Longabaugh Trail — Hole-in-the-Wall to Outlaw Cave via Wyoming’s Red Wall Country

The Hole-in-the-Wall is one of the most storied hideouts in American outlaw history — a narrow notch in the red sandstone cliff band south of Kaycee, Wyoming, where Butch Cassidy’s Wild Bunch ran stolen cattle and dodged Pinkerton detectives in the 1890s. The route runs southwest from Kaycee on BLM two-tracks through Johnson County badlands, dropping past the actual Hole-in-the-Wall notch in the red wall escarpment, continuing along Outlaw Cave Creek to the site of Outlaw Cave itself — a shallow overhang above a spring that served as a camp for rustlers and outlaws moving stock through the Bighorn Basin. The road surface is pure Wyoming hardpan clay over shale: grippy when dry, a full ice rink when wet. The terrain is deceptive — gentle rolling sagebrush flats punctuated by sudden steep-sided washes that demand careful line selection.

This is a dry-weather-only run without exception — the local clay turns to grease at the first hint of moisture and you will not self-recover. A high-clearance 4WD is mandatory; two-wheel-drive is a non-starter even in dry conditions on some of the wash crossings. No permit required. The BLM Worland Field Office manages the area. Cell service is nonexistent past the pavement. Best season is June through September. Carry all your water — the spring at Outlaw Cave is not reliable for vehicles. Dispersed camping is permitted on BLM land throughout the corridor. The payoff is a genuine piece of American frontier history sitting exactly where you’d leave it — utterly unchanged and thoroughly empty.