Hearts Content Recreation Area
We don’t think it should be. Every campground should hold some sites for whoever drives up.Tell your representative →
- Right now
- OpenThe agency lists it open
- A night
- $12From, per site
- Sites
- 27All of them booked ahead
- Season
- January 1 – December 31Open January 1 through December 31
The place
the agency’s own description · what’s there · 12 notices
In the agency’s own words
Hearts Content Campground is a semi-primitive family campground bordering the Hickory Creek Wilderness Area and surrounded by native hardwoods and a patch of planted pine forest. There is a large open field and amphitheater that is suitable for other games near the campground entry, and another large field at the back of the campground that serves as both group camping sites and a helispot. Hearts Content Campground is operated under a concession permit by Allegheny Site Management. Keep reading
Recreation
Cross-country Ski Trail: This 6.4 mile (10.5 km) trail utilizes old railroad grades, roads and existing trails to form several loops for your skiing pleasure. The Wheeler Loop Trail goes through the campground and connects to the Tom's Run and Ironwood trails in the Hearts Content Scenic Area. These trails are marked with blue plastic diamonds on the trees. Hickory Creek Wilderness: The trailhead is located approximately 1/4 mile north of the campground entrance. This 8,663-acre area provides opportunities for solitude and a primitive and unconfined type of recreation as a refuge from our highly modified and technological world. No motorized equipment of any kind and no mechanical transports are permitted. A 13-mile loop hiking trail weaves its way through the rolling terrain, climbing in and out of the valleys. It is sparsely marked and maintained to promote a feeling of wildness and the unknown. It may not be suitable for novice hikers - please know your limitatons and do not add markings to help with way-finding. Orienteering Course: Enjoy this self-guided course that allows you or your group to follow, at your leisure. It is a permanently marked route as an introduction to the sport of orienteering. It starts in the Hearts Content Scenic Area.
Facilities
Each of the 26 family campsites contains a picnic table, fire ring and tent pad/RV spur. Two sites also have lean-to shelters. Vault toilets and pressurized water are available. A dump station is located at the exit. There’s lots of open area. Campsites can be reserved or available on a first-come, first-served basis only.
Natural Features
North of the campground, Hearts Content National Scenic Area is located next to the picnic area across the road. Here stands the remnants of a 300 to 400 year old stand of white pine, hemlock, and beech. Time, insects, and disease are changing the look and nature of this stand. The Interpretive Old Growth Trail starts at the north end of the east side parking lot and winds about one mile through the timber stand before returning to the picnic area. All facilities in the day use area are universally accessible to people with disabilities. Facilities include a picnic area, pavilions, toilet and interpretive materials. South of the campground is Hickory Creek Wilderness, an 8,633 acre second-growth forest of dense trees and ferny undergrowth. This area is managed to let natural processes determine what it will be in the future. Wind, insects, disease, and drought are all shaping the species composition of the trees and understory, which will in turn determine what species of wildlife will inhabit this area. A roughly 14-mile trail traverses the plateau of the area, with the trailhead located approximately 1/4 of a mile north of the campground entrance. The trail is only occasionally marked and may not be suitable for novice hikers. Contact Info For facility specific information, please call (814) 362-4613.
Charges & Cancellations
Cancellations and changes must be made through Recreation.gov
What the agency tells you
Fee includes two vehicles and one wheeled camping unit; a $5/vehicle fee will be collected for extra vehicles at the campground.
Some sites are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Parking is limited.
Everything else this campground posts · 9
Pets must be on a leash at all times and cannot be left unattended. Please clean-up after your pets
This campground is managed by concessionaire permit. Please visit the Allegheny Site Management website at http://www.alleghenysite.com/
Click here to learn more about the Allegheny National Forest.
Don't move firewood: To limit the spread of invasive tree-killing pests, firewood from outside the area is not permitted. Some states have quarantines and may confiscate your firewood. Please help protect our forests from invasive species by obtaining your firewood at or near your camping destination and burning it on-site. Visit dontmovefirewood.org for more information.
Please build fires only in the fire ring or grill provided. Dead material down on the ground can be used for fires but live trees, shrubs, and plants must not be cut or damaged.
Interagency passes are accepted at most sites and are valid for the pass holder only. Pass holder must occupy the site.
It is illegal to discharge weapons, firearms, or fireworks within the Recreation Area.
Check out time is 12:00 pm. Camping fees must be paid within 30 minutes after arrival - don't forget to put your site number and license plate number on your fee envelope.
Please place trash in provided receptacles. Do not burn trash or waste food in the fire ring. This invites wild animals into the campground.
Tents and rigs
- Sites
- 27 · 1 group, 2 cabin
- Hookups
- None
- Longest rig
- 45 ft
- Accessible sites
- None listed
- Pets
- Allowed
- Campfires
- Allowed, barring fire bans
Facilities
- Toilets
- Vault Toilets
- “…Two sites also have lean-to shelters. Vault toilets and pressurized water are available. A dump station…”
- Dump station
- Yes
- recreation.gov lists “Rv Sanitary Dump Station”
- Store
- Nearby
- Camp host
- On site
- recreation.gov lists “Host”
- Stay limit
- 14 nights
- recreation.gov facility rule maxStay
Around the campground
- On the water
- Creek
- Hiking
- Winter sports
- Night sky · 3rd darkest of 48 in PA
- Bortle 3
- Fall color · reported 2 days ago, in Warren County
- Peak color
Full this Saturdayread 16:39 UTC
How full the weekend is nationally.
OpenBooked
Every one of the 11 sites on offer is taken this Saturday. 10 are free on Wed, Oct 21. read 16:39 UTC Why the weekend fills and the week doesn’t
Watch for a cancellation
Watch this campground
One email when a night opens, plus More Than Just Parks dispatches. Unsubscribe any time.
We read recreation.gov once an hour, at 40 minutes past, and write the first time a site in your window is free for the nights you asked for.
Scanners that check every few minutes exist, and most of them charge. This one is free, it reads the same calendar, and it won’t always be first.
Tell me when the season opens
Watch for the season to open
One email when the season goes on sale, plus More Than Just Parks dispatches. Unsubscribe any time.
We check once an hour, at 40 minutes past, and write the first time the agency has that season on sale.
Scanners that check every few minutes exist, and most of them charge. This one is free, it reads the same calendar, and it won’t always be first.
We make nothing when you book. The link goes straight to the government.
Every line of the receipt · 14
What you actually pay
“a $5/vehicle fee will be collected for extra vehicles at the campground.” · the U.S. Forest Service’s own agency notice
Derived by CAMPANAC: the agency’s published rate for this season, $12 a night, plus one $8 recreation.gov reservation fee for the booking. A weekend here means Friday and Saturday night, booked once. Optional charges (an extra vehicle, a second tent, a dump-station fee) are listed separately and aren’t in this total.
“Cancellations and changes must be made through Recreation.gov” · this campground’s own terms
Who keeps the booking fee
The agency’s own policy text says the reservation fee and the cancellation processing fee are “retained by the reservation service contractor”, and that a campground concessionaire will decline to refund them because “they did not receive these fees”. Recreation.gov is run under contract by Booz Allen Hamilton. What share of your booking fee the contractor keeps isn’t published in any federal dataset we can read, so we print no number for it. Our reporting on the contract →
How we know this receipt · 7
recreation.gov availability, read 16:39 UTC · rules read Sep 9, 2026 · rates Sep 10, 2026 · How we know all this
The sites
27 sites · which ones have room · the site map
The sites, ranked
from 27 mapped sitesAll 27 sites
The price is derived by CAMPANAC, not published per site: the per-night rate this campground publishes for each site’s own site type. 26 of the 27 sites listed carry one, and a site whose type has no published rate sits out of the price rather than being called free.
Measured shade is NLCD Tree Canopy Cover 2024 (USDA Forest Service / MRLC) read at the site’s own coordinate, 27% canopy or more, and only for the sites the agency gave no Shade value. It never changes the agency’s own shaded count beside it.
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 001 | standard nonelectric | 45 ft | 154 ft | 3,711 ftTom Run | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 002 | standard nonelectric | 40 ft | 146 ft | 3,865 ftTom Run | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 003 | standard nonelectric | 35 ft | 146 ft | 4,006 ftTom Run | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 004 | standard nonelectric | 35 ft | 101 ft | 4,097 ft | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 005 | standard nonelectric | 40 ft | 92 ft | 4,066 ft | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 006 | standard nonelectric | 35 ft | 92 ft | 3,987 ft | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 007 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 110 ft | 3,934 ft | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 008 | standard nonelectric | 45 ft | 104 ft | 3,834 ft | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 009 | standard nonelectric | 25 ft | 104 ft | 3,830 ft | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 010 | standard nonelectric | 45 ft | 118 ft | 3,710 ft | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 011 | shelter nonelectric | 35 ft | 118 ft | 3,684 ft | $14 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 012 | shelter nonelectric | 35 ft | 123 ft | 3,589 ft | $14 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 013 | standard nonelectric | 35 ft | 104 ft | 3,556 ft | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 014 | standard nonelectric | 45 ft | 98 ft | 3,482 ft | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 015 | standard nonelectric | 40 ft | 90 ft | 3,478 ft | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 016 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 73 ft | 3,482 ft | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 017 | standard nonelectric | 45 ft | 73 ft | 3,477 ft | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 018 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 97 ft | 3,464 ft | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 019 | standard nonelectric | 40 ft | 97 ft | 3,558 ft | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 020 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 67 ft | 3,700 ft | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 021 | standard nonelectric | 35 ft | 67 ft | 3,766 ft | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 022 | standard nonelectric | 40 ft | 155 ft | 3,916 ft | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 023 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 67 ft | 3,924 ftTom Run | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 024 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 67 ft | 3,968 ftTom Run | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 025 | standard nonelectric | 35 ft | 92 ft | 4,038 ftTom Run | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | 026 | standard nonelectric | 40 ft | 101 ft | 4,115 ft | $12 |
| HEARTS CONTENT RECREATION AREA | Group | group standard nonelectric | 430 ft | 3,047 ft |
25 of 27 listed
Getting there
the map and the coordinate · the agency’s directions · the phone number
Where it is
Farnsworth CabinAllegheny National Forest · 4.9 mi
Minister Creek Campground and TrailheadAllegheny National Forest · 7.4 mi
BuckaloonsAllegheny National Forest · 9.9 mi
Kellettville Recreation Area (PA)10 mi
Tionesta Rec. Area Campground18 mi
Outflow Recreation Area (PA)18 miHearts Content Recreation Area is located 15 miles southwest of Warren, PA. From the Mohawk exit of U.S. Route 6, take Pleasant Drive south for 11 miles. Turn left onto State Secondary Route 2002 (Hearts Content Road) and go south for four miles to Hearts Content. The Hearts Content Recreation Area is split by State Route 2002, with the campground on the west side of the road and the scenic area on the east side. Coming from the east, take PA-6 to Sheffield and turn left at the stop lightonto PA-666. Cross the railroad tracks and turn right after 1 block onto Bull Hill Road and cross Tionesta Creek on the iron bridge, heading up the hill to the left. This road changes names several times (Bull Hill, Austin Hill, Hearts Content), but is State Secondary Route 2002. Follow it for 13.3 miles to Hearts Content. The campground will be on the left (west) side of the road and the scenic area will be slightly further ahead on the right.
The weather
the next four days · the thirty-year normal
Next four days, and the thirty-year normal
Forecast
NWS forecast for Tidioute, PA
Typical weather
Typical October night 41°F, day 61°F.
Coldest month of the year: typical February night 18°F, below freezing. Bring a bag rated colder than that, and expect ice in the water bottle.
Daily high and lowDays with 0.10 in or more
A normal is the 1991-2020 average for the month, not a forecast: about half of all Julys are colder than the July line. The seven-day forecast above answers the other question.
The land, and who answers for it
what threatens it · who answers for it · a letter you can send
What threatens this place
You’re camping on ground somebody wants. We track the threats and the comment deadlines.
Who answers for this land
Hearts Content Recreation Area is in Pennsylvania’s 15th congressional district. Its representative, Glenn Thompson (R), votes on the laws that decide what happens to this land. Public-lands grade so far: F. See every public-lands vote →
Who can change it · 3
Two offices, two different asks. The draft to the agency asks it to set aside a published share of the sites here for whoever drives up. The draft to Congress asks why that share is zero and presses for a published minimum at the campgrounds it funds.
- The member who votes the moneyGlenn ThompsonU.S. Representative · Pennsylvania’s 15th district
- Your senator, on the same appropriationDavid McCormickU.S. Senator · Pennsylvania
- Your senator, on the same appropriationJohn FettermanU.S. Senator · Pennsylvania
Read the draft, or change the wording
For the camper who turned up, or tried to book, and couldn’t get in. Every draft is written from this campground’s own record (its agency, its unit, its site count and its own weekend) and the buttons above copy whichever wording is selected here.
Asks them to put the question to the agency in writing, and to press for a published minimum share of walk-up sites across the campgrounds they fund.
Subject Walk-up camping at Hearts Content Recreation Area, Allegheny National Forest, Pennsylvania
Dear Glenn Thompson, I’m a constituent in Pennsylvania’s 15th district. I tried to camp at Hearts Content Recreation Area, Allegheny National Forest, Pennsylvania, and couldn’t. All 27 sites at Hearts Content Recreation Area are reservable, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 11 sites recreation.gov was offering there were already booked. 1,623 of the 7,647 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. Hearts Content Recreation Area keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m not asking you to run Hearts Content Recreation Area. I’m asking you to put it to the U.S. Forest Service in writing: why is the share of first-come sites there zero, and what would a published minimum share cost? Please press for that minimum at the federal campgrounds you fund. The people who open these campgrounds, collect the fees and keep the water running are seasonal positions. At GS-5, base pay plus the government's own 36.25% benefit factor, one costs about $47,414 a year. One percent of the $13.3 billion the USS Gerald R. Ford cost to procure would pay for about 2,800 of them for a year. Both figures are the government's own (a Congressional Research Service report and an OPM pay table), and I’m glad to send them. Sent about Hearts Content Recreation Area (Allegheny National Forest, Pennsylvania) via campanac.com
Asks them to put the question to the agency in writing, and to press for a published minimum share of walk-up sites across the campgrounds they fund.
Subject Walk-up camping at Hearts Content Recreation Area, Allegheny National Forest, Pennsylvania
Dear David McCormick, I’m a constituent in Pennsylvania. I tried to camp at Hearts Content Recreation Area, Allegheny National Forest, Pennsylvania, and couldn’t. All 27 sites at Hearts Content Recreation Area are reservable, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 11 sites recreation.gov was offering there were already booked. 1,623 of the 7,647 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. Hearts Content Recreation Area keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m not asking you to run Hearts Content Recreation Area. I’m asking you to put it to the U.S. Forest Service in writing: why is the share of first-come sites there zero, and what would a published minimum share cost? Please press for that minimum at the federal campgrounds you fund. The people who open these campgrounds, collect the fees and keep the water running are seasonal positions. At GS-5, base pay plus the government's own 36.25% benefit factor, one costs about $47,414 a year. One percent of the $13.3 billion the USS Gerald R. Ford cost to procure would pay for about 2,800 of them for a year. Both figures are the government's own (a Congressional Research Service report and an OPM pay table), and I’m glad to send them. Sent about Hearts Content Recreation Area (Allegheny National Forest, Pennsylvania) via campanac.com
Asks them to put the question to the agency in writing, and to press for a published minimum share of walk-up sites across the campgrounds they fund.
Subject Walk-up camping at Hearts Content Recreation Area, Allegheny National Forest, Pennsylvania
Dear John Fetterman, I’m a constituent in Pennsylvania. I tried to camp at Hearts Content Recreation Area, Allegheny National Forest, Pennsylvania, and couldn’t. All 27 sites at Hearts Content Recreation Area are reservable, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 11 sites recreation.gov was offering there were already booked. 1,623 of the 7,647 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. Hearts Content Recreation Area keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m not asking you to run Hearts Content Recreation Area. I’m asking you to put it to the U.S. Forest Service in writing: why is the share of first-come sites there zero, and what would a published minimum share cost? Please press for that minimum at the federal campgrounds you fund. The people who open these campgrounds, collect the fees and keep the water running are seasonal positions. At GS-5, base pay plus the government's own 36.25% benefit factor, one costs about $47,414 a year. One percent of the $13.3 billion the USS Gerald R. Ford cost to procure would pay for about 2,800 of them for a year. Both figures are the government's own (a Congressional Research Service report and an OPM pay table), and I’m glad to send them. Sent about Hearts Content Recreation Area (Allegheny National Forest, Pennsylvania) via campanac.com