Tiny Torrey—a blink-and-you-miss-it hamlet smack in the middle of southern Utah's canyon country—has been an outpost of individuality ever since Butch Cassidy holed up here in the late 1800s. Nowadays, of course, the renegades are more likely to be slinging 21-speeds than six-shooters.

Compared with Moab, a hundred miles [161 kilometers] northeast, Torrey is an undiscovered gem, but its landscapes are just as spectacular and as geologically varied. This authentic ranching town packs an adventure sports wallop way out of proportion with its size, thanks mainly to nearby Capitol Reef National Park.

Do-it-yourself hikers, bikers, canyoneers, and other rock hounds have discovered the park's truly astonishing terrain, including a hundred-mile-long [161-kilometer-long], nearly continuous line of cliffs called the Waterpocket Fold—ramparts that rise from the desert like gigantic breaking waves.

All prices in U.S. dollars
 

Access
Most major airlines serve Salt Lake City, 200 miles [322 kilometers] north.

Hiking
Starting from the park's Fruita Campground, the Cohab Canyon Trail connects with the 3-mile [4.8-kilometer] Frying Pan Trail, which crests Waterpocket Fold, then drops down into Grand Wash. A side trip leads to Cassidy Arch, a formation named after the bandit.

Biking
In the park, bikes are permitted only on roads, but numerous trails notch the mountains overlooking town. In Dixie National Forest, the Tantalus Flats route starts out with great views from atop Boulder Mountain, whips down 30 miles [48.3 kilometers] of fast, nontechnical trails, and ends up at the visitors center in Capitol Reef.

Front-suspension rentals with Wild Hare Expeditions (888 304 4273; http://sand stone.color-country.net/~thehare/p16.htm) are $30 for a full day. For an additional $30, the outfitter shuttles bikers' cars to the base of Boulder Mountain, then takes riders farther upslope to the trailhead.

Canyoneering
Wild Hare runs one-day trips, starting at $75 per person, into Sheets Gulch, a 9-mile-long [14.5-kilometer] Capitol Reef canyon full of chimneys, crack climbs, and gigantic boulders.

Room and Board
The clean, inexpensive rooms at the Rim Rock Inn (doubles $59; 888 447 4676 [U.S. and Canada only]; www.therimrock.com) have great views of this former ranch's 121 acres [49 hectares].

The southwestern fusion cooking at Café Diablo (+1 435 425 3070) has been called the best in the state.

Resources
Capitol Reef Country Travel Council (800 858 7951 [U.S. and Canada only]; www.capitolreef.org)

Capitol Reef National Park (+1 435 425 3791; www.nps.gov/care)