Agency-listedUSFSFee
Willow Bay Rec Area
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · PA · 41.98890, -78.91750
Ask an AI about this campsiteOpens Grok already loaded with this site. It reads the same records this page is built from, and links whatever it tells you.
Ask about this camp →U.S. Forest Service lists this as a developed campground. Expect marked sites, a fee station or a reservation, and the usual campground rules. The dispersed-camping freedom of the surrounding forest does not apply inside it. What changes is conditions — roads, gates, closures, fire rules. Check those with the unit before you commit to the drive.
USGS topo — contours & terrain
Aerial — USGS / NAIP
Weather outlook — at Willow Bay Rec Area
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 1,357 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Willow Bay Rec AreaNIFC · AirNow
Checking active fires & air quality…
Active wildfires from NIFC (within ~50 mi); air quality from AirNow. Always confirm current fire restrictions with the managing office before you go.
Everything you need — measured from Willow Bay Rec Area · Allegheny National Forest · PA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- WWater4 mi
- LLaundry4 mi
- ShShower4 mi
- DDump4 mi
- FFuel7 mi
- GGrocery12 mi
- MMechanic13 mi
- HHardware13 mi
- @Mail13 mi
- PPropane13 mi
- RxPharmacy13 mi
- AAir-up13 mi
- +Urgent care14 mi
- OOutfitter14 mi
- EVEV fast charger14 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is basically at camp, fuel & food sit about 7 mi out.
One dot per need — the nearest of each kind, straight-line from camp. Places from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors); the EV fast charger from the US DOE station locator. Open in Google Maps ↗
The site — Willow Bay Rec Area
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
1,357 ft
State
PA
Coordinates
41.98890, -78.91750
Cost
Fee
Nearby & resupply — around Willow Bay Rec Area · Allegheny National Forest · PA (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townRussell · ~12.0 mi
- Drinking waterWater · ~3.7 mi
- FuelTurtle Pit Cafe and Smoke Shop · ~6.7 mi
- Propane / LPGCrosby's · ~13.3 mi
- Dump station~4.0 mi
- Groceries7-Eleven · ~12.3 mi
- PharmacyFrewsburg Pharmacy · ~13.3 mi
- Hospital / clinicApria Healthcare · ~14.1 mi
- HardwareLowe's · ~12.9 mi
EV charging — from Willow Bay Rec Area · Allegheny National Forest · PA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger14.3 mi straight-line NE — Salamanca, NY - Tesla Supercharger (at a hotel) · Tesla · NACS (Tesla) · 8 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-06-18 · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to Teslas only. · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach11 within 25 mi · 31 within 50 · 174 within 100 · 456 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS17.3 mi — EVolve NY Jamestown, Jamestown
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO18.1 mi — JAMESTOWN BPU PREND.4TH #2, Jamestown
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)13.6 mi — Yogi Bear's Jellystone Park, Jamestown, NY · VIALYNK · J1772 · 4 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily
- Pricing at the fast chargernot listed
- Power (kW)not listed by AFDC — “DC fast” spans roughly 24 to 350 kW, so ask the network.
- Read this honestlyStraight-line miles, like every distance on this site. Roads run longer than this, and you have to get back. We know where a charger is listed. We don’t know if it works today, how fast it is, or the road miles. Check the network before you commit.
Snapshot 2026-09-16 · AFDC record 117729 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Willow Bay Rec Area · Allegheny National Forest · PA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Flush restroomWillow Bay Rec Area · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletHooks Brook Boat To · ~2.3 mi SW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletWebbs Ferry Boat Launch · ~2.4 mi W · USFS
- Flush restroomTracy Ridge Rec Area · ~3.8 mi SE · USFS
Open Willow Bay Rec Area elsewhere
Other camps near Willow Bay Rec Area
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Nct-Tracy Run North Shelter~1.9 mi
- Hooks Brook Boat To~2.3 mi · fee
- Tracy Ridge Rec Area~3.8 mi · fee
- Handsome Lake Boat To~4.6 mi · fee
The unit that manages Willow Bay Rec Area
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Willow Bay Rec Area are set by Allegheny National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Willow Bay Rec Area
Source
U.S. Forest Service recreation data
Confidence
Likely — The record is good enough to put a pin on, but thin in places. Treat the details as a starting point, not gospel.
How it was placed
Developed FEE campground (not free) - review | auto:usfs-fee 2026-08-20: US Forest Service developed campground, agency coordinates, agency states a fee. No dollar amount in the agency record -- expect a charge and confirm the current rate before you go. Not field-verified.
EV chargers
US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center station locator, snapshot 2026-09-16. Straight-line miles to the nearest public, open, unrestricted station; restricted and planned units are shown but never counted.
Field check
On the agency's books. The land manager inventoried this site, so its existence is not in question — current conditions are. Nobody from here has camped it recently.
What we don’t know about Willow Bay Rec Area
A land record can put you within a few meters of a spot. It cannot tell you any of this — so check it yourself, and treat anything below as the open question it is.
- Road surface & last-mile access
- How many rigs actually fit
- Cell coverage by carrier
- Seasonal & winter access
- Current fire restrictions
- Whether any water here is drinkable
- Shade & wind exposure
- Noise and who else shows up
- Whether a listed EV charger works today, or the road miles to it
Before you go — Willow Bay Rec Area
What “dispersed” means here →Fire rules & restrictions →Reading your camp page →Dispersed camping tips →All field notes →
Been here? Tell us what changed. This page is built from public records, so the fastest way it gets better is somebody who has actually pulled in. Road washed out, site gone, gate locked, or it is exactly as described — all of it useful. Send a report →