Crystal Park Campground

Arrived and parked at the new Gateway Travel Center in Newcastle to check in. We have been coming to this area for an annual hunting trip for 8 years. We stayed here two years ago and upfront its not the best of campgrounds (CG), but looks like some improvements are being attempted. This CG is still the best option for the area. The travel center and RV park used to be an outdoor movie theater back when. You now check in inside the travel center’s convenience store. You go to the check out counter, fill out your paperwork, and get your assigned site. We were traveling with another RV and were assigned sites 30 and 28, which are FHUs with 50/30 AMP. Technically there were sites 31 and 29 adjacent to our sites. The sites were small enough as it was, but if someone would have come in beside us into site 31, we would have been literally an arms length away from each other.  With both of us in our party having fifth wheels with slide outs on both sides, there was no way anyone could have pulled into site 29 between us. However, no one was placed next to us during our 5 day stay and we believe the new CG management wouldn't purposely place someone next to a big rig. We recommend that once you receive your assigned site, go scope it out. They were putting in new site signs but had not gotten to our site so the number was written on the electric box with a permanent marker. Some of the sites here are standalone 30 AMP or 20 AMP, perfect for travel vans.  There is no WiFi in the CG but the travel center has free unsecured Wifi near the pumps and in the convenience store that also has a Taco Johns. The last time we stayed here, there were pipeline workers and the CG was full. This time there were only a few transient workers. They have two pretty nice tent camping areas in the grass and their restroom/shower/laundry facility was well maintained and clean. They have 2 washers and 2 dryers that were very reasonably priced at $1.50 to wash and $1.50 to dry. The RV sites do not have picnic tables nor fire rings but the the tent areas have a few. Every morning and evening we had wild turkeys and mule deer roaming around the CG. With the Fountain Inn Hotel and the RV Park pretty much co-located, this CG made a good choice for our RV and hotel staying hunting group.