Hidden deep in these canyons, Butch Cassidy, Elza Lay, Flat Nose George, Kid Curry, Joe Walker, and others eluded pursuing lawmen in the late 1800s. In the 1850s, Chief Wakara escaped into these badlands with as many as 1,400 horses stolen from ranchers in California. He came across the Spanish Trail, which takes its northern-most route through the San Rafael Swell. Spanish explorers forged the trail about 1800. Later it became a route for slave traders traveling between Santa Fe and the Great Basin, and Native Americans were sold for as much as $200 each in Mexico City.