Poconos Travel Guide: Pool Seasons, Lakes and Ski Weekends

A short summer, set by the altitude

Much of the Poconos sits high. Promised Land State Park is on the Pocono Plateau, 1,800 feet above sea level, and the weather up there sets the terms for any pool.

The National Weather Service keeps records at Mount Pocono. On its 1991–2020 normals, the last spring freeze comes around May 11 and the first fall freeze around October 9. In an average year the temperature drops to freezing or below on 142 nights. An outdoor pool has June, July and August to itself, give or take a few weeks at either end.

So the pool that matters most here is the one with a roof. A heated indoor or enclosed pool is the only kind you can count on in March, or on a ski weekend in January. The one Pocono stay we list today, The Summit Poolhaus in Cresco, has a heated covered pool.

The region is large. The Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau counts 2,400 square miles across Wayne, Pike, Monroe and Carbon counties, and puts New York City about an hour and a half away by car, Philadelphia two hours.

The pool at the house, or the pool at the clubhouse

A Pocono listing that mentions a pool can mean two quite different things. It may be a pool at the house, used only by the people renting it. Or it may be the pool at a community clubhouse, shared with every owner and renter in the development. We list only the first kind, and it is worth asking the question in plain words before you pay a deposit.

Rules vary by township too. Tobyhanna Township’s short-term rental ordinance, for one, has capped occupancy by the number of bedrooms and set a minimum age of 25 for the person who signs the rental. Ordinances change, so check the current rules for the address you book.

Lakes and waterfalls

Lake Wallenpaupack, in Pike and Wayne counties, covers 5,700 acres and runs about 13 miles, according to the Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission. The visitors bureau puts its shoreline at 52 miles.

Lake Harmony is another matter. The visitors bureau notes that the lake is privately owned and open only to guests staying at places on the water. A rental two streets back does not come with a swim in it.

Along the Delaware River, the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area covers nearly 70,000 acres and forty miles of the middle Delaware, the National Park Service says. There is no entrance fee. The beaches and river accesses charge $10 per vehicle per day from April through October, and none of the beaches has a lifeguard. Raymondskill Falls, which the park calls the tallest waterfall in Pennsylvania, is seen from two viewing platforms on an earthen trail; swimming there is prohibited. Dingmans Falls, at 130 feet, is the second tallest.

State parks for a day away from the pool

Hickory Run State Park, in Carbon County, has the Boulder Field, 16 acres of boulders that is a National Natural Landmark. At Promised Land, two sand beaches open daily from Memorial Day to mid-September, with no lifeguards. Lehigh Gorge State Park follows the Lehigh River south to Jim Thorpe, and its trail covers more than 20 miles of the river corridor.

Ski season

The visitors bureau counts six ski areas. Camelback is the largest, with 39 trails. Blue Mountain has Pennsylvania’s highest vertical, 1,082 feet. Jack Frost and Big Boulder, a few peaks apart, share a lift ticket.

A ski trip and a private pool go together only when the pool is enclosed and heated. Ask the host whether the heat stays on for your whole stay, and whether it costs extra.

On the roads at night

Deer move most between sunset and sunrise, PennDOT warns, and the fall breeding season brings more of them onto the roads. Pennsylvania also has black bears, about 19,000 of them by the Game Commission’s estimate, and feeding them is against the law. Bring the trash in at night. The Game Commission says removing food attractants usually prevents trouble.

Pool questions to ask a Pocono host

1. Is the pool at the house, and is it only for our group, or is it a community pool?
2. Is it indoor, enclosed or outdoor? If outdoor, what are its opening and closing dates?
3. Is it heated on our dates, is heating included or extra, and does it stay on for the whole stay?
4. What occupancy limit does the township set for this house?

Read more about private indoor pools and heated pools.