Ayres Natural Bridge in Converse County, near Douglas, is considered one of Wyoming's first tourist attractions. But for the Indians who first lived in this country, the rocky arch above the waters of LaPrele Creek was a deadly place. A young brave had been struck by lightning and killed while hunting the canyon; thus began a legend that an evil spirit called "King of Beasts" lived below the bridge. When white settlers realized this, they used the bridge as a place to escape from Indian attacks. Early-day mountain men lived in caves nearby, and Mormon settlers built cabins nearby in the 1850s. In 1882, the ages-old formation finally got a name, after Alva Ayres a teamster who had settled the land at the bridge. Photo by Carol Highsmith, 2015.