Promised Land State Park: A Guide to the CCC Cabins, Campgrounds, Lakes, Trails and Winter Fun Near Lake Wallenpaupack

Promised Land State Park is the big public park just south of Lake Wallenpaupack: about 3,000 acres on the Pocono Plateau at 1,800 feet above sea level, wrapped by 12,464 acres of Delaware State Forest, with two lakes, a CCC-built cabin colony, six camping areas and miles of trails. The park office is at 100 Lower Lake Road in Greentown (ZIP 18426), and like every Pennsylvania state park it charges no entrance or day-use fee. The park is open every day of the year from sunrise to sunset. [pa.gov DCNR Promised Land State Park and State Park Prices pages, checked 2026-10-26]

From the lake it is an easy hop. PA 390 runs south from Tafton on the lake's east side, crosses I-84 at Exit 26, and reaches the park's beach and picnic area roughly three miles past the interchange. That makes Promised Land the natural add-on to a Lake Wallenpaupack trip when you want quiet water, a hike in the woods, or a winter day on snow and ice. [DCNR directions; birdinghotspots.org park access notes]

Promised Land State Park at a glance

Lakes: the 422-acre Promised Land Lake (about nine miles of shoreline) and the 173-acre Lower Lake (almost four miles). Both are electric-motors-only at slow, no-wake speed. Trails: approximately 50 miles of hiking trails in the park and the surrounding state forest. Overnight: 12 rustic CCC-era cabins, three camping cottages, six camping areas and, new in 2026, 10 glamping sites. Contact: park office 570-676-3428; reservations online or at 888-PA-PARKS (888-727-2757), 7am-5pm Monday to Saturday. [DCNR boating, hiking and stay pages, 2026-10-26]

The park office, beach, campgrounds and museum all keep their own seasons, which are spelled out below. If you are visiting in the shoulder seasons, call the office first to confirm what is open that week.

How a clear-cut became Pennsylvania's fourth state park

The land was once home to the Minsi of the Lenni Lenape. In 1854 John Atkinson of Hawley transferred 4,252 acres described as the "Promised Land Lots" to his brother Asher, and by 1876 the Shakers had bought land here and contracted the forests for timbering. By 1903 the plateau was almost completely bare of trees. The Commonwealth bought the land between 1902 and 1904 for between 18 cents and $2 an acre, and in 1905 Promised Land became Pennsylvania's fourth state park. [DCNR History of Promised Land State Park]

Much of what visitors use today was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps. Camp S-139-PA operated here from May 1933 to July 1941, on the ground now occupied by the Deerfield and Pickerel Point campgrounds, and its crews built Pickerel Point campground, the Bear Wallow cabins, most of North Shore Road by hand and Egypt Meadow Dam, and planted more than a million trees. The free Masker Museum off Pickerel Point Road is one of the largest CCC museums in the state, with CCC artifacts and natural-history displays; it is volunteer-staffed and usually open Memorial Day through Labor Day, daily from early July. The park also marks the legacy with CCC Day each August (in 2026 it ran Saturday, August 8) and periodic guided CCC site tours. [DCNR history and sightseeing pages; DCNR events calendar, 2026]

Renting a CCC cabin at Bear Wallow

The Bear Wallow Cabin Colony sits in the evergreens next to Lower Lake: 12 rustic rental cabins built by the CCC in the 1930s. Each has a fireplace insert, refrigerator, stove, electricity, an outdoor fire ring and an adjacent private bathroom. Bring your own linens. Dogs are allowed only in Cabins 9, 11 and 12, Cabin 9 is ADA accessible, and the larger Whittaker Cabin sleeps eight. [DCNR Stay the Night page, checked 2026-10-26]

Cabins can be reserved up to 11 months ahead and no later than three days before arrival, so popular summer and fall weekends go early; for a stay two days out or less, call the park office about availability. You will also notice 224 privately owned cabins scattered around the park on leased state land. Those are private property, not rentals, so please respect them. [ReserveAmerica Promised Land listing; DCNR cabins page, 2026-10-26]

Camping: which campground fits your trip

Lower Lake Campground, on the western edge of Lower Lake, is the modern option and the best fit for RVs. Its Beechwood area has 106 sites open from early April through mid-October, with warm showers, flush toilets, electricity, laundry and some pet-friendly sites (modern facilities run Memorial Day through Columbus Day). Northwoods adds 48 similar sites from early May to mid-October, Rhododendron has 63 pet-free sites from late May to early September, and the Hemlock Hill Equestrian Area has six horse sites with stalls next to the Delaware State Forest horse trails.

Pickerel Point, on a peninsula on the south side of Promised Land Lake, has 75 campsites ranging from rustic walk-in sites to full hookups, plus three camping cottages with electric heat, bunk beds, a table, grill and fire ring. Limited sites and the cottages stay open all year, which makes Pickerel Point the area's only year-round camping. For simpler summer camping, Deerfield (34 rustic, pet-friendly sites) and Pines (58 rustic sites near the main beach) are open Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend. [DCNR Stay the Night page, 2026-10-26]

House rules worth knowing: stays are capped at 14 days in summer and 21 days off-season, each site gets one vehicle, and alcohol is prohibited. Campsites can be booked 11 months ahead up to noon on the day of arrival. Promised Land is also one of the parks in DCNR's new glamping program with Timberline Glamping: 10 furnished safari tents with beds, heat and air conditioning, booked directly through Timberline. Its 2026 season ran May 1 to October 11, and Times News reported prices of roughly $149-$199 a night before taxes and fees. [DCNR camping and glamping pages; DCNR newsroom, 2025-10-07; Times News, 2026-08-08]

Swimming, boating and fishing on the park's two lakes

Two sand beaches, the main beach in the Day Use Area and Pickerel Point Beach at the end of the peninsula, are open daily from Memorial Day to mid-September, 8am to sunset. A seasonal boat concession off PA 390, just south of the Day Use Area, rents kayaks and other small boats and electric motors by the hour or day from the Saturday before Memorial Day through Labor Day (weekdays 10am-6pm, weekends and holidays 8am-7pm), plus the two weekends on either side; call 570-676-6010. Five launch areas and 170 rentable mooring spaces serve private boats from April through October. Motorboats need a current registration and non-powered boats a state park or PFBC launch permit. [DCNR swimming and boating pages, 2026-10-26]

For anglers, both lakes hold largemouth and smallmouth bass, and Lower Lake is approved trout water stocked with brook, brown and rainbow trout, so trout rules and a trout permit apply there. There is an ADA-accessible fishing pier on Promised Land Lake. After the busy powerboat traffic of Lake Wallenpaupack, the no-wake, electric-only water here is a very different, much quieter day on a lake. [DCNR fishing and boating pages; PFBC rules apply]

Best hikes at Promised Land

Most of the trail network is rated easiest and marked with blue blazes. Three favorites: the 1.01-mile Conservation Island Loop, a self-guided nature trail that circles an island in Promised Land Lake with benches and lake views; the Little Falls Trail, a 1.02-mile loop rated more difficult and named for the waterfalls on the East Branch of Wallenpaupack Creek; and the Bruce Lake Trail, an old state forest road from a trailhead on PA 390 that reaches Bruce Lake, a natural glacial lake, after 2.5 miles and continues another 7.5 miles to the park's Boundary Trail. [DCNR hiking page, 2026-10-26]

History fans can add the Egypt Meadow Trail to Egypt Meadow Lake, which the CCC created in 1935. Before then the meadow's soft grass was harvested as packing material for Dorflinger's Glass Works in White Mills, just outside Hawley, which DCNR calls the largest glassware center in the country until after World War I. Dogs are welcome on trails on a leash of six feet or less. Hunting is allowed in season on about 1,300 acres of the park, so wear fluorescent orange from fall into winter. [DCNR hiking and hunting pages]

Promised Land in winter: snowmobiling, ice fishing and cross-country skiing

Promised Land stays open all winter and is the Lake Wallenpaupack area's best-organized winter playground. Registered snowmobiles can use more than 23 miles of designated trails across the park and Delaware State Forest, marked with orange diamonds, from the day after the last deer season in December until April 1, weather permitting. Trails are open for cross-country skiing, with Bruce Lake Natural Area and Conservation Island recommended, and snowshoeing is allowed on every trail. The park office lends snowshoes with a photo ID, 8:30am-3pm Monday to Friday, once there are at least six inches of snow. [DCNR winter page, checked 2026-10-26]

Ice fishing is popular on both lakes, with bass, pickerel and panfish the usual catch, and ice skating and iceboating are allowed on natural ice. The park does not monitor ice thickness. DCNR's minimums are 4 inches of solid ice for one person on foot, 7 inches for a small group and 6 inches for iceboating; test with an auger, stay away from inlets, docks and cracks, and never go out alone. Boaters in craft under 16 feet must wear a life jacket from November 1 through April 30. Winter camping is available at Pickerel Point's year-round sites and heated cottages. For ice on Lake Wallenpaupack itself, see our adventure guide, which covers Brookfield's rules for the big lake. [DCNR winter and fishing pages; PFBC]

Eat, stay and explore nearby

Route 390 has the closest services. Promised Land Inn, at 1045 PA 390 in Greentown, is a rustic restaurant and bar a few minutes from the park; it does not rent rooms. Just up the road, Hi-Country Cottages offers motel units and cabins surrounded by state park land. Heading back toward the lake on 390 you pass The Lager Haus, Log Tavern Brewing's Tafton taproom and, at Fairview Lake, Fairview Cafe and the seasonal Fairview Lake Mini Golf & Ice Cream. Jam Room Brewing in Greentown is another easy stop on the way to the lake's southern end.

If you would rather sleep on Lake Wallenpaupack and visit the park for the day, our Places to Stay guide compares the area's hotels, resorts and lakeside campgrounds, and the camping guide covers Brookfield's four campgrounds on the big lake. The park sits about 600 feet higher than the lake's summer water level of roughly 1,187 feet, so pack an extra layer.