Best Glamping near Penfield, PA

We have tented and RV'd at Clear Creek. A must do when camping in Pennsylvania. The Clarian river is great for kayaking . Multiple trails off of park. Biking and breweries close by. if you have RV/travel trailer do NOT recommend the non-power sites, they are not level enough, you may really have to bring up the trailer. There were wonderful campsites hosts when we there

Pros; excellent location, great friendly people, clean and stocked bathrooms which include showers. Some sites are separated.. great camp hosts

Cons…a few sites are really close, however not a bad thing here as we got to meet a lot of great people, so for us it was kind of a Pro.

Stayed in camper, tent, yurt, and cabins. Always a clean and up kept park. Lots to do in the area. Don't get caught boozing. There pretty strict.

We stayed in one of the yurts, and I was perfect for the group of 6 I went with. It dumped rain the first night we were there and the yurt kept us perfectly comfortable and dry. There is fishing, boating, hiking, and all sorts of activities to do around the park. We rented a pontoon boat for one afternoon and explored the lake, which was awesome. I will say the "beach area" we visited was less than clean and quite small. However, the trip was a blast overall and if you're looking for a quick weekend trip, this is a place to go.

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.

This has become a very popular campground and reservations fill quickly. We usually try for an entire family outing here once a year in October. Very nice, clean campground on the river. We have stayed in sites and a cabin, but never one of the yurts. Family friendly and not overly crowded.

My family has stayed here so many times throughout my lifetime. We always prefer tent camping, but there are spots for RVs, plus there are cabins and yurts available. It has always been clean, quiet and family-friendly.

There's so much to do here--hiking, swimming, rafting, biking, disc golf, etc. There's also a really nice playground and a great little beach at the entrance of the campground (water is always cold though!) Plus plenty of picnic shelters.

This is also a great place to go year-round for kids interested in learning about nature. There is a nature museum. Seek out Ranger Susanne--she is a really great teacher!

We stayed at site 78 on the Sycamore loop at the end of April in a tent, which isn't the best equipment for this campground. Our site had a blacktop driveway, a very small amount of gravel, and a ton of mud. There was standing water toward the back of our site, and no really solid place to pitch our tent.

It was very windy the night we stayed and the following morning was as well. Because our tent stakes were anchored in mud, our tent blew over and collapsed. Our neighbor's tent did as well.

With the exception of our neighbors, we were the only tents in the loop (the other sites had RVs, and there are 2 cabins and 2 yurts on the loop as well). Firewood is for sale at the camp host site.  Bathrooms are clean and the showers are delightfully warm.

The sites are flat and open. There is a lack of trees, so no real wind break. Each site has a fire ring and a hook to hang food from small animals.

If the primitive sites weren't all booked out (it was the first day of turkey season) we would've stayed there. I'd give this place another chance, but only if we can snag a site at the primitive campground.

We have stayed at Bald Eagle several times and have enjoyed our stay. The park has basic, water & electric as well as a few full hookup up sites. The sites are very spacious with a picnic table and fire rings and are easy to back into even with a rig as big as ours. We stayed recently and the park office was undergoing rennovations and expanding their camp store. We discovered one of the evening talks about the eagles nesting in the park and the ranger set up binoculars for us to try and see the nest. Very peaceful place to stay with lots to explore. The views are spectacular in the fall with beautiful foliage! If you are not the camping type you can stay at the Nature Inn and enjoy the beautiful lodge in an amazing location! Definitely tops on our list of state parks in Pennsylvania!

Stayed in the modern camping section. Easy access to camp ground. The check in process was just to drive to the site and set up which was different but very easy. The sites are private on the sides with some green space to play on. Lots of extra places to park extra cars or bring a second vehicle with a boat.

The kids had fun riding the bikes around the loop and taking the short cuts cut in around the loop. We had fun walking to the foot bridge to go fishing.

The camping area was very quite both mornings and evenings. We saw the park rangers drive through multiple times per day.

The bathrooms were clean. There are no shelfs in the showers (except for a bar of soap) but they had hooks to hang your clothes.

The racoons were a fun surprise on our last night! We left the grease trap from the Blackstone out and the they found it. We did not see any bears though we heard they are there.

We had smoke from Canadian forest fires so haze in the pictures is smoke not haze or rainy days! The walking trails are great. You can see the largest white swamp oak in Pennsylvania!

Definitely check out Penns Cave 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.

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!

PROS

Senior discount $18 

Able to reserve 334 days prior to arriving

Campground quiet but can hear PA 150 road noise 

Great night sky viewing 

Nice privacy from side neighbor's campsite 

Asphalt parking pad 

Large gravel around pad to include firepit and utility hook up 

Grass around gravel, but was mid-calf high 

Metal fire pit which was cleaned out upon arrival 

Lantern pole 

8 miles off of Interstate 80 

Firewood for sale at the campground; $6 bundle 

Park is good proximity to Penn State University and Central Pennsylvania 

Country Pride Restaurant Milesburg (TA truck stop off of Interstate 80) has some terrific food! 

4 bars Verizon 

CONS

$6.50 reservation fee for self made online reservation 

One day while away from our campsite, park personnel mowed  mid-cafe high grass at and around our site and the mowers threw grass all over our table with a table cloth, chairs, trailer, driveway...you name it...it was covered with grass. Why the mowers didn’t direct the mowed grass AWAY from our items is beyond me. What a mess!!! 

Check-in clerk at park office was disturbed we checked in with her. Told us just to go to site. Could not tell us if site was vacated. We had to ask for a park map and directions to campground/campsite since this was first time visiting 

Site MO45 unlevel from side to side 

Site MO45 NO shade as was the case with most of the FHU campsites

Metal frame wood top table in bad condition 

Need pathway from upper campsite to toilet/shower building…have to wade thru mid-calf high grass if you don’t walk on the roadway 

Toilet/shower facility lit up like a Christmas tree 

Toilet/shower facility cleaned on Wednesdays only, according to sign on door 

No WiFi

There is a ton of things to do. Beautiful cabins

First off when calling to make sure we could put a tent on our rv site they told us they would have to charge us for a rustic site for the weekend$99 for 3 nights. So on-top of the$249 we had to pay$99 more for a tent on the same site. Ok so we paid it. i asked A few people& they said they did not have to pay extra! not cool! Woke up on the first morning here&there was a flow of water coming from the ground. It had a bad smell to it& it was heading toward our site area. We had the ground manager come over&he told us"it was not sewage but it did smell bad". He did come back and offer us 2 sites(rem we had to pay for a rustic camp site for our tent) up closer to the playgrounds. This area was literally 20 feet from the pavilion, the giant campfire, bathrooms, volleyball court&playground&our neighbors would literally be in the back of our picnic table. NO space!!! So we choose to stay in our current spot. They did offer$25 off a day. later that day the water was getting worse, it is gray in color! This is not just ground water! Its some kind of water runoff from sewage somewhere. we stopped a staff member& he came over and told us they knew about this They dug it up& just filled it back in. Seriously!? Oh its site 75 STAY AWAY! So we sent that staffer to get the manager about 530(mind you he was supposed to stop by at 300 also). Anyways the mgr never came over. We just went to wash dishes& there the mgr& staffer were playing corn hole& drinking!! We have heard from multiple campers here that this place changed ownership in 2021&they said it has gone down hill! They said just this year the prices have about doubled for permanent rental sites& alot of people are moving out at the end of this season! This should be a huge sign to people coming here the"regulars" are leaving Day 2 I went to the rest room at 3am& the toilet would not flush& i couldnt wash my hands, no notes in the bathroom about water issues. Woke up this morning& was i formed that the sewage was worse& came closer to my tent. I popped out of the tent& it is flowing closer but there is still a few feet before it hits us. Also found out that my friends husband went up to the bathhouse this morning to use the facilities still no water. He walked out& found the manager in a room turning back on the water. He said"i came in today& heard the water was off". He then went back into the restroom&there was water. then went back outside& looked at the door mgr was in was& it was a locked door. only way water was off is if you or your staff turned it off buddy! Our neighbors by us told us that they were given notice to conserve water. Conserving water&taking water away from us(turning it off and locking the door) are too totally different things! My friend called the office and spoke to his wife& she got irate w/ him. Shortly after The mgr came flying over yelling at us to leave(so disclaimer my friends husband did make the decision to stay because he did not want to move his pop up&the new sites were ridiculously small, but he also couldn't just bite his tongue) The mgr& my friends husband got into a very loud verbal match which ended up with us getting 3 hours to leave the campground with no refund at all now. My friend stepped in& tried to reason with the mgr& he said"you guys did nothing, you have been very understanding but he has not". So i get why we were kicked out. it sucks because of 1 bad egg all of our weekends were ruined! Over all yes my friends husband got us kicked out, the fact still remains these owners are shady& unfair! They knew the whole time there was a septic issue& still rented us the site. Not to mention their ridiculous rules which so many other campers broke with multiple cars on the sites& we were made to buy a whole site for the weekend just to pop up a tent on one site(i would have parked at the entrance thats fine!) also, why are there so many photos on FB of the manager and his dad winning 1st n 2nd place with$$ for games? That should be for paying campers. I have showed you inside the shadiness of these people.camp at your own risk! This IS NOT MY FIRST rodeo camping! Ive been to MANY private campgrounds and state parks in my 45 years of life! The rules n regs here are ridiculous. Side note when you call a campground a month before labor day and they still have open rv sites… HERES YOUR SIGN! Will totally remember that for the rest of my life! We made a very bad decision coming here. I hope i can save you your time money and health coming here too

Clear Creek State Park is an amazing little gem right outside of Cook Forest. Most of the campsites are right on the water, beautiful bridges, a great disc golf course, and moderate-to-light hiking trails. I will say that I did have two separate run in with bears but over all a great experience! Would definitely go back!

Clear creek is a nice quiet relaxing family camp place. Swimming was nice. There is a playground near campsites and cabins if you would like one.

I was amazed at the shear size of this campground. It is immense. Granted most of the grounds are devoted to cabins, but the tent sites are great too. I got a lone site tucked half way up a hill, hidden under a dark canopy and at least 500 yards away from my nearest neighbors. Water is readily available. Bathrooms are just as large and very clean. Showers available. Bears congregate frequently. Trails nearby, as are quite a few other natural areas.

This is a beautiful campground with site not far from the Clarion river. There is a stream that runs down through the park and bear rocks has some beautiful views of the forest.

Long drive (almost a mile) into the campground from the main road. You follow the creek into the campground where it also meets the Clarion River. Lot of crayfish to catch in frigid cold Clear Creek and great tubing in the Clarion River. Cabins, RV and tent sites available. I’ll be honest, the tent only loop l, sites 43 and higher are not that great. Nothing flat and very difficult to find a good spot on them for a tent. But they are also the most private sites. Clear Creek State Forest is just next door and offers lots of hiking and biking trails. Farmers Inn is just outside of the campground with great food and Cooks Forest is a short drive away with go carts tubing and canoeing and kayaking.