Wyoming Ranch With Historic Outlaw Hideaway Hits Market For $9.2 Million

Outlaws loved Bates Hole near Casper back when Wyoming was wild and young. 

It made an ideal hideout for the likes of Butch Cassidy and the Wild Bunch, who were known to frequent the Bates Creek area to elude the law from time to time.

Bootlegger D.E. Dave Davidson, one of the biggest rumrunners in the history of the Cowboy State, was another fan of the remote retreat.

The things that made Bates Hole a favorite hideout make it an ideal getaway from the modern world today. 

This is an 8,481-acre hunting heaven, where trophy elk roam — and there are plenty of sandy draws ideal for hiding in while you await the elk of your dreams. 

Think Hell’s Half Acre, but with winter-protected land that offers lush grasses right by water.

A slice of this rugged, raw Wyoming land can now be yours — for $9.2 million. 

Called the Thieves Den Ranch, it offers uncommon seclusion 40 minutes from downtown Casper and all the amenities Wyoming’s second largest city has to offer.

This slice of seclusion can be made even larger by adding on the adjacent Big Red Creek Ranch, an additional 10,127 acres available for $7.5 million, making this a bonus opportunity for the right buyer.

Putting the two ranches together, the property is then called the Muddy Mountain Ranch. It’s available for a slight discount, with Mirr Ranch Group’s listing for that at $16.25 million.

There’s Private Land Back There?

Thieves Den and Big Red Creek ranches lie on the backside of Muddy Mountain, which is near Casper Mountain. 

Private land in this area isn’t common, Mirr Ranch Group brokers Jared Souza and Erik Anderson told Cowboy State Daily.

“I thought, frankly, that this was all public land back there,” Anderson said. “So, I was sort of surprised to learn there was a private ranch with deeded ground.”

The other big and pleasant surprise was the creek bottom, which was feeding lush green meadows in the valley where the ranch is located, Anderson added.

“That river bottom area with the cottonwoods just glows in the fall, and is absolutely beautiful in the spring and summer,” he said. “It is its own little sanctuary back there.”

The little sanctuary is surrounded by BLM land, meaning direct access to publicly managed areas is just a doorstep away, making it a launchpad for adventure.

“You can explore and hunt for as far as your heart desires around the property,” Souza said. 

He, too, was quite surprised by the property the first time he saw it.

“When we rounded the last corner before we got to the private entry for Thieves Den, I was like, ‘Wow, this is pretty freaking cool,'” he said. “There were a lot of rock outcroppings, a lot of timber, and then you get to this riparian corridor with this red seam of dirt, which I think is the Chugwater formation, and it was just a really interesting contrast.”

Souza felt as if he had somehow stumbled into a vast wilderness in some exotic locale, yet he knew Casper was 40 minutes or so away.

Stunning Home

The surprises don’t end there with this property. 

The owners, whose children have recently grown and moved away, invested millions in a new 3,831-square-foot home that offers four bedrooms and three-and-a-half baths, as well as a three-car garage.

The home has been situated to take the best advantage of panoramic views and features big, wide windows that take all of that view in.

The home was designed with the idea of entertaining in mind. It offers a spacious living room with white oak floors and an impressive stacked-stone fireplace. 

The chef’s kitchen is an ideal gathering spot with a large island, the perfect place for a party. The space is also elegant with alder cabinets and granite countertops.

The primary bedroom suite includes a soaking tub and walk-in shower, as well as a his-and-hers vanity and spacious walk-in closets. Windows in the primary suite overlook Bates Creek, giving it a great view. 

There are three additional bedrooms, as well as an office loft. 

There’s also an expansive patio that offers a stunning area for outdoor entertainment. 

A guest cabin tucked away a short distance from the main residence offers additional, private, residential space, and there’s plenty of room to grow.

Working Cattle Ranch And Hunter’s Heaven

The two properties are also a working cattle ranches that can accommodate up to 600 cow-calf pairs when considering BLM and state leases of just over 5,300 acres that also support the operation. 

A heated shop, livestock barn and corrals — as well as an airplane hangar and grass airstrips, one on each ranch — further complement this property, which Anderson said has been generating a lot of interest since its listing. 

“We’re getting a lot of attention on this property from folks who are out of state, and frankly out of the country, too,” he said. “They are looking for something like this that is very private, very secluded in Wyoming. 

"With the hangar that’s on the premises, people could fly into Casper and then take a Cessna 182 or something similar and fly right to the property if they wish. There’s quite a bit of attraction to that type of setup.”

What’s good for cattle is also good for wildlife, Souza added, and the previous owners have managed the property for trophy elk, with selective, careful harvesting, intended to encourage long-term growth.

The fishing is also not bad, Anderson said.

“It’s a creek-style fishery that they were talking about developing a little more before they had left,” he said. “But as you move up into the canyon, the water gets a little deeper and the fishing gets better. 

"Access through the ranch is really good on the deeded ground, so it’s then essentially private fishing, even though it’s on public ground.”

Good-sized brown and cutthroat trout can be found in the water, Anderson said, based on his own scouting of the stream.

“From 95% of this ranch, you literally cannot see anything else,” Souza added. “You can’t see anything other than just raw Wyoming land, which is very, very rare. 

"The privacy aspect is literally, you don’t even know anybody else exists on the planet when you’re on the ranch, which is pretty unique.”

Renée Jean can be reached at renee@cowboystatedaily.com.