PA Getaway

State forest · Lumber Township, Cameron County

Elk State Forest

Deep, wild valleys at the heart of Pennsylvania's elk range, crossed by the Bucktail Path and gravel forest roads where elk often graze in the clearings.

What you will find

  • Hiking trails
  • Camping
  • Fishing

Hunting is permitted here in season. Check the state hunting calendar and wear blaze orange in fall and winter.

Make a day of it

Nearby

  • Sinnemahoning State Park

    State park · 4 miles away

    Elk graze the meadows and bald eagles nest along the First Fork of Sinnemahoning Creek, which widens into a reservoir framed by steep, wooded mountains.

  • Bucktail State Park Natural Area

    Public Park · 4 miles away

    Less a park than a 75-mile drive: the Bucktail Trail follows Sinnemahoning Creek and the West Branch Susquehanna through deep forested valleys, named for a Civil War regiment of backwoods marksmen.

  • Sizerville State Park

    State park · 7 miles away

    Tucked in a valley of the Pennsylvania Wilds, a small campground and swimming pool at one end of the Bucktail Path, with mile upon mile of state forest beyond.

  • Kettle Creek State Park

    State park · 13 miles away

    In a remote, mountain-walled valley, Kettle Creek widens into a lake behind a flood-control dam, with trout fishing, creekside camping and bridle trails into the surrounding forest.

  • Susquehannock State Forest

    State forest · 15 miles away

    Remote, rolling plateau forest near the New York line, with the 85-mile Susquehannock Trail, the roadless Hammersley Wild Area and night skies dark enough to draw astronomers.