Wyoming
Why see Wyoming? Here are some of the Cowboy State's top attractions
Sitting rife with untouched land where the Great Plains meet the Rocky Mountains, Wyoming is prime real estate for some of America’s greatest natural phenomena.
Serving as home to 10 national parks, 12 state parks and some 28 historic sites, the state is just as rich in nature as it is in relics from the cowboys, gunslingers and frontiersmen of generations gone by.
Here is a quick glance at some of the top attractions that set the “Equality State” on par with some of the biggest tourist destinations in the country.
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Yellowstone National Park
Nestled in the northwest corner of Wyoming, Yellowstone National Park is the oldest, and perhaps most recognizable, national park in the U.S.
Established in 1872 under the Grant administration, the sprawling Yellowstone National Park is known for its more than 10,000 hydrothermal features. Over 500 of these are geysers, including Old Faithful – which erupts at intervals of no more than two hours, and is one of just six geysers in the park whose eruptions rangers can reliably predict.
Yellowstone National Park was the first of its kind to be designated in the U.S. (Robert Alexander/Archive Photos/Getty Images)
Yellowstone is also known for its diverse wildlife – including the only bison population that’s been native to the continental U.S. since prehistory.
Devils Tower
Standing tall over Crook County is Devils Tower, a rock formation protruding some 1,267 feet above the nearby Belle Fourche River.
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Its impressive stature is far from the only distinction this crown jewel of the Black Hills holds.
Devils Tower is also the country’s first national monument, with its status being declared under the Antiquities Act in 1906.
Devils Tower, measuring 867 feet from base to summit, was the first national monument preserved under the Antiquities Act. (Dukas/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
Devils Tower is also considered sacred to the Northern Plains and Kiowa tribes indigenous to the region – and got its English moniker when an interpreter for Colonel Richard Irving Dodge misunderstood its native name as “Bad God’s Tower.”
Old Trail Town
Located just outside Yellowstone and bearing the namesake of legendary showman William Frederick “Buffalo Bill” Cody, the Park County town of Cody is also home to one of America’s most unique, complete and authentic exhibits dedicated to documenting life in the Old West.
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The Old Trail Town is an open-air museum comprised of 26 authentic, historic buildings originally constructed between 1879 and 1901. Many of these were dismantled at their original sites across Wyoming and neighboring Montana, before being transported to their current home along Cody’s western outskirts for reassembly and display.
The Old Trail Town is also home to some 100 horse-drawn vehicles, and an extensive collection of artifacts from frontiersmen and local Native populations alike.
Fort Laramie
Located in Goshen County near the Nebraska border, the Fort Laramie National Historic Site spans some 833 acres of land once used as an outpost for furriers, diplomats, and military officials along the Oregon Trail.
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Founded in 1834 by prominent fur trader William Sublette and partner Robert Campbell, Fort Laramie cycled through various owners – and names – over its first few years as a trading post.
Later in its life, it was purchased by the U.S. Army and used to supervise westward migratory routes.
The now-desolate Fort Laramie spent its heyday as a key post for fur traders and diplomats alike. (: Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
As westward expansion continued and newer, more efficient routes were forged, Fort Laramie gradually fell into disuse – and by the end of 1890, had been vacated completely.
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While initially left to be reclaimed by nature, Fort Laramie’s 1938 acquisition by the National Park Service has also allowed what’s left of it to be preserved – and the Historic Site attracts a modest total of about 46,000 annual visitors in its current state.
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Wyoming
Wyoming Supreme Court upholds 125- to 175-year conviction for Steven Marler after child sexual abuse trial in 2025
CASPER, Wyo. — The Wyoming Supreme Court has upheld the 2025 conviction of Steven Randall Marler, 52, who was sentenced to 125 to 175 years in prison on eight felony counts of sexually abusing two girls under his foster or adoptive care at his home on Casper Mountain. Marler was also convicted of five misdemeanor batteries and a count of child endangerment. He was found not guilty of sexual abusing another two other minors in the family, including the one who had first brought forward allegations in 2016.
The Supreme Court opinion noted that discrepancies in her testimony from previous statements were revealed at trial.
The appeal claimed that the Natrona County court where the trial was held improperly admitted testimony about physical abuse and Marler’s insistence that the children give him massages, which they said he referred to as a “daddy tax.”
The massages did not result in charges, and Wyoming courts are strict in disallowing evidence of “prior bad acts” for uncharged conduct that might color the opinion of the jury about whether the defendant is guilty of the actual charges.
The opinion released Friday and written by Justice Robert C. Jarosh noted that the Natrona Court, under Judge Kerri Johnson, had multiple hearings before the trial about whether the state should be allowed to introduce that evidence. It can only do so under specific circumstances, such as establishing a course of conduct relevant to “grooming behavior” and illustrating the power Marler held over the children and his ability and motivation in carrying out the abuse.
“The “daddy tax” massage evidence demonstrated a predictable, recurring pattern of behavior that directly illuminated Mr. Marler’s motive and systematic course of conduct,” the opinion reads. “The “daddy tax” massage evidence demonstrated a clear behavioral pattern and provided relevant context about how Mr. Marler targeted and groomed the children by exploiting his parental role and initiating abuse through seemingly innocent touching — all as a means to gratify his sexual desires.”
The opinion also noted that the jury had been properly instructed not to infer guilt based on the testimony about uncharged behavior they might find off-putting.
The appeal attorneys also argued that evidence of punishment in the form of spanking, exercise and withholding food was not relevant to the charged crimes and unfairly prejudicial to Marler.
“However, we agree with the district court this evidence was relevant to show Mr. Marler’s intent and motive to gain submission by the victims,” Friday’s opinion said.
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