Best Tent Camping near Jersey Shore, PA

My family of 4 tent camped here for the weekend. Everyone at this campground was so friendly and nice. The staff really tried to make our stay comfortable. I noticed there was always a staff member driving around in a golf cart, checking on things. The bathrooms were very clean and maintained the whole weekend. The firewood sold at the camp store was only$5 for a large bundle and burned very well. Some campgrounds seem to sell "wet" wood that is hard to light. My only negative comment would be this is more of an RV park. If you do tent camp you should know you will be out in the open, no trees around your site and NO privacy. I will say the tent sites are huge and you can park 2 cars at each one. We made the best of it. We stayed in site 404

Rustic campsites, pretty quiet, great lake nearby. We enjoyed it over a three day weekend doing tent camping with our two bulldogs.

Tent camped here one night, perfect for a quick little stopover. As other reviewers mention, it’s right near a road so you hear car (and horse & buggy!) noise — would try to get a spot further away from the road if possible. Pretty clean bathroom, easy self-registration process, and not too many folks!

We stayed at a tent site, T35 and it was wonderfully secluded. The site itself was fairly uneven and rocky so we had to always use caution when walking around the site but it added to the rugged experience. There are 3 sets of vault toilets around the one way loop and they seemed clean but definitely smelled like vault toilets do. There are usually a lot of spigots around the campsite to get water but right before we left for our trip I got a notification that there was a waterline issue and there would be centrally located water. It ended up being a big portable water truck near the first set of vault toilets on the loop. The primitive campsite is a mix of RV and tent sites and has a good mix of both. The tent sites are definitely more secluded and situated back in the woods, you do have to walk a small path to get to your site and the parking is on the road. We really enjoyed our long weekend kayaking, swimming in the lake (there is a really nice beach on the other side of the lake) and just generally relaxing at our campsite. The rest of the park is situated about a 10 minute drive across the lake. Firewood is very accessible and some right at the beginning of the loop (cash only). Overall we really enjoyed the campsite as well at the State Park, it has a lot to offer.

We go here every year. Electric hook up, and very nice tent sites along creek. Does get crowded on nice weekends but mostly families. A short drive down to pine creek rails to trails. Beautiful ride through creek canyon. Nice little store at entrance, and several hikes from park.

Nice campground, wooded sites and most were okay for tent camping however some required your tent to be set up a small distance from the fire ring. Clean showerhouses and bathrooms. Big Lake and a few miles of hiking and biking trails right from the campground.

The Iron Ore mines from the past have left the creek water stained red which is why its called the Red Mo with the locals.

Make a reservation way ahead of your date as this campground is very popular and sites book early. It has sites to accommodate any R.V. and lot of tent sites. The lake has lots to offer. Swimming, boating, fishing, wildlife watching and a big sky view for star gazing.

I would recommend this campground. It's very peaceful and relaxing. Tent site was a good size. We had water and electric. Pricing was reasonable. The pool was very nice.. along side the river is nuce to be by.. Campground employees as well as other campers were a delight to be around. It's neat that there is a restaurant in the campground too.

We booked a tent site, and there was only one small patch of grass where we could set up our tent. But the people next to us were in a big group and already had their tents set up very close to our grass, and we didn't feel comfortable camping that close to people. My brother had an RV site, so we went down to his and set up our tent there and it was much nicer. The fire pits are very nice, and the hiking trails in the park are great.

Beautiful campgrounds with spacious camp sites. Well maintained bathroom and firewood plus ice available at the entrance (this is a great plus for those car/tent camping.

extremely close to the rothrock forest mountain biking trails. Less than a mile to trails that take you to the IMBA epic coopers gap loop.

Campgrounds and surround park area were well maintained with a few picnic shelters, a beach and sand volleyball courts. Camp was full and all day use areas were occupied during our stay.

This state park is beautiful and I consider it a semi-hidden gem. It's our favorite place to tent camp. It's rarely busy and it's first come first serve. They have tent pads which are nice but we have a 10x20 tent so we pick a site that the pad is flush with the surrounding ground. There are bushes and trees between the sites and it feels very private. Sometimes it can feel too secluded but the park ranger drives through a number of times. They are always very friendly. There is no electric but there are spots to get water even placed throughout. The bathrooms are clean and we've never run into any issues. There is some nice hiking here and lots of nature to explore.

Great place to stay, lots to do in the area including other state parks and forests. Hiking, swimming, taking in the views. Small streams mean tons of bugs, but not much worse than the rest of PA. We stayed in the cabin in winter but we've also done a day visit in the summer. Really pretty tall pine trees in a lot of the campgrounds. Didn't stay in tent sites but they seemed rather spread out for a state park campground. Everything clean and well cared for.

I don’t understand how anyone can say the owners are rude! I just don’t get it…they have been outstanding since they took over and have made some great improvements! That aside, I love this campground! It is my escape away from technology and my time to be one with nature. We tent camp and love the sites as they are right on the creek, a few have direct access to the creek if you have kayaks which is awesome! The views to be had are amazing and lots of hiking in the area, well known for trout fishing, and kayaking! 

The campground is clean, organized, has rules, and is quiet! The rules are enforced, which makes it better for everyone! 

We try to make a trip up there annually, weather permitting, sometimes twice a year. Never had a bad experience and am grateful for the time we get to spend up there!

This is a wonderful little campsite primarily catering the seasonal RVer. With that said they do have primitive camping spots next to the putt putt course and water only tent sits at the upper feild. There are also water/electric sites in a loop behind the honeymooner cabins, and they have teh best shade and set up for hammock camping.

The ferry here is real, and has been in operation for the last 100+ years

There is a small goat petting zoo, with very friendly pigmy goats and the camp is extremely pet friendly as long as they are on a leash.

There is the typical camp store, and in addition there is the icecream store next to the river. Across the street is a local winery with the best views of the river around.

The campsite fills quickly on the weekends, kayakers and fishers, and motorboats use this as the weekend home and mini family vacation spots.

The showers are located in the RV section of the campground, so you will have to walk a bit if you are tent camping.

There are horse stable available as well on site.

I’ve stayed here twice for camping trips. It’s a great small campground that has basic amenities. The experience is likely highly site dependent, as there are a few distinct areas to stay depending on your needs and luck. There is NO cell service and park rangers do “rounds” but aren’t stationed at the site. There are a couple of water pumps, several well-maintained pit toilets, and an emergency phone. It’s about 20-30 min to gas. There’s no camp store here but about 3.5 miles away at Poe Valley there’s a store, real bathrooms and showers, kayaking rentals, etc. There’s a guy that sells firewood just past Poe Valley. The Poe Paddy sites I prefer are well-shaded, fairly large, surrounded by trees, and private (but you’ll be able to hear a couple neighbors). Dogs are only allowed in the RV loop, which is intense gravel, so be sure you have a good sleeping pad if you’re tent camping. The campground is in the middle of the dense Bald Eagle State Forest with lots of hiking opportunities. The creek that runs through Poe Paddy is awesome for wading and people also tube it when conditions are right. Get a Purple Lizard map for best enjoyment of the area.

Lyman Run holds a special place for me. It’s nestled within the gold level dark sky area. This means on a clear night and with a waning or new moon, one could see the arm of the Milky Way with millions of stars- more than most people see in a lifetime. The camp sites are a bit rough- there are two loops, with one loop catering to the mostly RV crowds and the remaining one for tents. There are a few really good and shaded tent sites in the RV loop. The location of the park is near Cherry Springs SP, which gets all the attention for the night sky viewing. We were able to use Lyman Run as a way station as we visited Kinzua, the PA Grand Canyon, and other sites in the PA Woods area. There’s even a chance to watch elk nearby. Each site has a fire ring, with wood available nearby. Amenities include a beach at a nearby lake, warm showers, and good hiking trails. There is a general store nearby, but the nearest town is almost 45+ minutes away. But hey, there’s a Fox’s Pizza there, so ... win? Since Cherry Springs (at the time of this writing) does not take reservations, we opted for the sure thing. Tent pads are well taken care of and the bathrooms are clean. This park is worth the time and view- you will not be disappointed.

I throughly enjoyed my time at Bald Eagle State Park. We stayed at a tent site, I believe 58 in the rustic camping section. The rustic section was located around a large loop with each site ranging in a few feet from the car-friendly loop to about the 50 foot walk where our site was located. While this is a primitive site, planning ahead you can place yourself near the vault toilets. If there was running water in the bathrooms– we didn’t find it! There are several water pumps located around the loop and we used that for washing dishes. Our site had space for two tents with a nice fire ring and picnic table. The fire ring was actually one of the best I have experienced– featuring a grill grate with adjustable levels for exposure to heat. The site also had a hook for keeping food or garage elevated from critters. Hammock lovers: we had plenty of trees to easily string our hammock near the picnic table/fire ring. Now the trains. An active railroad sits about 75 feet away from several of the rustic sites. We noticed the 7 p.m. train on Saturday evening. What we didn’t expect was being awoken at 5 a.m. to a freight train blowing through full steam– really gets your heart pumping– did not need coffee that morning. The rustic area also has access to a trail that loops about two miles near the lake and rustic campground. It was a fun place!