Robbers Roost, Utah, courtesy of Mountain Photography.
In the rugged canyon lands of southeastern Utah, Robbers Roost was a popular hideout for cattle rustlers and other outlaws during the Wild West. The area was ideal because its rough terrain was easily defensible, offered hundreds of hiding spots, and was difficult to penetrate.
Situated between the Colorado, Green, and Dirty Devil Rivers, this stretch of land, crisscrossed with steep-walled canyons and hidden ravines, had long been utilized by outlaws long before Butch Cassidy and his Wild Bunch came along. The area first earned its name and reputation in the 1870s, when Cap Brown began running stolen horses through the region. During his heyday, Brown was said to have been one of the most proficient horse thieves in the American West.
Butch Cassidy and other Hole-in-the-Wall members came along in the late 1800s, using the area to hide horses and cattle they had rustled or to rest and lie low after a robbery.
Here, Cassidy met the man who would become his best friend and partner in crime—Elzy Lay. The two formed the Wild Bunch gang and worked diligently to develop contacts that would give them easy access to supplies and fresh horses. Among these contacts was a ranch owned by outlaw sisters Ann and Josie Bassett. Along with the Sundance Kid’s girlfriend, Etta Place; one of Elzy Lay’s girlfriends, Maude Davis; and gang member Laura Bullion, they were the only known women to enter Robbers Roost during the 30 years it served as an outlaw hideout.
Within the hideout, the Wild Bunch and other outlaws built cabins and outbuildings to shield them from harsh winters and store weapons, horses, chickens, and cattle.
Another frequent resident of Robbers Roost was Matt Warner, born Willard E. Christiansen to the fifth wife of a Mormon bishop in Ephraim, Utah. Warner served a cattle-rustling apprenticeship before joining the McCarty Gang along with Cassidy. The future Wild Bunch used Robbers Roost after a Telluride, Colorado, bank robbery in 1889. Members of the Wild Bunch used it again in April 1897 after they held up the Pleasant Valley Coal Company payroll in Castlegate, Utah. Daring robberies such as these made the Wild Bunch notorious to some and folk heroes to others.
Waterpocket Fold, Capitol Reef, Utah, by the National Park Service.
Despite sporadic attempts and many boastful claims, lawmen of the day never discovered the hideout, as the outlaws held each other to strict confidentiality about its location. C.L. “Gunplay” Maxwell, a small-time bandit and want-a-be member of the Wild Bunch, wrote Utah Governor Heber M. Wells from prison that a well-armed, 200-man gang with an intricate system of fortifications, tunnels, land mines, and a vast storehouse of supplies and ammunition defended Robbers Roost. This letter fueled the Roost’s reputation. Few lawmen cared to enter such supposedly dangerous ground.
Robbers Roost was one of several hideouts the Wild Bunch used. Others included Brown’s Hole, a rugged canyon region near the junction of Utah, Colorado, and Wyoming on the Green River, and the Hole-in-the-Wall in central Wyoming. The three hideouts were strung out about 200 miles apart. Their challenging rides between the hideouts were impressive, as they perfected a “Pony Express” method of getaways—using fresh horses and supplies stashed at hideouts some 20 miles apart. The outlaws were all expert horsemen and always stressed the importance of strong, well-trained horses. The route linking these way stations became known as the Outlaw Trail, which ran from Montana to Mexico.
The Roost was abandoned mainly as an outlaw hangout after 1902 when Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid departed for South America. However, during Prohibition, the Roost area saw one last surge of illegal activity. Several unlawful whiskey stills were erected at springs in the clandestine canyons. Several canyons in the Roost still contain evidence of the illegal stills.
Wild Bunch, aka Hole in the Wall Gang (1896-1901) – Led by Butch Cassidy, the Wild Bunch terrorized Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Utah, and Nevada for five years.
Today, the original Wild Bunch corral remains at Robbers Roost, along with a stone chimney, caves, and several carvings. It remains a destination for hikers, campers, horseback riders, off-roaders, and canyoners drawn to its myriad canyons and trails. In 2003, hiker Aaron Ralston rescued himself after being trapped beneath an 800-pound boulder for five days while exploring the canyons alone.
©Kathy Alexander/Legends of America, updated September 2026.
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