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Comprehensive guide to staying in a yurt for seasoned and novice adventure families
Oh man, we had the BEST mini Spring Break trip to Ohiopyle, PA. Jake and I have spent MONTHS in Ohiopyle (separately, during multiple camping trips, mostly 15+ years ago) and yet we experienced so many new things this weekend.
Whether you are completely new to outdoor activities or seasoned adventurers, this guide is for you!
Part 1: Camping in a Yurt
Part 2: Family Rock Climbing at the Lost Crag (subscribe for email notification when this post is live)
Part 3: Ohiopyle Hikes (subscribe for email notification when this post is live)
This trip formed quite quickly when a few weeks before Easter, we realized that both of our school districts had matching 6-day Spring Breaks! Jake and I work in neighboring districts, yet our holidays often are slightly misaligned. So one lovely work day, we traded a flurry of excited texts when we realized that we could plan a quick trip!
Side note: I wonder how long it will take in this new Covid-vaccinated era for us to feel confident planning ahead. Over the past year, we have learned over and over again that the future is unpredictable and plans often get canceled.
For this trip (early April), we immediately nixed the idea of bringing our little A-frame pop-up camper. While it does have electricity for heat, I didn’t want to spend days in the tiny space if April showers held up to their reputation!
Fortunately, Ohiopyle State Park has a fantastic campground that includes cabin and YURT rentals. Which one did we choose? Oh…. I think you know!
I highly recommend renting a cabin or a yurt if you are looking for STEP ONE (Level 1: see below) towards an adventure vacation. It’s the best of both worlds. Privacy, real beds, electricity AND “roughing it” without running water.
The Ohiopyle yurts are old, but clean. You bring your own linens and kitchen supplies. The yurts have a full-size fridge, a large countertop with lots of clean & empty cabinets, a 4-burner range and a microwave. Each yurt includes a small table with 3 chairs and a long bench. There are also 2 bunk beds (one has a full-size mattress on the lower bunk). We found the mattresses to be fairly new and comfortable, but I did bring a memory foam topper for the parents’ bed! This is GLAMPING after all!
Spring time allergies tip: I typically cannot be outdoors when the trees are budding. For some unknown reason, Ohiopyle trees are about 2 weeks behind our NWPA home! LUCKY ME! Still, we travel with our Blueair purifier. I find that as long as I can breathe deeply through the night, I can find enjoyment in at least an adapted version of all of our adventures. Since the trees were not budding, I was able to join the family on the full hikes instead of staying cooped up inside the yurt!
Traveling with your own linens and kitchen supplies is A LOT of packing, but it goes a long way in making the space feel like home!
For a 2-night stay (which is only possible in the “off season”), I recommend bringing a premade meal for your first night and a simple meal for your 2nd night.
There are many great restaurants in Ohiopyle, but part of the charm of renting a yurt is actually living in it!
We used our Instant Pot to make two healthy and delicious dinners for our stay! You’ll also see my beloved ceramic electric tea kettle. I know that I COULD heat water in a pot, but an electric kettle is just so convenient. And cute. Here’s a similar one 🙂
Prior to the trip, I whipped up this easy and KID FAVORITE Broccoli Cheese Soup. I served it with some heat-and-serve garlic knot rolls (they are supposed to be baked in their own bag, but it has aluminum in it and the only “oven” is a microwave, so I just pulled them out, put them on some paper towels and microwaved them for 20 seconds. Perfection).
While my soup was cooking, prior to leaving home, I prepped our second dish: Instant Pot Butter Chicken and cooked the rice. It took about 30 minutes of cook time at the Yurt, but it was SO tasty! We actually felt guilty because it smelled so good and our neighbors could probably smell it. WE WERE NOT WILLING TO SHARE 🙂 Along with the reheated rice, I served this dish with fresh cilantro and fried premade mini naan breads.
Seriously, I can rarely brag about my culinary delights, but follow my 2-night menu and your family will bow before you!
Another side note: both of those recipes are from my main go-to healthy, delicious recipe resource! Every dish from Well Plated has turned out well! This isn’t a sponsored post, I just dislike cooking and am so thankful that I found this website & cookbook!
There are many great restaurants in Ohiopyle, but part of the charm of renting a yurt is actually living in it!
Back to camping: One word of caution for the novice campers… this campground has been around for a long time. PROS: established sites with plenty of trees! CONS: the bathroom is clean, but OLD! Whether you’re in a cabin/ yurt/ or campsite, there is a bath house within a VERY short walking distance.
I tried to see the bathroom through “new” eyes and I realized that the peeling paint is a turn-off. However, the water is clean and hot! In fact, the water tastes really good, which we find is a rarity when camping. The shower has great water pressure, but it does spray everywhere so keep your dry clothes on one of the provided hooks or over the back of the door.
The other major con which I’m sure is particular to that particular bathroom and weekend, was that the Reznor heater in the women’s bathroom was RIDICULOUS! The girls actually took their safety whistle/thermometer into the bathroom so that they could record the temperature. It was NINETY DEGREES IN THERE!
Yeah, not pleasant. The toilet seats were actually warm. Ugh.
Speaking of heat, I forgot to mention that the yurts have heat! And 2 fans if you go in the summer. We prefer sleeping in cool temperatures and we struggled to get the heater set low enough. So, Jake actually flipped the breaker in order to turn the heater completely off during the night.
Both evenings, we enjoyed that quality family time that seems to only be achievable when there is no cell service or electronics. Yes, I KNOW that we should be able to have the self-control to replicate that at home. However, it just FEELS different when you’re all tucked into an adorable yurt. Jake taught the girls some new knots in preparation for our rock climbing adventure (Heidi got this knot kit in her Easter basket) while the girls and I talked some smack as we played numerous rounds of Exploding Kittens and Uno Flip.
We also enjoyed walking around some of the campground loops and the girls had a lot of SISTER FRIEND time! Other parents of multiples know what I’m talking about. Those moments when they forget to bicker and just enjoy each other’s company! There were playgrounds to explore and Polly Pockets to revisit (they only pull these out when car camping. My oldest felt the need to tell me that she just likes to set them up, not “PLAY” with the dolls. Sigh… don’t hurry to grow up little ones!).
When it was time to leave, we discovered that packing back up went MUCH faster than the original packing. That was a good thing because they want you out of the yurt by 9am. Yikes. We kinda sorta made that goal 😉
What level of camping do you prefer?
Level 0: Does a hotel count?
Level 1: GLAMPING (staying in an enclosed building like a rustic cabin or yurt)
Level 2: Camper (staying in your own or a rented camber)
Level 3: Car camping (parking at an established site and setting up your own tent)
Level 4: Back country (hiking or paddling to a remote site and setting up your own tent)
Level 5: Minimalist Adventurer (hiking or paddling to a remote site and sleeping under a tarp)
Are you ready to LEVEL UP?
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