Will camp here again
Rv sites were a bit tight, but there are plenty of trees between you and your neighbors. Bathrooms are clean and in working order.
Nice place
Nothing to complain about
Beautiful park next to a lake, camping, boating, swimming, fishing...great
If tenting, be sure to check tent on reservation request. Some spots are too narrow for tenting. Cabins are mainly across lake from campground. Only 2 yurts. Two day use areas. Two swimming areas- one for day use, one just for campers!
Site115, right on lake with beautiful views!
Month of VisitJune
Rainy but waterless
Nice park. Some of our "neighbors" were too loud late into the evening. Could have sworn that the website said our site had water and electric. But, it only had electric. We made the best of the weekend despite it raining for most of it and having no water. (We didn't fill our fresh water tank because we thought the site had water.) Bath house facilities were clean.
Camping Trip
Not a bad camping trip. We stayed in a tent site with electric. It was pretty crowded. The sites were pretty close together and covered in rocks but level. It wasn't our favorite spot/site but there were a lot of things to do in the park! The young kids really enjoyed the playground and beach.
SiteTent Site
Month of VisitAugust
Great trails
Well maintained park
Large, pretty park in a very convenient location
Site Details: We stayed in the Dragonfly camping cottage (quick weekend trip without the husband, and I’m not quite up for towing and setting up the popup by myself with 3 kids!). It was a standard rustic-type state park cabin, with one double bed, one single twin bunk, and one regular set of bunk beds, so it sleeps 5-6 comfortably. There was also a sturdy dining room table with chairs and an oscillating fan inside. Electricity/lights and heat, but no AC. Very clean inside. The cabin also had a really nice front porch, picnic table, and fire ring, and was situated with a beautiful lake view. The area we were in contained both rustic cabins and yurts (which looked really neat).
Facilities/Overall Park: Multiple bath houses were scattered among various loops, and each one we visited was very old, dim and drab, but they were also spacious and reasonably clean. Showers all had old rust and water stains. However, it was nice that there were so many of them, because this is a very large state park with multiple camping loops. Most tent and basic RV sites were shaded and private, while the newer FHU sites were more open (but still nicely spaced). Hosts and rangers were nice, but not very helpful or proactive when they needed to correct a reservation mistake they made (but it worked out in the end). There is a beautiful lake with a really nice day area in the center of the park, with a great playground and concession stand. The lake is popular for fishing and swimming, although there is oddly no sand beach; swimmers just entered the water straight from the grass.
Surrounding Area/Attractions: Not much going on in the immediate vicinity, but Harrisburg, Amish country, and Hershey are all doable day trips from the park. We were here just for the Hershey RV show, and it was an easy 40-minute drive.
Overall, this was a very pretty park with site options for every type of camper, but certain elements are in need of updating. I don’t think I’d go out of my way to make this park a destination, but it’s a nice option as a base camp for visiting the RV show or other attractions (with a much cheaper price tag than the private CGs closer to the action).
SiteDragonfly cabin
Month of VisitSeptember
Very nice. Clean & quiet.
We have camped here several times and love the waterfront sites and the yurts.
Month of VisitJune
Awesome place to camp!
I really enjoyed camping and fishing at this campground with my family. The only negative to our campsite was that people would walk through it instead of on the road to get to other sites and to the beach.
Late season camping on the lake
Camping on the peninsula (site 116). Absolutely perfect site. Songle car parking spot on the road then a short walk down a hill onto the site. two tent areas and plenty of prime hammock trees. there’s a small deer trail that runs between all of the sites on the water that makes it easy if you have multiple sites with friends next to each other. there is also a little beach area at the site that makes it perfect for landing kayaks or canoes. there’s also a small dock made out of boulders.
There are a few shops a short drive from the park for firewood and camping supplies. exit the park and make a right. Ther intersection with the gas station.
Nice Camping in a downpour
Our trip was slightly let down due to constant rain the entire first day and night.
The camp sites are fairly nice. they do very much range in quality, so picking out a site on the PA DCNR website is strongly recommended. You can get photos of every site before booking.
Our site was in the pet loop and was set back off the road a good amount which kept a lot of the road noise down. It was very large and Iffered gIId trees fIr strIngIng up tarps and hammocks. We could just make out the campsite next to us and had no noise issues.
We did have a fair amount of trash and broken glass at the camp site that we had to clean up.
Wish I stayed there under different circumstances.
The rangers were nice and the campground hosts were sweet. I liked the dish washing sinks outside of the shower houses. The site was nice with the tent pad backing up to the trees. I would rather sleep in a tent any night over a motel room but this time was different. Due to my father passing, me and my daughter stayed there 3 nights. I will be back another time to actually enjoy the lake and being between Lancaster and Gettysburg makes both places easy to access. Next time I will be getting a site away from the group area. It was nice that the pet area is separate from those of us who don't have pets or want quiet from dogs barking. Some of the groups can get rather loud especially when there are a bunch of teens. It was nice that the pet area is separate from those of us who don't have pets or want quiet from dogs barking.
Site100
Month of VisitJune
Great time camping.
We took our 3 yo camping for the first time here. He had so much fun. It was clean campground located in a State Park. Easy walk to the lake with a small beach. There was also a beach location on the state park side vs campground side of the lake. Boat rentals available. Good sized lake for canoeing or kayaking. We’ve already planned our next camping trip here for next month. I like that it wasn’t a commercialized camping experience. We plan to check out the hiking trails our next visit
SiteGroup site C
Month of VisitJune
quiet and beautiful
the lake is quiet and beautiful enjoyed the relaxing weekend. our campsite had trees all around and blocked the neighbors site made it feel private!
breathtakingly beautiful
this is a beautiful park! great for families. wonderful trails for hiking and biking.and the lake is great for kayaking . lots of things to do. Clean and well maintained
Site159
Month of VisitJuly
Beautiful Lake
Fishing, boating, swimming, camping, walking trails, horseback riding
Better park than campground
It's a nice park around a big lake with big bass. However it isn't a great place for rent campers. I'm sure it's nicer with a camper but what fun is that?
Great day trip solo or with family.
Excellent swimming area. Clean facilities.
Month of VisitJune
Basic amenities and activities for the average camper
Large campground with electric RV/camper sites as well as non-electric tent sites. Several bathroom and shower facilities. Lake-side sites are available and each site comes equipped with a picnic table, fire ring, and parking spot. Friendly staff, decently maintained. There were several planks missing from our picnic table and the parking spot was a mud hole. Some pet friendly sites are available as well. A snapping turtle stopped by for a visit at our campsite and ended up laying eggs! Quite a sight to see, there is plenty of wildlife around to enjoy during your stay.
Site206
Month of VisitMay
Lakeview camping
Overall: 3.5
Bathrooms: 1
This state park offered campsites with full amenities (water, electric, sewer), water & electric, water, or primitive. Also had designated areas for camping with or without pets. We had a water site that was an end spot with the lake directly behind us- #316. We have a teardrop trailer (T@G XL). Spot was a quick walk to the bathrooms.
Campground offers hiking trails, kayaking, boat launches, playground, cabins, and yurts. Lake was beautiful and grounds offered many trails of different distances for both hiking and biking.
Bathrooms: Had automatic lights that went on at dark. Problem is that it was dark in the bathrooms and there was no way to turn the lights on. Bathrooms were extremely run down. Paint peeling off the ceiling, showers so stained - not sure if dirt or permanent mold. Showers were scary - I am no princess but did not take a shower in there. They received a 1 because it was a flushable toilet.
Would go back to enjoy the campground but would bring the solar shower. beautiful birds were everywhere and if it wasn’t so cold when we were there (38’ in evening) I am sure we would have seen more wildlife.
Site316
Month of VisitApril
Large PA state park with tons of activities and a huge beach
Gifford Pinchot is one of the largest state park campgrounds (339 campsites) in PA with a lot of different types of camping available: tent sites, RV sites, group camping, yurts / camping cottages / cabins, and everything in between. We had site 108 which is an electric site along the shore and close to the beach, and it was perfect for our needs. It has a small beach area within the campground loop that we camped in, but the main beach is on the other side of the large Pinchot Lake. The bathhouses / restrooms are clean (about average for PA state park system) and the campground has a very friendly atmosphere - we really enjoyed our stay.
The state park itself has a LOT to offer, especially in the two main day use areas: the Conewago day use area on the south side of the lake and the Quaker Race day use area on the north side of the lake. Both areas have great access for fishing (bring your license! the rangers in this park check), and we caught a handful of bass and an absurd amount of bluegill from shore. Both areas also have their own 18 hole disc golf course, but I will say: BEWARE of poison ivy!! We played the first 10 holes around the Conewago day use area and I was shocked at how much poison ivy we had to dodge all over the prime walking areas through the course. The course in the Conewago area is relatively flat, whereas the Quaker Race course is built into the side of the hill leading into the QR day use area, so it is a lot more wooded and hillier. I took an early morning hike on the 8.5 mile Lakeside Trail that goes around the lake and it was really awesome to see the lake from all different angles. I also hiked / jogged the Quaker Race Trail and that was nice, too, but obviously much less maintained - it was a little confusing at times as it actually crossed the disc golf course in that area multiple times and it was not well blazed. The LARGE beach area in the QR day use area is one of the nicest I've ever seen at a PA state park, with tons of picnic tables with grills, a playground, a volleyball court, and a special fence solution to keep the stupid geese out of the water in the swimming area. There is also a nice concession area to grab some food, ice cream, and drinks that the kids appreciated.
We also did some hiking and fishing nearby in the Boiling Springs / Dillsburg area, and I would recommend checking that area out if you like either. Yellow Breeches is well known among flyfisherman (bring your waders), and TCO Outdoors on the main drag in Boiling Springs has all the fly patterns and knowledge you could want for the area. Before fishing, we hiked the White Rocks Trail a few miles outside of town, and it was a ton of fun with some cool rock scrambles. It hooks up with the AT going through the area if you want to extend the hike. This area (central PA in general) tends to have a lot of rattlesnakes, and we spotted one about 20 feet off the trail in a downed wood pile - cool, but a little terrifying!
Overall, we really loved the campground and this area and will definitely be back.
Site108
Month of VisitJune
Amazing!
This park sets the standard for state parks. It is clean, with great amenities. The park is seperated for dog lovers and those who want to be away from animals. The playground is great too. There are great trails for novice hikers and those who want something more.
At night the stars! What a show! You will not be disappointed.
Month of VisitJuly
Awesome place
This place is only about an hour from home so I take frequent weekend getaways. I always enjoy my stay.
SiteWhatever is available
Month of VisitJuly
Camping and swimming
A great place to get away to nature but also be close enough to stores and things
Hike the trails, close to major attractions!
This is one of the larger state parks we have been to. If you don't like a crowd may want to stay somewhere else. (339 sites, that's a lot of campers) There are a ton of sites!!!! They offer electric sites and traditional camping sites. There are dog sites available! You can camp near the playground and are able to watch your kids play (around site 247) Not all of the sites are spacious but you do have more room than private parks! The great thing about this park are the trails! You can take lakeside trail around the lake (I forget the distance to complete the loop) Trails are good for trail runs or hiking (some single track though so yield to bikers) They offer a Lake for fishing and there is a boat launch! The great thing is you are close enough to many area attractions, including Hershey PA! Happy Camping!
