Last updated: October 10, 2024
Place
Vivas Cake Hill Overlook
NPS Photo/Conrad Provan
Quick Facts
Amenities
2 listed
Scenic View/Photo Spot, Wheelchair Accessible
There is a good chance that you will see cattle along the road, and may even encounter local ranchers driving their herds to better pasture. Over the last century, grazing has been a primary use of the land in and around Dinosaur National Monument. Today, grazing is still allowed at certain locations within the monument’s boundary. Many of the families permitted to pasture their animals here originally homesteaded in the area in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, prior to the establishment of the monument.
In those days, cattle rustling was a common trade in this part of the country. Trail Draw, the small canyon before you, was part of what is now known as the Outlaw Trail. This famous backcountry route snaked through desolate, rugged terrain from Montana to New Mexico, linking well-known hideouts such as Hole in the Wall and Robber’s Roost. The most notorious outlaws that used this route were known as the Wild Bunch, led by Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Legend holds that the infamous duo originally met in Browns Park, an area just north of the monument. Abundant grasslands and relatively warm winters attracted settlers to Browns Park as early as the 1870s. Outlaws frequented this isolated valley to rest and resupply.
Two local residents, Ann and Josie, also known as the Bassett sisters, befriended the Wild Bunch. The Bassett family was on good terms with the outlaws, and even joined them for a Thanksgiving dinner, alongside other residents of the valley. Their friendship with the Wild Bunch may have deterred other local outlaws from rustling the Bassett’s cattle. Eventually, Josie moved to the base of Split Mountain where her homestead still stands today.
In those days, cattle rustling was a common trade in this part of the country. Trail Draw, the small canyon before you, was part of what is now known as the Outlaw Trail. This famous backcountry route snaked through desolate, rugged terrain from Montana to New Mexico, linking well-known hideouts such as Hole in the Wall and Robber’s Roost. The most notorious outlaws that used this route were known as the Wild Bunch, led by Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Legend holds that the infamous duo originally met in Browns Park, an area just north of the monument. Abundant grasslands and relatively warm winters attracted settlers to Browns Park as early as the 1870s. Outlaws frequented this isolated valley to rest and resupply.
Two local residents, Ann and Josie, also known as the Bassett sisters, befriended the Wild Bunch. The Bassett family was on good terms with the outlaws, and even joined them for a Thanksgiving dinner, alongside other residents of the valley. Their friendship with the Wild Bunch may have deterred other local outlaws from rustling the Bassett’s cattle. Eventually, Josie moved to the base of Split Mountain where her homestead still stands today.