The Bruce Lake Natural Area features two superb mirror-like lakes, wetlands teaming with wildlife, and multiple trail options that are begging to be explored.
The Bruce Lake Natural Area is a wilderness wetland located just north of Promised Land State Park in Pike County, in the Poconos region of Pennsylvania. There are multiple noteworthy aspects that we are excited to show you, but the most significant highlight is the two secluded lakes that can be reached only by hiking in. The lakes are amazingly reflective, mirroring the clouds and shoreline and emanating pristine beauty. We will front-load by telling you that we highly recommend the trail, but there are important things you need to be aware of before embarking on this adventure, so read on.
There are two parking areas off of Route 390 to the west of Bruce Lake Natural Area, or you can hike in form Promised Land State Park to the south via multiple connecting trails. We parked at the Bruce Lake Parking Area (see map at the end of the post). Although the lakes can only be accessed by foot, the gated access road is flat and easy. It leads directly to Egypt Meadow Lake then to the northern edge of Bruce Lake. We saw one man hauling rowboats on a hand cart down the trail without any trouble.
About a quarter mile into our journey, we encountered Panther Swamp to our left. We didn’t notice any side trails to Panther swamp, but brushless wooded sections provide easy access to the swamp.
Rather than staying on the access road we veered off to the Panther Swamp Trail at about 0.6 miles in, hoping it would give us views of Panther Swamp. Instead, the trail inclined slightly on the side of a small hill then led down to Egypt Meadow Lake’s northwest shore. In hindsight, rather than taking the Panther Swamp Trail, we would have preferred to stay on the access road to the central portion of Egypt Meadow Lake then followed the shore to the top of the lake. In any case, we delighted in the stunning view from the northwestern edge of Egypt Meadow Lake. Be sure to see the panoramic view in the video at the end of the post.
The photo below was taken at the northern edge of Egypt Meadow Lake where there is a shallow spillway and stream. The spillway is easily crossable via flat rocks and logs placed there for that purpose. Alternatively, if you don’t care about wet feet, you walk across the stream as it is only a few inches deep. See the crossing in the video at the end of the post.
Another beautiful view of Egypt Meadow Lake. Note how amazingly reflective the surface of the lake is. The dark water is reminiscent of Black Moshannon State Park in Centre County, PA (the subject of a future post).
After crossing the spillway you will come to an earthen dam area. We saw several people fishing here. Up to this point, the trail had been a grassy access road (except for the Panther Swamp Trail excursion). After the dam, the trail leaves the access road and enters the woods with beautiful woodland scenery and glimpses of the lake through the trees. The trail is rocky in spots and parallels the eastern shore of the lake until it rejoins the Bruce Lake Trail.
After looping the northern half of Egypt Meadow Lake, we intersected the Bruce Lake Trail and took it east to Bruce Lake. The trail between Egypt Meadow Lake and Bruce Lake is a grassy access road and is mostly flat, as shown in the picture below. We encountered a number of hikers, fishermen, bikers, and boaters to and around Egypt Meadow Lake, but past this point we saw no one else the rest of the hike except a couple camping at Bruce Lake.
We serendipitously encountered this rock formation between Egypt Meadow Lake and Bruce Lake. We caught a glimpse of it several hundred feet off in the woods and decided to investigate. Join us getting to the top of the formation in the video at the end of the post.
To see the rock formation for yourself when you visit, turn aside to the north of the trail at 41.35256, -75.17783.
As you approach Bruce Lake, a trail splits off to the south and runs west of Bruce Lake. The main trail runs to the north then turns to follow the eastern shore of the lake. Both converge south of Bruce Lake. We continued on the main trail because it is closer to the lake and affords glorious views of Bruce Lake like this. Look at the sky reflected on the water!
Once you manage to pull yourself away from those spectacular views of the lake, continue east. The trail is muddy with standing water in spots. After passing the northern portion of Bruce Lake, the access road ends, and the trail continues through the woods.
Curve east until you come to a spur at 41.35295, -75.16858 (denoted by “What’s this?” on the map). Take the spur past the old pump in the photo below to one of our favorite spots on this adventure.
An idyllic clifftop campsite overlooking the lake! Feast on this sight. But we weren’t the only ones who appreciated the excellency of this spot.
Look at this monster! It is one of the largest timber rattlesnakes I have seen. We paused for quite a while admiring it. Don’t miss the video at the end of the post if you want to get up close and hear some rattling!
Near the southern end of Bruce Lake, we encountered a beaver dam (see the video). After the beaver dam, the area becomes exceedingly muddy and wet. We briefly lost the trail on account of the swamp. We did our best to navigate in the generally correct direction and eventually encountered a bridge at 41.34031, -75.17115 that got us back on track. We recommend making a waypoint at 41.34031, -75.17115 before you go and using it as a point of reference in case you get turned off the trail as well.
The portion of the trail from southern end of Bruce Lake until you climb the hill of the Rock Oak Ridge Trail has large overgrown sections. You can still discern the trail well enough, but you must push through the vegetation. We call this section tick-pocalypse. It was one of the tick-iest trails I have been on. We didn’t even attempt to keep count of how many ticks we brushed off of us as we traveled, but it was easily several dozen per person.
As you approach 41.33658, -75.17086, you will encounter a hemlock stand then the trail enters a swamp area. I can’t imagine that someone would blaze a trail here, maybe it is only bad after recent rain? In any case, we tried to follow the trail but just a few feet into the wetland we realized we would end up in calf-deep black swamp mud. We turned back and detoured around the swamp. Thankfully there was little brush to walk through on account off the hemlock stand and rocky terrain afterward. We recommend putting these coordinates into a GPS and using them to navigate around the swamp and reconnect with the trail.
- Turn off the trail at 41.33658, -75.17086
- 41.33617, -75.17158
- 41.33539, -75.17112
- Rejoin the trail at 41.33532, -75.17060
After successfully rejoining the trail, you will pass through scenic rhododendron tunnels then head uphill to the Rock Oak Ridge Trail. The trail becomes much easier part way through the Rock Oak Ridge Trail. The Rock Oak Ridge Trail then intersects with the Brown Trail which leads you back to the Bruce Lake Trail, near Panther Swamp. The Bruce Lake Trail is the same access road you started on and is an easy 0.4 mile walk back to the trailhead.
By the way, have you ever seen one of these? Do you know what it is? Hint: it is not a fungus. The answer is below.
The picture above is of a wool sower gall, caused by oak gall wasp larva. The tiny (smaller than a quarter inch) oak gall wasp lays eggs on oak tree buds. When new growth on the oak begins and the eggs hatch, the larva secretes chemicals that cause the leaves to grow around the larva into the gall shown in the photo above.
Join us on the adventure in the video below:
Overall, the trail was 8.3 miles. Most of the trail was flat, with a little elevation on the eastern side of Bruce Lake and from the swamp detour area up to the Rock Oak Ridge Trail.
Parking is at: 41.34116, -75.20777.
Here is a zoom-in of the swamp detour to help you navigate.
Is the Bruce Lake Natural Area worth visiting? Absolutely. But there are a few things you need to know before you go.
The area around the southern end of Bruce Lake is certainly hikable (we did it) but be prepared for navigating swampy ground, overgrown sections, and a host of ticks. If this isn’t your cup of tea, then we recommend visiting Egypt Meadow Lake and Bruce Lake via the Bruce Lake Trail access road then turning back the way you came once the road ends at Bruce Lake. You can still see the highlights of the adventure taking the access road. We were impressed by the beautiful mirror-surfaced lakes, rock formation, wildlife, the rocky cliff top campsite, and of course the huge timber rattlesnake. The Bruce Lake Natural Area is worth a return visit. Next time we would be interested in biking the trail, boating the lakes, and exploring some of the connector trails to Promised Land State Park.
If you plan on visiting the area, be sure to see our review of Promised Land State Park and our adventure on the Little Falls Trail.
Also, be sure to check out our other adventures.
