Fishing

Promised Land State Park has two fishing lakes. Promised Land Lake and Lower Lake hold largemouth and smallmouth bass, pickerel, muskellunge, yellow perch, sunfish and catfish, and Lower Lake is also approved trout water stocked with brook, brown and rainbow trout. An ADA-accessible fishing pier sits at the Snow Shanty Boat Launch on Promised Land Lake, and the park office lends fishing poles and tackle. Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission rules and licenses apply.

Promised Land Lake

The 422-acre main lake is warmwater fishing: bass, pickerel, muskies, yellow perch, sunfish and catfish. Fish from the accessible pier at Snow Shanty, from the shore, or from a rented rowboat with an electric motor. See Promised Land Lake.

Lower Lake Trout

Lower Lake is approved trout water. The state stocks brook, brown and rainbow trout there, a trout stamp is required, and fishing on the lake is closed until trout season opens. The same warmwater species also live in it.

From a Boat

Both lakes are electric-power-only and no-wake, so a rowboat, canoe or kayak is the usual way to reach the coves. The boat concession rents boats and electric motors in summer. See Boating.

Depth Maps

DCNR publishes color and black-and-white water depth maps of both lakes on the park's Maps and Guides page. Use them to find drop-offs before you launch. See Trail Map.

Ice Fishing

Ice fishing is popular on both lakes in a cold winter, and bass, pickerel and panfish are the usual catch through the ice. The park does not monitor ice thickness. DCNR's minimums are solid ice no thinner than 4 inches for a single person and 7 for a small group.

Safety steps DCNR asks for:

• Drill test holes with an auger as you go.
• Bring rescue gear and wear a PFD.
• Spread out rather than crowding one spot.
• Stay off ice near logs, brush, plants and docks, and where cracks meet or water sits on top.
• Shoreline ice is weaker, and a few days above freezing will weaken all of it.
• Do not go out alone.

DCNR's Winter Report lists ice and snow conditions for state parks. See Winter.

Licenses and Rules

Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission regulations apply to all fishing in the park, including license and trout stamp rules. Stay outside the buoy line around the eagle nest on Lower Lake.

Good For

• Families: free loaner rods and an accessible pier.
• Spring trout fishing on Lower Lake.

Maybe Skip If

• You need a fast boat to cover water: electric motors only.