Best Tent Camping near Homeacre-Lyndora, PA

Our first visit to this campground and we actually found from using this website! We wanted a secluded site and close to Pittsburgh. 

We arrived around 7pm and there was no check in, we drove around for a while trying to find a spot with a fire ring per some helpful campers. There are two really nice spots by the water which were taken, and we only saw one other in the woods (the other 2 were hidden by a large group of people).

We ended up finding a flat spot with some tree cover what was far enough from our neighbors but about as close as a bigger campground. Would be good for larger groups. Ton of flat land for tents but saw some people with smaller campers. Firewood is $5 a bucket and clean and dry. Bring a table cloth for the tables. 

Portapot close by but full bath rooms and showers by main lodge. Lots of tent platforms that overlooked into the woods which would be fun, for a smaller 4 person tent though. 

As another reviewer stated, there was a super loud group Friday night but Saturday was very peaceful and quiet and we met the owner who checked us in and apologized for the loud group and said he was still getting the campground ready for the season. The price is the same for either spots. 

Short walk down cheeseman road to trail entrances to McConnells Mills State Park. Short drive to hells hallow or the covered bridge. 

Overall we had a great time and will be back!

Electric Site 37 - pad is pretty level, plenty for our small camper and truck, on a slight hill to get to fire ring but lots of space to spread out. You could tent but not really a flat spot. We were near the non-electric cul de sac and a neighbor right across but not on top of each other. Trees are everywhere and wonderful during the fall season. We had a big night of rain and with the wind it dried up pretty quickly.

Camp store - small, not a lot in it but may be end of the season items only. Mostly shirts and mugs and very little snack food. The camp store staff were all very friendly and helpful and the store has limited WiFi if you stood in the right spot. There is a laundry room available there as well.

Dump station- 2 way and potable water on the other side of it. The only place to drop your trash too.

Trails - lots of trails to choose from. Some were pretty easy some were a little hilly. My favorite was the fern trail - lots of ferns and a very pretty stream. Hiking poles are recommended especially if it rains.

Playground - is available for kids and a huge shelter house too.

Firewood is $6 a bundle and burns well, no slab cut.

Water - have to go up to entrance as the water spouts are still shut off.

Showers - in womens the shower on the left never got warm, other two were fine. There are 4 flush toilets.

Breakneck is a private campground on the edge of the McConnell’s Mill State Park. They offer RV sites, tent camping and cabins. The tent camping is either grassy, flat sites or on an elevated timber platform overlooking a gorge. They also offer walk-in tent sites down by the creek which are beautiful. 

We were lucky enough to be able to to camp down by the stream. There are designated fireplaces. It is quite a walk up the hill to the campground amenities, but worth it to feel secluded down by the creek. From our campsite we walked along the creek into McConnells Mill State Park and joined the covered bridge trail. Approx. 30min walk along the creek down into McConnells Mill State Park. 

The campground sells firewood and has great amenities. Note: there is no phone reception at the tent sites by the creek. They welcome fury friends!

After getting off I80, our RV GPS wanted to take us on a wonky route, so we followed Waze and the campground’s(CG) web instructions that took us across the causeway on N. Hermitage Rd, then a right turn off on Birchwood Rd, which led us to take a left turn back across N. Hermitage Rd to get back to the Shenango Rec Area turn. Once we got to the CG, check in was quick and very easy. Just happened, our next door neighbor/camp host checked us in and told us we could get water off their site so we proceeded straight to site 199 that’s a back in with electric(50/30 AMP) only plus one of the better spaced sites in the CG. We had to maneuver a couple of times to get into the 90 degree site but the road was wide with no obstacles to prevent swinging into the site. We quickly found out that our 50 AMP connection had issues and after reporting it, a maintenance crew came within 20 minutes and fixed a bad breaker. We got 3 bars on Verizon and a handful of OTA channels. Due to the amount of mature trees, satellite would be iffy depending on your site. There are no FHU sites(camp host sites have electric& water). Electric sites are centrally grouped within the loops and spaced closer together than most COEs. The majority of the sites within this CG are dry camping and they too are fairly close together. The sites right on the lake were all dry camping. With all the dry camping sites in this CG, its nice that they allow generator use during non quiet hours. Quiet hours here are 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM. There are water spigots periodically located within the loops and the CG map identifies where they are. There’s also a two-lane dump station located near the entrance but there is no potable water. There are signs stating no alcohol in the park, but people were openly drinking. We also noted that the contractors who clean the restroom/shower facilities start early in the morning and close the facility while cleaning, which was inconvenient for the dry campers just waking up. If we were to stay at this CG again, we’d come during the week and get a dry camping site on the water.

Campground Review:

This is our 12th Memorial Weekend spent at this campground in the rolling green mountains of Cook Forest, in the heart of the Pennsylvania Wilds. We have a group of about 20 friends who take over the back "cul de sac" of the campground (section 180s) each year. In spite of a completely booked holiday weekend (you'd do best to book 8-9, yes, 8-9 months out for this particular weekend) the campground is spread out, secluded and quiet. Our sites are hugged by tall evergreens and level ground, something not easily found on the mountain. Those on the outside of the loop back to the woods and a couple trail heads (not heavily trafficked) and those in the center are large and have quick access to the section's bath house, which is unfortunately fallen into somewhat disrepair over the last decade. The up side is that there is always hot water and they do clean them daily. There's also a nicely kept area to do dishes. This campground is huge, wood can be purchased on site, and there's a large volleyball court, field and playground. Also included is a stage where various forms of entertainment and education are held. Each Memorial Saturday, a meet and greet is recreated with an American historical figure. Good fun for all. There's an abundance of activities available within walking distance. The Clarion river leads through the base of the camp at the bottom of the hill, and kayak and canoe rentals are available everywhere. The river is slow and serene, perfect for families. There's various park/BBQ spots near the creek and guided hikes during the day out of the ranger station. A fully stocked fishing hole is also adjacent to it. The campsites are portioned off by type: motor home, pet friendly, tent only ...and each area has its own bathhouse which is seldom over crowded. Note: this is a "dry" campground.

Product Review:

As a Dyrt Ranger, I get to try out great new products on our adventures, and this time was no exception. We brought alone the Flite+ tree tent from #tentsile - and it was the hit of the campground. First things first: this is a two person tree tent. It's not a hammock, but a true sleeping tent, with far more support at the bottom and a rainfly. The bottom floor strap serves as a good divider as well, so you're not rolling into each other in the night. You really have your own space and plenty of it. There are 2 exits which is also handy. The campers were lined up (literally) to try it out, each getting their 15 mins in the trees. Some brought books, some brought a friend, and all enjoyed it, noting how surprisingly comfortable it was. You cannot sit cross legged in a hammock - but in the Flite+ you and a friend can play a game of cards.

Pros:

No footprint. This tent really shines on sand and areas with uncomfortable underbrush. It's versitity opens up all kinds of possible campsites.

A mobile treehouse. Who doesn't want to sleep in a tree? The rainfly comes off on warm dry nights to reveal a flood of stars from the best bed in town.

Setup: You'll find this both in pros and cons. We found it initially easier than expected to set up. It was roughly as quick to put up as our pop up tent.

Weight: This tent would be ideal for backcountry. It's so light, my 6 year old could pack with it, and it compresses into a very small footprint.

No guff: the rangers not only gave us no hard time about pitching it to the trees, they commended the zero footprint and were unabashed in their own excitement to check it out.

Cons:

Dress for the weather: This tent is labeled as a 4 season tent, however, you should note that this is only when you pair it with appropriate attire, sleepsack and mat. Otherwise, it gets fairly cold up there. Great ventilation for warm evenings though. Really kept dry under the rainfly! Not a leak or drop got inside. It was actually kind of magical.

Setup: The rigging, angle and strain on the straps is key here. The first day, we thought the tent looked flat, tight and even, however, once an adult got in, it bowed like a hammock. The second day we found a better acute angle that lined up as directed, and found it to be a far better sleep. You could sit upright inside and only felt a subtle bow. With a mat, it would hardly be noticeable.

No ladder attachment: While other treetent models have hookups for their rope ladder, sold separately, this tent has none. Not ideal when wishing to hang it higher than a few feet off the ground. We had to hoist each other up into it at the near 5 ft height we arranged it at. After all, what good is a tree tent if it's almost on the ground?!

Overall, we loved this @Tentsile product and cannot wait to take it beach camping and see what other inventive places we can sleep with it! Whether your goal is the serene or extreme, this tent is a great item to have in your reputoir, and I'd take it over a typical ground backpacking tent any day - especially since it does come with stakes to go ground if you'd prefer.

I have not yet camped here but passed it on my hike the other day and knew I hadn’t seen it in the Dyrt yet, so I wanted to add it for others. This is a hike in or paddle in only campground. The shortest distance is about 2 miles from the trailhead at the Kennerdell bridge, but there are other trailheads throughout the tract also. This is meant more to be a stop along a paddling or hiking trip than a destination camping trip - you must get a permit to stay more than one night. They are first come first serve. There are 8 sites spread out along the edge of the river, some being closer together than others. They are level and clear, each with a new picnic table and nice fire rings with adjustable grates. A few of the sites had stairs to the water for paddler access. The first 2 sites had wheelchair friendly picnic tables, so I'm not sure if you can arrange to be able to drive back for that situation or what other reason they would put them there. That's nice if the case, I'm just not sure as there is a gate locked at the trailhead that's only opened during hunting season. Plus there's no pavement or gravel down at the sites so I imagine it could be difficult to access. But something to investigate. There are vault toilets that were clean and well maintained, with hand sanitizer. There is a spring for water which says to boil before drinking. There is also a big display board with state forest info and maps. Another thing to note, while the travel in makes it feel very remote, there are cabins all along the opposite site of the river, including directly across from the campsites.  This could be a positive or negative depending on your thoughts, I personally would like it because it would make me feel a little safer. All in all, it’s a nice little campground, in better shape than some of the regular bigger campgrounds I’ve seen.

Cooks forest is absolutely gorgeous. I look forward to returning as there are a lot of hiking opportunities we missed. We stayed in the pet friendly area, which was nice. There is a pet trail through the woods that was really great to take our dog rather than walking around the campground. Our site was right next to a drinking water spigot and a path to the bath house. The sites near ours were in a wooded area, which felt more private than many of the other sites we saw. There was a fore pit and a picnic table. Our fire pit was behind where the camper was parked, which also felt more private. There is no alcohol permitted in PA state parks, so alcohol is prohibited in the campground as well. It was a great spot, and we look forward to returning.

My husband & I recently purchased our first 20ft. pull-behind camper. Having made reservations for a tent site for Memorial Day weekend back in February, there were slim pickings when it was time to find a site w/an electric hookup mere weeks before the 3 day weekend. I stumbled upon Bush Recreation Area on recreation.gov (FYI- the website has been redesigned & is still working out kinks) and it was the only campground w/availability. It’s located east of Pittsburgh and is tucked alongside a large boat dock/launch on the Loyalhanna Creek. Motorized boating is allowed and there’s access for fishing from the shore. Some of the sites are more open & exposed (see picture) but others are back in a more wooded area further away from the water. There wasn’t a map for the facility on the website; we stayed at site 18 & noticed the higher the site number (starting at about #25), the further back in the wooded area it was, where there’s more privacy. It’s definitely a great choice for families, especially those w/young children- there’s a nice playground and green space. Reservations are required (recreation.gov) and as of 5/25/19 the dump station is closed & undergoing construction. My husband and I prefer places w/easier access to hiking & biking trails and more privacy, but for our first weekend in our new camper, it worked out well!