Everything to Know About Crawford State Park: Peaceful Camping

If you are looking for a quiet lake with peaceful camping, you’ll love Crawford State Park!  This beautiful little park isn’t bursting with activities like some parks, but it’s the perfect place to sit and relax around a fire.  

With a 400-acre reservoir, there’s plenty of water activities to do on a hot day.  Or you can just enjoy camping and walking on their 3 miles of flat trails.  

However you choose to spend your time in this beautiful place, here is everything you need to know about Crawford State Park.  

Important Links

Crawford State Park

Camping in Crawford State Park – Book Reservations Here

Crawford State Park Brochure

Hiking Journal – Never Forget the Details of Your Favorite Hikes Again!

Camping Journal – Never Forget Your Camping Trips Details Again!

Location

Let’s start with the location.  Crawford State Park is in the western half of central Colorado and is about 5 hours from Denver.  If you are looking for a quiet getaway with great amenities, this is a great place to go camping.

Once you are settled in at Crawford State Park, you’ll be 40 minutes from Delta (Nearest Walmart), 1.25 hours from Montrose and 1.5 hours from Grand Junction, CO.  This park is fairly isolated, so make sure you come prepared with all the gear and food you’ll need.  

Address: 40468 Hwy 92 Crawford, CO 81415

Fees

Next up, let’s discuss how much it’ll cost you to visit.  Like all of Colorado State Parks, there is an entry fee.  If you plan to spend a day enjoying Crawford State Park, you’ll be paying one of the following fees below.

• Walk/Bike In: $4 per person
• Drive In: $10 per car

Unfortunately, the daily drive-in fee is applied even if you are camping here.  So if you are camping here for 3 days, you’ll have to pay the camping fee AND the $10 per day ($30 in this example).  

Colorado Park Pass Options

If you are planning on visiting the same or several state parks in the same 12-month period, you’ll want to invest in one of Colorado’s Park Passes.  There are several park pass options to help save you money. 

• Family Pass for $120/year 
• Vehicle Pass for $80/year 
• Aspen Leaf Pass for $70/year 
• Keep Colorado Wild Pass (Residents Only) for $30/year.  

Each pass allows you and a car-full of guests to enter the park for free and is good for 12 months.  It also waives ALL daily fees when you are camping at any of the 42 Colorado State Parks.  

Hours

So when can you visit Crawford State Park?  Well, here are the hours for the park and the visitor center.

• Park Hours: 5am – 10pm
• Visitor Center: 8:30am – 4pm (As staffing permits)

What to Expect

Crawford State Park sits at 6,500+ feet of elevation, so there will be snow in the late fall, winter and spring.  However, the summers can get hot, making the lake a great place to cool off.  

There are 5 sections of Crawford State Park.  The North Shore area offers multiple picnic areas.  The Peninsula area is home to the visitor center, a swim beach, a boat ramp, and a place to rent paddleboards.  The West Shore area also offers picnic tables and restrooms. 

As for the remaining 2 sections, Clear Fork and Iron Creek, you’ll find a campground in each area with 3 bathhouses between these 2 loops.  In the Iron Creek area there is also a boat ramp.  Both of these sections are connected by a walking path which is great for running, biking, or walking.  

Things to Do Here

With only 337 acres of land, and a 400 acre reservoir, you might be wondering, “what is there to do at Crawford State Park?”

Starting with the obvious, there are lots of lake day activities.  You can go boating, kayaking or paddleboarding.  And of course there is fishing here.  They even have a swimming beach and self-checkout kiosk where you can rent paddleboards.  

On land, there’s a little over 3 miles of hiking/biking trails that are also great for a run.  They also have several picnic tables and pavilions spread out throughout the 5 areas of the park.  

And in winter, there is ice fishing and cross country skiing available in the park.  

Camping 

The most common reason to visit Crawford State Park is to go camping.  Between the 2 camping areas, there are 66 campsites that are open year round.  So let’s discuss which area you’ll want to camp in.

In the Iron Creek area, there are 46 campsites that all have electric and water hook-ups.  Each site can accommodate tents, trailers and RVs.  This area also has 2 bathhouses with showers and very clean bathrooms.  The dump station is in the Iron Creek area.  

Now, the Clear Fork area is a bit smaller with only 20 campsites, 15 of which are Full Hook-Up and 5 Tent Only sites.  This area has 1 bathhouse with showers and bathroom stalls.  

Price Comparison

Now that you know the 3 types of campsites offered at Crawford State Park, let’s do a little price comparison.  

**Disclaimer: These prices do not include taxes, fees, or entry fees.  The prices are subject to change from year to year.**

Tent Site

• $28 per night 
• $196 per week

Water/Electric Site

• $36 per night 
• $252 per week

Full Hook-Up Site

• $41 per night 
• $287 per week

Again, these camping prices do not include taxes or fees.  They are simply here to give you an idea of what fits your budget.  

Things to do in the area

As far as other things to do in the area, you’re right near Black Canyon of the Gunnison North Entrance.  The North Rim of the park has dirt roads and some decent hiking.  The South Rim is much more popular, but as of August 2025, this area is closed. They are recovering from the 15,000 acre fire that ripped through there in July of the same year. 

There is also Gunnison National Forest nearby, which has great hiking.  Or if you want to take a little bit of a day trip, you can drive over to Crested Butte, CO.  This beautiful town is famous for their wildflowers and they also offer great hiking.   

Conclusion

Are you looking for peaceful camping while still having all the amenities of an RV Park?  Look no further than Crawford State Park.

This park offers 66 campsites, 3 miles of hiking trails, and a 400-acre reservoir great for lake day activities.  So grab your tent and paddle board, or your camper and your boat and head on down to Crawford State Park for a relaxing and quiet weekend on the water.  

Always, feel free to reach out to me at averagewildexperience@gmail.com with any questions about the campgrounds or the area.

-Happy Camping!