tent site #60, we pull up and someone’s tent is there, we call and she says “go to #62” and we agree, well someone’s belongings were on the picnic table for that site and we thought well it’s probably just the campers stuff that are in site#61 but we let her know about the stuff and she says “oh well a lady lives at #62 in her car so that’s probably her stuff and she’s just gone for the day. I’ll have the park ranger come check it out”our thought was okay….well why offer it if you know a lady lives there?? So the park ranger comes over and says “just go to 63 that’ll be fine” so we do even though we’re a$$ to a$$ with a pop up camper. Shortly after setting up EVERYTHING a med sized camper pulls up and backs in next to #64 and just sits there and then proceeds to come tell us “you guys gotta move we gotta pull up in there cause it’s the only spot with a dumping site I’d call the office if I were you” Which pissed us off as this family just stood there watching us and waiting for us to move . We’re so flustered and confused and sweaty so I call the office for the 3rd time and the ranger shows up again and says “I told you to go to #64” and we like…..dude there’s a pop up camper there we can’t….he says well it wasn’t there before….IT WAS THERE THE WHOLE TIME. We then had to break it all back down and shove everything back into our car hurried and go to the other side in the campground to #35. We were very tempted to just pack up and drive 1,000 miles back home. It ended up being a great spot and no ther campers showed up but was all sand which sucked cause the rain but we worked with it. She gave us $30 out of $60 back for our two night stay and apologized. She was nice and sweet but clearly not organized. Our ankles got bit up not sure if it was just mosquitos but possible sand fleas cause they are very small bites like fleas and quite a few just on our feet/ankles and SO ITCHY. We made the best of our stay but will Never go back there…a campfire grate to cook food over fire pit is $17 and the middle of it burnt and bent so not great quality but once again we worked with what we had. To top it off we ended our last night short by having to hide out in our tent due to a skunk rummaging around a little to close to our site we watched out for it for about an hour as it got closer and closer to us, we kind of made a game of chicken out of it! Haha Sounded like a huge accident waiting to happen considering our dog was with us and she somehow ended up coming into contact with skunk spray only on one of her fluffy ears???

We went to Sara's Campground and walked around the campsite (bayside aka away from the beach and behind the restaurant) from end to end (3 times).  I didn't see a camp host sign or office.  We never did find the main office until the 3rd time when we were driving out of the neighborhood.  They do have a big sign at the entrance but my brain didn't process that they were also across the busy road. 

This campsite is actually on BOTH sides of the road. My passenger spotted them as we were leaving the area after we had passed the area multiple times. It almost looks like they are an extension of the water park for those of us that are out of town. The area is very busy visually so be prepared to accidently drive past it. 

The main campground (bayside) is located behind the restaurants.  The location is awesome as it is right across the road from the beach.  You will want to note that Presque Isle State Park does not have any camping within their park boundaries.  

Sara's charges $30.00 a night and only two adults per tent. The beach camping is first come/first serve (no reservations). No pets on the beach side which may explain why there were some tents over on the bayside (RVs) side of the campground. If you wanted to escape the wind this might be a good spot to tent camp. Also, if you wanted to be close but not too close to the water due to having young children. 

Sara's Diner was closed but seemed to be used for storage for the main business.  We were able to get milk shakes at the eatery. You order at the outside window and then move inside to pick up your milk shake or other food items.  At the other building (Eatery), I asked two employees if they knew where to connect with the campground office but they didn't know what I was talking about.  

We used their cross walk to walk across the main street and we immediately came to the beach.  On the left it was labeled private beach and a wall blocked the view. I didn't realize this might be part of Sara's but also looked like some private property/condos to me. Once on the beach to the right was a long beautiful shore line. It would be an easy walk and carry of beach items. I was hoping we could camp at the site and get a post card to reserve a spot for the upcoming year.  

We did see folks camping in tents behind the restaurants with the RVs. The ground was slightly sandy and they looked comfortable. We looked on with campsite envy. Some folks may prefer this as it is back a bit from the shore so it isn't windy the whole time and less sandy. Either side had easy access to the bike trail and I would have felt safe riding my bike on their bike trail.  It was a smooth paved lane that was mostly away from traffic. 

Presque Isle Lighthouse Open 7 days a week from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.$7— House Tour and Tower Climb$3— House Tour FREE— Walk the grounds Taken from https://www.presqueislelighthouse.org/

We also did the boat tour https://piboattours.com/lady-kate/  This was $16.00 and well worth it.  We were able to learn a lot about the history of the island.  It is naturally windy and out on the open water so make sure you take some layers as it can get chilly even in July. 

We then hit the road to continue to find another campsite.  If you don't mind crowds and noise from the road, RVs, or other campers then this is the site for you.  It has a great location that cannot be beat for ease of access to the beaches.