Butch Cassidy's West

• St. George Area
• Running Through Snow Canyon
• Grafton Ghost Town

Activities and Overnight Options
It's just a couple of hours from McCarran International in Las Vegas to the St. George region of southwestern Utah. The soaring red rock cliffs, Mojave desert landscape and the profound sense of human and geologic history provided the perfect backdrop to "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," the movie star of this itinerary. Remember that famous chase scene from the film? Get on a horse and experience it for yourself with Patty Arnett at Snow Canyon Trail Rides or set out on foot across the park’s playful blend of petrified sand dunes and lava fields amid red rock walls and bright skies.

Nearby Grafton will also seem quite familiar (it was one of the filming locations "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid") and from your base camp in St. George you can count on an array of great dining, overnight lodging, outdoor adventure and access to Zion National Park. If you haven't been to Zion, give yourself at least a couple of extra days, consider lodging or camping options near the park in Springdale and learn how best to visit the park here.

• Cassidy Trail
• Panguitch
• Young Butch

If you haven't used up all your allotted vacation time exploring the southwestern corner of Utah (between St. George, Cedar City and the Kanab area you could easily explore for days), it's time to get to know the man himself — not Paul Newman, but Robert Leroy Parker, the man who became known as Butch Cassidy. Scenic, high-elevation trail systems like Cassidy Trail in Red Canyon may well have been used by Cassidy and his Hole-in-the-Wall Gang to access remote hideouts along the Outlaw Trail. It might make sense: Cassidy's childhood home in Circleville was roughly 40 miles north, so the area may have held special meaning, besides being stunning to look at. Red Canyon mimics the famous hoodoos, or pillars, of red sandstone distinctive of nearby Bryce Canyon National Park. Circleville is a slight detour, either en route from yesterday or as shown on the map below between Day 3's exploration of Capitol Reef and the trip north toward Sundance Mountain Resort. Of course, between your proximity to Bryce Canyon today and the trip to Capitol Reef tomorrow, you have another important decision: Do I add days for "Exploring the Scenery" or keep the posse focused on its pursuit of Butch Cassidy's legend?

Overnight Options
Lodging: Panguitch, Bryce Canyon City, Tropic
Camping: Red Canyon, Bryce Canyon, Kodachrome Basin State Park

• All-American Road Scenic Byway 12
• Kodachrome Basin State Park
• Capitol Reef Country

As teased above, this is a day (or days) to get acquainted with some of America's most renowned scenery along one of its best roads, the All-American Highway Scenic Byway 12. If you've never traveled it and have gotten as far as Cassidy Trail in Red Canyon, we highly recommend taking the time to finish the road. It's mere minutes to the turn to Bryce Canyon National Park. There's lodging and dining in Bryce Canyon City and nearby Tropic. And just a little farther is the turn at Cannonville to Kodachrome Basin State Park at one of multiple access routes into Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Additional stops include the Escalante area, Boulder Mountain and Torrey, at the junction with yet another scenic byway, S.R. 24 in Capitol Reef Country. In short, give yourself time. (Self-sufficient and well-prepared travelers with an extra day can take advantage of their proximity to Robber's Roost to explore remnants of a real outlaw hideout in the wilderness.)

Overnight Options
Lodging: Bryce Canyon City, Tropic, Cannonville, Escalante, Boulder, Torrey
Camping: Bryce Canyon National Park, Kodachrome Basin, Escalante Petrified Forest State Park, Burr Trail, Boulder Mountain, Capitol Reef National Park

• Sundance Mountain Resort
• Owl Bar
• Park City

It's around three hours from the red rock landscapes and outlaw hideouts of Central Utah back to the metropolitan Wasatch Front. Depending on your departure time, you can make it to Sundance Mountain Resort for lunch or dinner at one of the renowned restaurants. An evening spent at the Owl Bar caps off the journey through the scenes and legends of Butch Cassidy. The restored Rosewood Bar is known to have once hosted Cassidy's Hole-in-the-Wall Gang at its original location in Wyoming. Another option for movie buffs and foodies is to continue up the highway to Park City. In January, Utah's famous mountain town hosts the Sundance Film Festival, but it's a year-round destination whether you're looking for trails and adventure or dining and culture. At the end of it all, it's less than an hour back to Salt Lake City International Airport, so there's no rush. Of course, Butch Cassidy's footprints can be found all over the west, and really intrepid travelers might consider adding a couple of days to head east toward Vernal and Dinosaur National Monument and get directions to Browns Park, a remote enclave along the Green River where Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid use to hideout.

Overnight Options
Lodging: Sundance Mountain Resort, Park City
Camping: Deer Creek or Wasatch Mountain state parks, Mt. Timpanogos