downwardspiral's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Trona, California

Trona Pinnacles

One of the most unusual geological features, recognizable from a dozen hit movies.
Los Angeles, California

Millennium Biltmore Hotel

This opulent hotel has been visited by Spider-Man, Charlie's Angels, and the Ghostbusters.
San Francisco, California

Presidio Pet Cemetery

A monument to the love people have for their pets.
Joshua Tree, California

World Famous Crochet Museum

An old California photo stand has been turned into a shrine to the cozy art of crochet.
Ione, California

Preston Castle

One of the oldest reform schools in the United States, home to wayward boys such as Merle Haggard, now abandoned.
San Bernardino, California

Zzyzx Mineral Springs and Healing Center

A former utopian healing center created by a huckster and built by derelicts.
Los Angeles, California

The Baked Potato Jazz Club

From sax to spuds, get 'em all at this landmark music establishment.
Piercy, California

Confusion Hill

An optical illusion found amid a logged redwood forest.
Joshua Tree, California

Institute of Mentalphysics

Located on 420 acres in the high desert, this spiritual center is dedicated to the "science of the future."
Los Angeles, California

Samuel Freeman House

This forgotten Frank Lloyd Wright house is an architectural marvel at the end of a sleepy residential street.
California

Eureka Dunes

The highest dunes in California are the most likely place in the area to hear the Singing Sands.
San Francisco, California

Golden Gate Park Druid Circles

The stones that traveled from Spain to eventually become a holy place for San Francisco's nature worshippers.
San Jose, California

Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum

An extensive collection of ancient Egyptian artifacts and mummies.
San Francisco, California

Buena Vista Park Tombstones

Gold Rush-era tombstones line the park's paths.
Los Angeles, California

Miniature Garden of Whimsy

A quirky collection of figurines backdropped by city views is hidden next to a popular restaurant in the Hollywood hills.
Los Angeles, California

Mildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden

This “living museum” at UCLA exhibits thousands of plant species from all over the world.
Felton, California

Bigfoot Discovery Museum

This quirky roadside attraction dives into the many theories surrounding North America's most infamous hairy cryptid.
Eureka, California

The Carson Mansion

Commonly referred to as the most photographed Victorian home in the United States.
Oakland, California

Chapel of the Chimes

Julia Morgan's Moorish-Gothic labyrinth of fountains, trees, natural light and Oakland's notable dead.
Yermo, California

Calico Ghost Town

A desert ghost town—occupied for only 12 years—was once home to more than 500 silver mines.
Ludlow, California

Ludlow

One of the ghostly stops along Route 66.
Los Angeles, California

Wat Thai Temple Food Market

Every weekend, the parking lot of this Buddhist temple turns into a Thai street-food paradise.
San Bernardino County, California

Mojave Lava Tube

A volcanic tunnel illuminated by natural skylights offers a shaded respite from the desert sun.
La Cañada Flintridge, California

Devil's Gate

An unfortunate geological resemblance to Satan has labeled this Pasadena gorge as a passage to the underworld.