Finding Butch Cassidy’s Cabin at Robber’s Roost

A half-frozen stream not far from Butch Cassidy's Cabin near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — A half-frozen stream not far from Butch Cassidy’s Cabin

When one of your less adventurous group members says, “There’s this off-trail adventure in the middle of nowhere with a really cool cabin built by Butch Cassidy and the Wild Bunch Gang; we’ve got to go see if we can find it!” – well, I like to listen to what my group members ask to do anyway, but this kind of request sounded far too exciting to pass up. We were going to be in the area anyway, so it wouldn’t be too far out of our way. The best thing was that we did, indeed, find Butch Cassidy’s Cabin (or what’s left of it), a spring, and some very old-looking corrals that might – or might not – have held the cattle that Butch and his gang rustled back in the 1890s. And while it is off-trail, it’s also not that hard to find if you have 4×4 and know what you’re looking for.

Quick Stats

Round Trip Length: 2.0 miles Trail Type: Out & back Elevation Gain: 270ft. Pets: Yes Fees: None

Views from the Ekker Ranch Road near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Views from the Ekker Ranch Road

We were on our way into the Maze District (or at least Hans Flat) when we turned off onto a sideroad (signed for Ekker Ranch) that would take us down to Robbers Roost. Our adventures began when we crept around a corner and saw a sand dune covering the road.

Scouting out the sand dune before crossing it with the van near Robber's Roost and the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Scouting out the sand dune before crossing it

It turned out that the sand was firm enough that my 2WD, high clearance van got through just fine with a running start. But we were beginning to think we’d have to abandon our search before we began!

Views out to distant, hazy buttes at Robber's Roost near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Views out to distant, hazy buttes

We continued beyond the sand dune down (and down, and down) with great views into the rock formations of Robber’s Roost and the Henry Mountains in the distance. The latter had fresh snow thanks to an early-season freeze that left the entire region 20F colder than average.

Views across Robber's Roost to the Henry Mountains the next morning near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Views across Robber’s Roost to the Henry Mountains the next morning

We made it as far as the turnoff for the road to the cabin and decided you’d want 4×4 to go any further. So we parked, bundled up (it was cold out there!), and followed the rough dirt road around a hill on foot.

Walking down the access road toward the 4x4 parking area near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Walking down the access road toward the 4×4 parking area

After 0.2 miles, we came to the parking area where 4×4 vehicles would park, just west of the Biddlecome Water Trough. An old road heads east (right) from here, almost immediately crossing over a small stream (which was mostly frozen when I visited).

Crossing the small stream and heading up the old road that would take us to Butch Cassidy's Cabin near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Crossing the small stream and heading up the old road that would take us to Butch Cassidy’s Cabin

Follow this road (it’s not hard to find) for almost 0.4 miles – and there was a chimney on our left! (It’s a little way to the left, so keep your eyes open.)

The turn toward the chimney near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — The turn toward the chimney

This is all that’s left of Butch Cassidy’s Cabin. It was somewhere between extremely exciting (we actually found it!) and a little disappointing… it’s pretty small. But it’s still very neat to see it in person!

All that's left of Butch Cassidy's Cabin near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — All that’s left of Butch Cassidy’s Cabin

Was it actually built by outlaw Butch Cassidy? It’s as possible as being built by anyone else. Butch lived in this area during the time the Wild Bunch Gang was gathering around him, and there’s apparently significant evidence that he hung out in the upper reaches of what is now Horseshoe Canyon (with the Great Gallery rock art). Monte Butler, one of the Wild Bunch, rustled cattle in what is now the Needles District, drove them down Red Lake Canyon and across the Colorado River to Spanish Bottom, then herded them up into the Maze District. The Maze was so remote that the gang could rebrand the cattle and take their time before sending them to market. Historic exploration around the cabin has found relics from the 1890s. So while there’s no proof that Butch, himself, built the cabin, it’s altogether possible that he was part of its construction or at least used the cabin along the way.

"Frenchy" inscription near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — “Frenchy” inscription

Beyond the chimney is a rock with an inscription from “Frenchy.”

The seep near Butch Cassidy's Cabin near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — The seep near Butch Cassidy’s Cabin

I headed up a little way to the left and found a seep in the wall. I hear that in previous decades, it was more of a spring, which is why the cabin was built nearby.

Hiking further upcanyon - see the snow on the hill? Near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Hiking further upcanyon – see the snow on the hill?

We felt we hadn’t gotten everything out of the area, and I’d also heard of some corrals. So we continued upcanyon in the fading daylight. Along the way, we found some newer rancher’s tools (junk?) including this watering trough.

A watering trough (I think) in Robber's Roost Canyon near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — A watering trough (I think) in Robber’s Roost Canyon

First, we came to a more modern corral about 0.4 miles above the cabin. I don’t think it’s been used recently, as it was pretty grown in.

The modern corral near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — The modern corral

A little further on (about a tenth of a mile) we stumbled across the older corral. It’s perfectly possible that it was left over from the days of the Wild Bunch Gang.

The old corral near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — The old corral

The interesting thing is that the newer corral was constructed with spikes (they reminded me of rebar) in a typical fence fashion. The older corral was made using upright pieces of wood tied together with barbed wire or just plain wire. Interesting!

Closeup of the old corral near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Closeup of the old corral

By this time, the sun had set, and while we planned to spend the night at the trailhead (it’s BLM land), we still didn’t want to walk back in the dark. So instead of exploring further – which would have been fun, too – we walked back in the sunset.

Sunset from Robber's Roost near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Sunset from Robber’s Roost

I tried taking some pictures of the Milky Way before bed. It was absolutely frigid out; I can’t remember when I’ve been so cold except on the north rim of the Grand Canyon back in about 2003, when the rim was technically closed for the winter but they opened it up since it hadn’t snowed yet. We somehow shivered our way through eating cold ramen (not because we didn’t cook it) and jumped into our sleeping bags in the van as fast as we could. Though it was just as cold other nights, our bodies adjusted quickly or maybe we just learned to put on more layers… but we were never quite so cold as that first night.

Trying to capture the Milky Way outside of the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Trying to capture the Milky Way

The next morning, we were treated to a glorious sunrise before we headed back up the road and toward Hans Flat!

Sunrise on the Henry Mountains from near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Sunrise on the Henry Mountains

Round Trip Trail Length: I went 2.0 miles total, including all of my exploring. You could cut about 0.4 miles off of that by driving down the access road to the “official” parking area near the creek.

Elevation Gain: 270ft. (5,442ft. to 5,556ft.)

Facilities: None

Fees: None

Shortly after crossing the creek near Butch Cassidy's Cabin, near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Shortly after crossing the creek

Trail Notes: This is all BLM land, but that’s no excuse for not practicing Leave No Trace. Thankfully, it’s so remote and hard to get to that it doesn’t see too many people. Leave everything as you found it! I would have loved to explore further up the canyon (it seemed to have some nice rock formations in the distance) if I’d had more time before dark.

Hazy buttes and domes (probably near Capitol Reef National Park) from near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Hazy buttes and domes (probably near Capitol Reef National Park)

Trail

Road

Signs

Scenery

Would I go 100 miles out of my way for this?

Overall Rating:

Walking up the old road near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Walking up the old road

GPS Coordinates for Butch Cassidy’s Cabin

Beginning of Road to Cabin: 38.3623860°, -110.3723030° (38°21.74316′, -110°22.33818′ / 38°21’44.5896″, -110°22’20.2908″) (5,463ft.) (0.0)

Parking area: 38.3601290°, -110.3717110° (38°21.60774′, -110°22.30266′ / 38°21’36.4644″, -110°22’18.1596″) (5,429ft.) (0.19)

Looking upcanyon from the old corral - I'd have loved to check out those rock formations in the distance! Near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Looking upcanyon from the old corral – I’d have loved to check out those rock formations in the distance!

Note: Due to the sensitivity of the area, I’m not going to include the GPS coordinates I took of the hike, nor the GPX file. I’m really sorry for any inconvenience this might cause you. As you can see, I have provided enough GPS coordinates that you’ll be able to find the cabin without much trouble, should you choose to seek it out.

Sunset while walking back downcanyon from Robbers Roost near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Sunset while walking back downcanyon

Getting to Butch Cassidy’s Cabin Trailhead

Follow the Hans Flat Road for 31.1 miles to where the road toward Ekker Ranch Y’s to the right. Turn right. Take the first right and stay on the main road. It will travel across the desert for some time, curve (that’s where the sand dune was), and then descend. After almost 6 miles, a small sideroad will go off on the left – park here, or turn left the 0.2 miles down to the 4×4 trailhead.

Visual route may for my exploration to Butch Cassidy's Cabin and the nearby corrals near the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Visual route may for my exploration to Butch Cassidy’s Cabin and the nearby corrals

More Less-known Hikes in the Maze and Beyond

My favorite book about Canyonlands National Park! David Day does a fantastic job of showing what is out there, describing the trails, making the history interesting, and delivering good maps (oooh, yes, the maps!) Buy your copy here.