Missing Utah mom's dad: Visit to campsite 'confirms it'

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Susan Powell's father no longer believes his son-in-law's story has any credibility.

This week, Chuck Cox went to Simpson Springs in remote Tooele County in Utah. For the first time, he saw for himself the campground where Josh Powell claims he went the night his wife disappeared.

It has been more than three months since Susan Powell was last seen.

Josh Powell claims he left her at home on the night of Dec. 6 and drove his two boys the two hours to Simpson Springs, where they camped out and cooked s'mores.

Cox always had his doubts about his son-in-law's claims, but he had to see for himself.

He hit the road toward Simpson Springs, turning off the pavement and down the hard-packed dirt road in his car. And for the next hour, he wound his way through hills and down increasingly narrow roads.

"My daughter never would have let him out of the house with the kids that night to go camping," he said.

Josh Powell claims he made the journey down an unlit road with his kids in the dark of night as a major winter storm approached.

Cox believes on that December morning, the pass to the campsite would have been impassible, especially considering Josh Powell was driving a minivan with front-wheel drive and little clearance.

"You get pulled into there, get stuck real easily in a car like this," he said, seeing potentially problematic areas.

At the campground, Cox ran into a scout troop from Riverton. It just so happened the troop was also camping at Simpson Springs on the weekend of Dec. 6, and left just as the flurries were starting.

"I have never been in a camp that cold," one scout said.

To walk among the campsites of Simpson Springs was a revelation for the grieving father. His speculation hardened into belief. He now firmly believes that whatever happened that night did not happen at Simpson Springs.

"It confirms it," Cox said. "The only hard thing is thinking she could be out somewhere ... a place like this."

- KTVX-TV in Salt Lake City contributed to this report.