Prince Gallitzin State Park is a 6,249-acre retreat in the forested hills of the Allegheny Plateau in northern Cambria County, Pennsylvania, built around the sprawling and beautiful Glendale Lake near the town of Patton. The 1,635-acre lake, with its 26 miles of winding, cove-studded shoreline, is the heart of the park and a longtime favorite of anglers, boaters and families looking for a classic Pennsylvania lake summer. Its wooded ridges, quiet inlets and long water views make it feel considerably wilder than its easy access from Altoona and the surrounding towns would suggest.

Boating is the park's signature. Glendale Lake has nine public boat launching areas spread conveniently around the shoreline and three public mooring facilities for sailboats, pontoons and runabouts, with a horsepower limit of 20 that keeps the lake refreshingly quiet and well suited to sailing, paddling and unhurried cruising. Anglers work the coves and channels for bass, walleye, muskellunge, panfish and catfish, and when the lake freezes, ice fishing becomes a whole winter season of its own.

Swimming centers on Muskrat Beach, on the east side of the park off Marina Road, a guarded beach that makes this an easy pick for families. The camping is equally strong: a 437-site tent and trailer campground open from the second Friday in April through mid-December, with paved sites, showers, flush toilets, a camp store with coin laundry, playgrounds, a boat mooring area, boat rentals and sanitary dump stations. Ten modern cabins are available year-round, each with a living area, kitchen and dining space, shower room, and two or three bedrooms.

Beyond the water, the park offers miles of trails through Allegheny Plateau hardwood forest, good wildlife watching, and enough room to lose the crowds even on a busy weekend. The mix of developed comfort and quiet backcountry corners is what keeps people coming back across the seasons, from summer swimming to fall color to ice fishing and winter sports.

The park office sits at 966 Marina Road in Patton. Note that the campground closes for the winter months and the beach is guarded only during posted summer hours, and as on any sizable lake the open water can get choppy in a wind, so small-boat operators do well to keep an eye on conditions.

Pack sun protection and a cooler for the beach, fishing gear and a license if you plan to cast, layers for the plateau's cool evenings, and reservations if you're camping a summer weekend. Between Glendale Lake's 26 miles of shoreline, the quiet 20-horsepower water, and a campground big enough to host a small town, Prince Gallitzin is one of central Pennsylvania's most complete outdoor destinations.