Moon Lake Recreation Area

Large, level sites with dirt tent pads, fire rings and tables. Well kept road system. Reservations required (email or phone). Only things outnumbering the chipmunks, were the black flies.

It was not easy to get reservations--call the number, get a website, download and fill in form, email back and wait. We got a response back within 2 hours. There are 12 sites, widely spaced, and only a few are big enough for RV's over 35 ft. Strictly dry camping. Mountain biking trails abound.

I stayed here at the tail end of the NEPA camping season, mid October 2020. I stayed in site #5. Moon Lake is ideal for vehicle or RV camping, as well as traditional tent camping. You may have difficulty with a hammock.

This site is perfect for those in the Scranton/Wilkes Barre area looking to camp for free. The process for getting a permit is a bit convoluted, but the directions on the DCNR website were easy to follow and the person I emailed with was kind and helpful.

The sites are well maintained with a picnic table and fire ring. There's also a large dirt tent pad which made sleeping on the ground fairly comfortable. The roads into and out of the sites were gravel, but fairly smooth with few potholes. The larger sites could easily fit a decent size group of campers.

The scenery was lovely, even on the drive in. Very pretty area. Very little to no road noise. The Lake is a short walk from the campsites and was beautiful in the fall colors. There are portapotties near the lake if duty calls. There must be a cell tower close by, as I had much better service through Verizon than expected.

Overall I had a great experience here and would definitely recommend it. I registered for my spot about a week in advance just to be safe, and would suggest you do the same, especially during the summer when it is busier.

Stayed here in April right after they opened. Great technical mountain biking trails.

We were pleasantly surprised by the large sites and distance between them. Our RV is 30’ , we had plenty of space. There is a picnic table, fire ring , tent pad, and plenty of trees to hang our hammock. We were close to the small lake, but the trees blocked any view of it. There are no hookups, but we were able to run our generator. Quiet time is 10pm to 8 am , and all campers were respectful of that. Camp rangers were present and made several rounds through the campsites. There were many mountain bike trails, which we hiked . The lake is perfect for kayaking and fishing. It was pet friendly. There were Port-o-potties scattered throughout as well.

This was a gem of a site! Very large rock/gravel site that also has a tent pad. Includes a fire pit and a picnic table. Our rig is a 33 foot travel trailer with a Ford 250. We fit with plenty of room to spare. We found the easiest way to get in is to continue up the hill, turn around, come back down and back into the site. A smaller rig would probably be able to turn around in the actual site.

There is an access road that leads from the site to the lake, less than 1/4 mile walk. There are plenty of hiking/mountain biking trails. The lake is stocked with trout. We enjoyed paddle boarding on the lake. It was very peaceful!

Note: While free, you do need to register and obtain a permit. If camping on the weekend, get your request in before Thursday. When registering, they will send a link that shows availability, as well as a link to fill out the form.

This place at first I thought what the heck did I get into..haha. Because my GPS took me the shortest way. And that way was through a rocky and washed out dirt road. From the last week's rain storm we had in the beginning of September. But when I got through it. Well that is a different story.. nice spots with plenty of distance between camping spots. Overall a nice a peaceful stay... Will definitely stay here again. 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

Had an amazing time. The site was so clean and the portapotties were really well maintained. Each site had a picnic table, tent pad, fire ring, and some had chipped wood available. Wildfire services drove around regularly (maybe because it was Labor Day weekend).

Parking at this site in particular was not even close to level though. Only real downside was sporadic gunshots from (I assume) hunting.

The permit to camp here was very easy to obtain. This place does fill up however and is very active. Forest rangers patrol here regularly and make multiple passes throughout the day. Site 12 was very well kept and had plenty of space.

The sites are a bit close together however, and there is no real privacy but everyone here at the time was respectful of the quiet time hours. There is a fair bit of traffic passing through here during the day though.

The porta-poties were very clean which was surprising, the rangers take very good care of this place.

Im generally not a fan of getting permits to camp places but this site was totally worth it, just make sure you book it a week or so in advance.

The only downside is that if your here when it rains the site is downhill so water will probably run into the site.

I saw some people listing T-Mobile service as non existent but for this particular site it was perfect, no noticeable drop in quality at all.

We couldn't believe how wonderful this dry camping site was. Large, flat, and with fire ring and picnic table. We couldn't see or hear any other sites in the area (other sites are closer, but still well dispersed). The entire Moon Lake Recreation Area is well kept. Roads to the sites were in good condition and easy for a large RV / camper to navigate. Lots of tree cover / shade. Good Verizon 4G cell coverage. Nearby lake provides fishing opportunity. A short 20 minute drive from the Rickets Glenn falls hiking trail (no day use fee).