6 Best Sights in Poconos, Pennsylvania

Touting itself as the Niagara of Pennsylvania, Bushkill Falls is certainly among the Poconos' prettiest natural sites. There are eight cascades in this privately owned attraction; the highest is the Main Falls, with a drop of around 100 feet. Four trails of varying length and difficulty weave through the park; the most strenuous is about 2 miles long and passes by all eight falls. Other activities include minigolf, a children’s maze, paddleboats, and fishing. There’s also a longhouse and an exhibit on local wildlife.

On a hill overlooking the town of Milford, this historic mansion was built to resemble a French chateau. The Pinchot family commissioned the home in 1886, and their eldest son, Gifford, went on to establish the U.S. Forest Service, which now owns and operates the property. Visits are by guided tour only. The mansion sits on a 102-acre plot of forests and gardens, and visitors can take self-guided tours of the grounds throughout the year. The garden features an amphitheater, a moat, a walled garden, and a number of classical fountains, as well as a half-mile forest trail.

The southernmost pristine glacial lake in the United States, Lake Lacawac is an important center for ecological research. It’s surrounded by a nonprofit nature sanctuary that’s popular with hikers and walkers; trails range from the quarter-mile Meadow Trail to the relatively strenuous Big Lake Trail, almost 3 miles long. The sanctuary is also home to the 1903 Great Camp, the former estate of coal-baron congressman William Connell. Free hour-long educational tours of the sanctuary and the Great Camp are conducted every Wednesday and Saturday at 1 pm.

Easily the spookiest attraction in Jim Thorpe, mostly because it’s reputedly haunted, this gray stone structure housed inmates from its construction in 1871 until it was turned into a tourist attraction in 1995. Visitors to the former prison have reported paranormal experiences, and many have had ghoulish images appear in their photos of the attraction, leading the management to start running ghost tours on Saturdays in October. The tours that take place throughout the rest of the season focus more heavily on the prison’s early history, with special focus on the execution of prisoners accused of membership in the Molly Maguire secret society.

Focusing on the history of Lenape (aka Delaware) Indians, this museum and shop chronicles the story of the first inhabitants of what is now northeastern Pennsylvania up until their civilization was virtually wiped out by white settlers. Artifacts such as peace pipes, traditional weaponry, and day-to-day items are on display. An audio guide allows visitors to explore the small museum at their own pace. The shop sells T-shirts, moccasins, sage smudge sticks, CDs of native music, dream catchers, and books on Native American history and cultures.

High up on the Pocono Plateau, this park stretches across 3,000 acres of deciduous forest and has around 50 miles of hiking trails. Like much of the Northeast, Promised Land experiences four distinct seasons. In the summertime, people come to fish and swim on the park’s two lakes; snowmobiling, cross-country skiing, and even ice-skating (weather permitting) are popular in the winter. There are four campgrounds, one of which is open year-round; rustic cabins from the 1930s as well as more modern digs can be rented throughout the year.