Gifford Pinchot State Park
Gifford Pinchot State Park
2200 Rosstown Road
Lewisberry, PA 17339-9787
717-432-5011
May 7 – 11, 2026
First camping trip this year! It was nearly a year since my last trip, since I’d missed our planned fall trip due to an accident where I’d dented the van’s left rear corner. It took FOREVER to find a place that would repair the dent—the van is too big/complicated for most body shops, and RV repair places don’t do body work. Finally found a place about 120 miles from where I live that specializes in RV and large vehicle body repair, and got my van all fixed up! Got it back exactly a week before our planned trip, and spent a hectic week getting the van dewinterized, cleaned up, systems checked out, and all the supplies reloaded and stocked up. It was a bit of a tight squeeze, but I made it and headed out for the campground at around 12:30 pm. I’d meant to leave around 11, but I’d slept in late and still had last-minute supplies to load up, so I got a late start.
It should have been about a four-hour drive, but traffic and some confusion in arriving at the campground (I forgot to stop at the entry station to get a map, found the loop numbering confusing and missed the turnoff into my loop, and ended up driving aimlessly around the campground for a while), so it was after 5 pm by the time I found my campsite and parked. My space was right next to my brother and sister-in-law’s spot, so we were back and forth with each other the whole time.
It was a lovely site, with trees on both sides and a picnic area in back. It was a bit sloped, but nowhere near as unlevel as some of the sites I’ve been in. I put some leveling blocks under the passenger side (could have used two blocks, but I decided it was close enough) and left the front-to-back as is. It was a bit low in front but not too bad.
Davey was pretty good for the trip. I put his travel carrier in the back, strapped to the bed, with his favorite round blue pillow in it, sprayed some Feliway on it, and covered it with my robe. He complained a bit at first but quickly settled in and I heard barely a peep from him the whole way.
We had full hook-ups at both sites this time, which made things much easier for me. Didn’t have to unhook to go empty the cassette while at the site, or go hunting for water. Although they told me the water at the campground was not very good, and I still had water from home in my tank, so I decided to just use what I had until I ran out, and it ended up lasting me the whole time.
My sister-in-law told me she’d chosen pet-friendly sites for both campgrounds so we could be near each other, even though they don’t have a cat any more. That was nice of her!
I made ramen with kale and a slice of American cheese for dinner. One of my favorite comfort foods. They came and sat with me at my picnic table while I ate.
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