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Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Sheffield, PA

479 Reviews

Forestry Road Dispersed Campsite near Sheffield accommodates both tent and RV camping in several free sites along SF-160 in the Allegheny National Forest. Pets are welcome at these primitive campsites, with multiple spots available along the main forest road and logging trails. Minister Creek Campground and Chapman State Park also offer pet-friendly camping options nearby, with dedicated toilet facilities and established fire rings. During winter, overnight temperatures can drop to the low teens, requiring careful preparation for those camping with pets. The campgrounds maintain a relaxed pet policy, though owners should keep animals leashed and clean up after them as standard practice in natural areas.

Several hiking trails accessible from these pet-friendly sites provide excellent exercise opportunities for dogs. The Hector Falls trail, approximately one mile from the Forestry Road sites, offers a 3/4-mile hike to scenic waterfalls and interesting rock formations that many pets enjoy exploring. When camping with dogs in this area, visitors should bring tick and bug spray as several campers have reported finding ticks on themselves and their pets. Despite occasional challenges with navigation (some roads can be confusing to first-time visitors), the secluded nature of these sites makes them ideal for campers seeking quiet time outdoors with their pets. Black bears inhabit the area, necessitating proper food storage and waste management to keep pets safe.

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Best Dog-Friendly Sites Near Sheffield, Pennsylvania (99)

    1. Red Bridge Recreation Area - Allegheny National Forest

    21 Reviews
    Ludlow, PA
    9 miles
    Website
    +1 (814) 368-4158

    $20 - $130 / night

    "For the most part, there isn’t a bad site (although we didn’t see any of the walk up sites, and I recommend not booking a site immediately next to the bathrooms since the ones without showers are more"

    "There are paths leading down to the reservoir throughout the campground. The pit toilets and shower houses are well-located and very clean. There is firewood available for purchase on-site. "

    2. Minister Creek Campground

    15 Reviews
    Sheffield, PA
    9 miles
    Website

    $12 / night

    "Cute little campground with a handful of drive up sites and many hike-in sites scattered along the beautiful Minister Creek in the Allegheny National Forest."

    "Easy access to hiking trails right from camp. Not a ton of distance between sites but everyone around us was quiet and chill."

    3. Chapman State Park Campground

    12 Reviews
    Clarendon, PA
    8 miles
    Website
    +1 (814) 723-0250

    $20 - $53 / night

    "HIGHLIGHTS:

    Paved loops great for bikes

    Lake with small clean beach

    Canoe/kayak rentals (closed 2022 season)

    Several nice playgrounds

    Clean, modern bathrooms

    Several kayak/canoe launch areas"

    "Nice lake provides good fishing. Peaceful and quiet. Very clean facilities and friendly staff. Close to may Attractions in the area."

    4. Forestry Road Dispersed Campsite

    11 Reviews
    Ludlow, PA
    3 miles

    "It rains a lot so keep your slip-ons near the door. Great hiking/biking. The spot next to the hiking trail has WiFi 70% of the time. I would give this a 5 star if it didn’t rain so much."

    "Some you can drive your car in and tuck it back. Other spots you cant take your car at all.   There are tons of logging roads that split off the main forest road."

    5. Dewdrop

    9 Reviews
    Ludlow, PA
    10 miles
    Website
    +1 (814) 368-4158

    $20 - $100 / night

    "The site was spacious and was not close to other campers giving a feeling of secludedness and alone time in nature! Could easily walk to a nearby trail and down to the lake front!"

    "Some sites had large high sided fire rings which take away from the fireside relaxation of a shorter camp chair. "

    6. Kiasutha

    8 Reviews
    Ludlow, PA
    9 miles
    Website
    +1 (814) 368-4158

    $20 - $40 / night

    "There are some GREAT secluded spots IF you don’t have a dog. The dog specific campgrounds are small and spaced kind of close."

    "Multitude of trails to get to lakeshore from different points in campground.

    All of the roads and parking pads in the primitive section are paved."

    7. Hearts Content Recreation Area

    9 Reviews
    Tidioute, PA
    12 miles
    Website
    +1 (814) 368-4158

    $12 - $80 / night

    "Though I stayed here alone with just me and the two dogs, there is enough room at some for entire families. Water is available. Showers are not."

    "This campground is within Allegheny National Forest near the town of Warren and Tidouette. The sites are few but spacious. Good for car camping, though I’m sure a smaller RVcould get by."

    8. Buckaloons

    12 Reviews
    Irvine, PA
    15 miles
    Website
    +1 (814) 368-4158

    $20 - $85 / night

    "It is very family friendly, pet friendly and just beautiful. If you kayak, you can drop in up in Warren and come in right at the campground. Ice and wood available on site."

    "Given its location on the river this is a great place to make several different runs down the river."

    9. Cook Forest State Park Campground & Cabins

    51 Reviews
    Cooksburg, PA
    27 miles
    Website
    +1 (814) 744-8407

    $20 - $67 / night

    "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."

    "We stayed in the pet friendly area for 4 days. Very nice campers, bathrooms very clean. Even with half the spaces open, still felt a little crowded."

    10. Whispering Winds Campground

    3 Reviews
    Sheffield, PA
    1 mile
    Website
    +1 (814) 968-4377

    "We loved the location, the registration and owner/ hosts. Clean, quiet and easily accessible."

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Recent Dog-Friendly Camping Photos near Sheffield, PA

39 Photos of 99 Sheffield Campgrounds

Dog-Friendly Camping Reviews near Sheffield, PA

479 Reviews of 99 Sheffield Campgrounds

  • RThe Dyrt PRO User
    Aug. 16, 2021

    Clear Creek State Park Campground

    Great place to camp

    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.

  • Nicole L.
    Nov. 1, 2024

    Cook Forest State Park Campground & Cabins

    Beautiful

    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.

  • S
    Aug. 1, 2020

    Red Bridge Recreation Area - Allegheny National Forest

    Love this place!

    This is my favorite campground so far in PA.

    For the most part, there isn’t a bad site (although we didn’t see any of the walk up sites, and I recommend not booking a site immediately next to the bathrooms since the ones without showers are more like “outhouse” toilets and can stink). The sites are private, flat, surrounded by trees, and have plenty of space. The ground is quite rocky though, so bring plenty of heavy duty tent steaks.

    Highlights include: the reservoir (beautiful and clean! You can swim with your dog from the access points at the campground), quiet, friendly staff (a kind older gentleman helped us jump my car and refused to take any money as a thank you), updated/very clean showers, not buggy, reception is great (we have Verizon), plenty of room to social distance, and 2 trading posts about 1 mile away with milk, eggs, basic supplies, etc.

    Cons: the bathrooms without showers aren’t flush toilets, and there is no campground office so you must see the hosts for any issues.

    Things to do nearby (last 5 pictures): the Kinzua Skywalk Bridge free- an old train bridge that was partially destroyed by a tornado in the early 2000’s. The bridge is handicap/stroller accessible, pets are allowed. There is a small indoor museum & gift shop, and a hiking trail along the wreckage. If you hike, wear good sneakers, the path is rocky and VERY steep. The hiking path is not recommended for small children). Bathrooms on site.

    The Kinzua Dam free - beautiful. Handicap/stroller accessible, pets permitted. Bathrooms were closed due to social distancing.

    Rimmrock overlook free- just a small distance from the parking lot. NOT stroller/handicap accessible, and there are rock steps, however we saw numerous families with small children go through the path with no issues. Pets permitted. Bathrooms on site.

    Nearby towns of Kane and Ridgway looked cute, but we didn’t spend time there due to our efforts to social distance.

  • k
    Jul. 30, 2022

    Medix Run Camping Area — Moshannon State Forest

    Peaceful Repose

    My 3 year old cat and I had a wonderful time staying here. It was incredibly quiet, no cell service (we use total wireless which uses Verizon towers), and I couldn’t hear any of the neighboring campsites (I stayed at #7) even though they were all full. Highly recommend this spot.

    It rained almost every day but only for a half hour or so and went back to being sunny. Bring bug spray and tick collars for your pets.

    I would recommend bringing firewood with you, as there wasn’t much to collect that was already dead and dry enough for burning. Several of the local gas stations sell some if you want to bring some on the way.

  • Tiffany K.The Dyrt PRO User
    Sep. 30, 2017

    Austin Campground

    Tucked Away Gem

    Found this location while going to Elk State Forest for the elk bugling. Was very happy to find this location. Had clean bathrooms with running water and showers. Campground was tucked away between two mountains and sat next to a creek. Staff was friendly. Plenty of camp sites. Have yearly campsites which is apparent since some of the campers have more permanent structures around or attached to them. Pets allowed. Not the best place for hammock camping but have a few sites with good trees. Out of the main path but nice place to stay.

  • D
    Sep. 9, 2023

    Shamrock Pines Campground

    Clean and friendly

    Called up on Friday afternoon of Labor Day weekend and they accommodated us for two nights.  John and his staff were friendly and welcoming.  Very clean campground with mostly seasonal sites.  Several overnight sites with electric and water.  These sites were mostly gravel and cut into a bank so that there is some separation.  Surrounded by trees but grounds are well kept.  Fully fenced dog park that was great for our pup.  A couple of ponds for kids to fish and what looks like a nice pool.  Quiet hours observed.  On Saturday night there was a band in an outdoor stage that was great.

    Close enough to Ellicottville to enjoy the shops, brewery and restaurants there.

    Only thing I would mention is the dump station is simply just a pipe off one of the driveways with a water hose.  Not a problem and it works, just not typical of dump stations.

  • Jen W.
    Jul. 9, 2022

    Buckaloons

    Roomy and wooded

    We come here at least once per summer. It is very family friendly, pet friendly and just beautiful. If you kayak, you can drop in up in Warren and come in right at the campground. Ice and wood available on site. Dollar general close by just in case.

  • Tony L.
    Aug. 31, 2018

    Parker Dam State Park Campground

    Very nice state park campground

    This is one of our favorite campgrounds. Very neat & clean. Full hookup sites & pet friendly. Close to dam where the fish are plentiful. Nice level sites.

  • Esther B.
    Apr. 29, 2019

    Bettum's Idlewood Family Campground

    Family Campground

    We are a small family campground located in the Allegheny Forest, 6 miles from the Kinzua Sky Walk. Fishing & boating is located off route 59. Call ahead for reservations we have 8 open sites for visitors and they full fast. See our website for the list of planned actives. We are pet friendly.

Guide to Sheffield

Dispersed camping near Sheffield, Pennsylvania offers outdoor recreation opportunities within the Allegheny National Forest. The forest covers over 517,000 acres and sits at elevations between 1,300 and 2,300 feet. Nights in the Allegheny region can be quite cool even in summer, with temperatures often dropping into the 50s, while winter camping requires serious cold-weather preparation.

What to do

Hiking to waterfalls: At Forestry Road Dispersed Campsite, campers can access the Hector Falls trail about a mile from the campsites. "It's about 3/4 a mile hike into the woods. The falls are really cool to look at, and has some cool rock formations. Be careful the cliffs are about a 20 ft straight drop," writes Bob J.

Kayaking on the reservoir: The Allegheny Reservoir provides excellent paddling opportunities. At Red Bridge Recreation Area, "if you bring you kayaks you can launch right from the campground," according to Kevin C. The campground sits directly on the reservoir shoreline.

Star-gazing: The dark skies of the Allegheny National Forest create prime conditions for astronomy. Denise D. notes at Dewdrop Recreation Area, "A night sky that you can see the Milky Way and more stars then I remember." Several campgrounds in the area have minimal light pollution.

What campers like

Privacy between sites: Many campers appreciate the natural separation between campsites. At Chapman State Park Campground, Spencer S. notes, "We did a walk to campsite as we wanted a little more privacy, which was nice, we were fairly spread out while only being 150 feet from the showers."

Clean facilities: Despite the rustic setting, most established campgrounds maintain good bathroom facilities. Kevin E. found Ridge Campground at Cook Forest State Park to be "well maintained, with excellent restroom/shower facilities. Miles of hiking trails accessible right from the campground."

Creek sounds: Several campgrounds feature waterfront sites with natural ambient noise. One camper at Buckaloons Recreation Area appreciates that "the campsites are large and not crowded on top of each other. There are woods between the sites which increases privacy and keeps it really quiet."

What you should know

Bear safety: Black bears are active throughout the Allegheny National Forest. When staying at Forestry Road Dispersed Campsite, Mystic S. cautions, "There's black bears that live in the several caves in the area. I was meditating in my car one evening and a bear stood up and pushed against my window. Definitely be sure to pack up all food and trash at night."

Winter temperatures: Winter camping requires serious preparation. Ian B. reports from Forestry Road Dispersed, "It was freezing, quite literally, with nights in the low teens. The melting and refreezing had made the roads and surrounding trails a little slippery."

Limited amenities: Most dispersed sites have no facilities. At Minister Creek Campground, Danielle S. warns, "While there is an outhouse, it is simply a couple of toilets (bring a lantern or wear a headlamp)."

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is the most popular dog-friendly campsite near Sheffield, PA?

According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular dog-friendly campground near Sheffield, PA is Red Bridge Recreation Area - Allegheny National Forest with a 4.7-star rating from 21 reviews.

What is the best site to find dog-friendly camping near Sheffield, PA?

TheDyrt.com has all 99 dog-friendly camping locations near Sheffield, PA, with real photos and reviews from campers.

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