Camelback Mountain or Big Pocono is a conspicuous geographic feature on the Pocono

Plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ...

. It is not a mountain, but rather a peninsular section of the Pocono Plateau, that when viewed from three sides, appears to be a mountain. The summit of Big Pocono "Mountain" is actually nearly level with land to the west and northwest, together comprising the top of the Glaciated Pocono Plateau, which is part of the larger

Allegheny Plateau The Allegheny Plateau , in the United States, is a large dissected plateau area of the Appalachian Mountains in western and central New York (state), New York, northern and western Pennsylvania, northern and western West Virginia, and eastern Oh ...

. The Pocono Plateau, a distinctive geologic feature not to be confused with the larger

Pocono Mountains The Pocono Mountains, commonly referred to as the Poconos , are a geographical, geological, and cultural region in Northeastern Pennsylvania. They overlook the Delaware River and Delaware Water Gap to the east, Lake Wallenpaupack to the north, ...

, is a glaciated plateau formed during at least three glacial movements. As glaciers moved south from Canada, they scraped flat what is now the plateau. The Glacier Movements also created other distinctive features of this region, including peat bogs and swamps, which resulted when glacial scour produced un-drained scars on the plateau's surface. Examples of depressions created by glacial scour include Deep Lake and Wolf Swamp just west of

Big Pocono State Park Big Pocono State Park is a Pennsylvania state park in Jackson and Pocono townships in Monroe County, Pennsylvania in Northeastern Pennsylvania. The park is located on Camelback Mountain and is maintained jointly by the Pennsylvania Department ...

. Big Pocono's distinctive shape, hence its nickname, and 1,000 ft

prominence In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...

above land to the south, east, and north makes it plainly visible from the east and south. However, this feature is not apparent when viewed from the west. Big Pocono is home to a ski area called

Camelback Mountain Resort Camelback Mountain Resort is a ski and snowboard resort located in the Tannersville, Pennsylvania in the Pocono Mountains. Opened in December 1963, Camelback is the largest ski resort in the Poconos. In the 1950s, when developers were worki ...

and

. The park lies on the summit of the mountain, where there are hiking trails and picnic tables. Views from the summit are extensive. On a clear day the

Delaware Water Gap Delaware Water Gap is a water gap on the border of the U.S. states of New Jersey and Pennsylvania where the Delaware River cuts through a large ridge of the Appalachian Mountains. The gap makes up the southern portion of the Delaware Water Gap ...

High Point (New Jersey) High Point is a mountain peak within High Point State Park on the border of Wantage Township and Montague Township, Sussex County, New Jersey. Located in the portion of the state known as the Skylands, it is the highest elevation in the st ...

and the Catskill Mountains in New York State can be seen.

References

External links

Camelback Ski AreaCamelback weather; Tannersville, PennsylvaniaBig Pocono State ParkCamelback Mountain Topo Map
{{Coord, 41.0419, -75.3458, region:US-PA_type:mountain, display=title Mountains of Pennsylvania Pocono Mountains Landforms of Monroe County, Pennsylvania