We debated for a while whether to attempt Outlaw Cave. For starters, the last several miles of the 25-mile route is unpaved, with the last two miles being more rocky and high-clearance vehicles recommended. We’re driving a motorhome. Not exactly your backcountry exploration vehicle. The second concern was the trail itself. It’s only a half mile long, but drops 500 feet nearly straight down into the canyon. It’s a rocky trail, with many of those rocks loose, creating a slipping hazard.
In the end, though, we decided to go for it. We’ll just take it nice and slow.
We were on the road by 8am, wanted to get an early start as it was supposed to be rather hot this afternoon. We wanted to be done with the hike before the heat of the day.
The route to Outlaw Cave Campground is paved for perhaps 11 miles, poorly paved for another few miles and then is a dirt ranch-access road for the remainder of the distance. The last two miles becomes steep, windy, and rocky. It was here that my wife almost made me turn around. The tie-rod incident is fresh on her mind and she has fears that the other one will suddenly give out on us in the most remote place, dooming us to being stuck for days in some canyon. But we eventually prevailed, arriving at the campground after 1 1/4 hours of driving.
Tomorrow we have to drive out of this place on the same route, but that’s a task for another day.
The route may be arduous, but it is exceptionally beautiful. It’s worth the drive just for the drive alone. A sign along the road announces that you are entering Red Wall Country and for the remainder of the distance the rock faces and buttes all have layers of red rock.
This is all range land and at one point you have to drive through the Hole in the Wall Ranch. Nice of this rancher to let all this campground traffic through his property.
We breathed a sigh of relief when we reached the campground. That last little bit was some white knuckle driving, at five miles per hour.
The campground is situated on a promontory sticking out over the canyon. The Middle Fork Powder River runs through the canyon. The campground is named after the outlaws that used this area to hide from the law. The trail from the campground leads down to the cave where Butch Cassidy and the Hole in the Wall gang evaded the law.
We’re parked on the left side of the picture.
Now for the trail. We packed up some snacks and water, figuring we would be back by noon, and started on the trail.
This was perhaps one of the more challenging trails I have been on. Very rocky, very steep as it drops into the canyon.
We enjoyed the area down by the river for a while.
There are lots of caves around here, more than enough to hide in and never be found. We spotted one up the side of the canyon and clambered our way up there.
We took a selfie in front of one of the caves where Cassidy hid.
It was quite a workout climbing back out of the canyon. We made it out just after noon. After lunch we decided to make the remainder of this day a day of rest. In this out-of-the-way place, we managed to pick up a usable cell phone signal with the help of a cell phone booster, and we used it to stream this morning’s church service. It’s a poor substitute for actually being there, but it does allow us to access the teaching. We miss you all!
Then we connected with some family. Got to talk to our grandson for a bit, and also talked to Zhen. We are thankful for the means to remain connected when we are far away.
We took a walk after dinner, climbing the small hill immediately behind the RV. This offered a commanding view of the red rock in the distance.
Also took a panorama shot of the area from the top of the rock:
In the spirit of the location, and because we are camping out here overnight, we will be watching the movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid later this evening. It just seemed appropriate.
Miles Traveled: 27
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