Seemingly a world away, and yet so close to the Jersey shore area, the Pocono Mountains region is a year-round destination offering a wealth of entertaining options for every age, interest, and season. Covering 2,400 square miles of northeastern Pennsylvania, the Poconos boast breathtakingly beautiful mountains, waterfalls, forests, and rivers; fascinating cultural tours, art exhibitions, and historic sites; plus a variety of antique emporiums, brand-name shopping venues, and festivals showcasing a bounty of food, crafts, and music.
During the late winter/early spring months, the Poconos are a winter sports wonderland, where visitors enjoy abundant skiing, snowboarding, snow tubing, ice skating, and snowmobiling through hundreds of trails.
From novices to experts, those who thrill in the rush of racing downhill on skis or snowboards can choose from a number of slopes in the area. Among the most popular are the Big Boulder Ski Area in Lake Harmony and the nearby Jack Frost Mountain in Blakeslee (www.jfbb.com for both), Camelback Mountain Resort in Tannersville (www.skicamelback.com), Alpine Mountain Ski & Snow Tubing in Analomink (www.alpinemountain.com), and Shawnee Mountain in Shawnee on Delaware (www.shawneemt.com). You will find family-friendly fun and excitement, with trails that range from beginner bunny hills to black diamond challenges, lessons, equipment rentals and sales, convenient lifts, dining facilities, special events and entertainment, and snowmaking equipment to replenish, when needed, that perfect white powder. A variety of pricing packages are available, and day-trippers can enjoy both daytime and nighttime skiing throughout the week, and be home in time for work or school the next day.
For those who prefer simpler adventures that require no lessons or special equipment, snow tubing is the perfect choice for both young and young-at-heart guests. Just jump into a specially made inner tube – available for solo riders as well as multiples – and hold on tight for an exhilarating ride down vertical drops of up to 200 feet deep and chutes up to 1,000 feet long. Besides the aforementioned ski centers, snow tubing can also be found at the Fernwood Winter Fun Center in Bushkill (http://fernwoodhotel.com).
Indoor and outdoor ice skating can be enjoyed at a number of locations, including indoor rinks, outdoor rinks, ponds, lakes, and streams. A word to the wise: always check for signposts and ask local officials for the latest conditions before heading onto the ice, to be sure that it’s safe. And if you feel the need for mechanical speed, rev up your visit on a snowmobile and explore the picturesque scenery along miles of trails. Snowmobile outfitters can provide all that you need to zip around, including helmets, sleds, parts, and fuel. Some of the best places for both ice skating and snowmobiling are the region’s state parks, such as Tobyhanna State Park in Tobyhanna, Promised Land State Park in Greentown, and Hickory Run State Park in White Haven. You’ll find information about all of them, and more, at www.dcnr.state.pa.us/stateparks/parks/region_northeast.aspx.
Following through on the frosty theme are a number of unique seasonal Poconos festivals at this time of year. One is Wild West on Ice, recurring daily for two weeks in February at Crystal Cabin Fever at Sculpted Ice Works in Lakeville. Check out the amazing ice display, sculpted from over 100 tons of ice. Enter through an ice coal mine maze, explore the old western town, sit on an ice covered wagon (brrrrr!), and drive a team of ice horses. There are ongoing live ice carving shows, and professional competitions, also. For details, visit www.crystalcabinfever.com. The Jim Thorpe Winterfest, held in downtown Jim Thorpe, offers a mix of family activities, special shopping and dining promotions, opera house performances, and more to celebrate the Presidents’ Day holiday weekend. Festivities will include ice and wood carvers, Civil War re-enactors, brass band entertainment, and a Mug Walk fundraiser. Find out more at www.jimthorpe.org/festivals.
Feeling a bit chilly? Then have some chili! There are not one, but two chili cook-off events on the agenda in March that are sure to warm you up. At the Annual Chili Cook-off at Daniels Top-of-the-Poconos Resort in Canadensis on March 5, you can enter your favorite chili recipe for cash and prizes – or just go to enjoy the music and fun. All entries are judged in accordance with the rules of the International Chili Society (did you know there even was an official chili society?) by a panel of judges from East Stroudsburg University’s Hotel, Restaurant, and Tourism Management Department. Admission is free, but donations are welcome to support the local volunteer ambulance company. Get the hot details at www.danielsresort.com. If you’d like seconds, the very next day will be the 9th Annual Chili & Wing Cook-off at Ehrhardt’s Waterfront Banquet Center in Hawley. This event features live entertainment, great food, and fun for one and all. Contestants are free and it’s $20 to taste and judge. Visit www.hawleywallenpaupackcc.com for details, tickets, and registration.
This is merely a sampling of a very full calendar of events to be explored, offering cardboard box derby events, charity fundraisers, winter sport races and competitions, concerts, clinics, museums, tours, casinos, and even spas. More information about all of this and much more can be found online at www.800poconos.com.
In need of a cool day trip to escape all that cabin fever? Pick the Poconos!