Devil's Bridge, Ceredigion

Three bridges span the ravine over the Mynach river, strangely stacked one upon the next. The uppermost span was constructed in 1902 over another stone bridge built in 1753 and the original dating all the way back to as early as 1075-1200. A set of stairs known, fittingly, as Jacob's Ladder descends the ravine to the first bridge.

The name "Devil's Bridge" seems fitting here in honor of the strange construction, but there are in fact dozens, if not hundreds, of similarly named arched stone bridges throughout Europe. Like all of its counterparts, this bridge comes with its own devil story. According to legend, the steep ravine was far too difficult to span by ordinary mortal hands, so the devil stepped in with an offer: he would build the bridge in exchange for the first soul to cross it upon completion. The deal was made, and the bridge built – but when it came time for the first person to step onto the crossing, a dog dashed out ahead, thus saving the citizenry from eternal torment.

Another detail of the fable is that when the devil realized he'd been outsmarted, he stormed off in a rage. Because of his embarrassment, it has been surmised that he has never to returned for a visit to Wales.