Best of California

Under the right circumstances, this waterfall in Yosemite briefly turns a luminescent fiery orange.

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

The mysterious round rocks of Schooner Gulch.

This whimsical seashell-shaped place of worship was designed to blend into its surroundings.

One of the most scenic stretches of road in America winds between some of the country's oldest trees.

Museum dedicated to the preservation of surf culture.

A trash dump made beautiful by nature's power.

This iconic L.A. bookshop is housed in an abandoned bank—both symbolic and chic.

High on a hill overlooking Los Angeles lives a world famous, high power conical Tesla Coil.

The legendary building that needed ghostly approval before being built.

America's most famous piece of self-built architecture.

Scores of vintage street lamps shine along L.A.’s Miracle Mile.

After starting as a whimsical tourist attraction that eventually found its way to ruin, these renovated canals offer a lush and exotic locale on the Pacific Coast.

In a city filled with Frank Gehry buildings, one stands out as one of the architect's weirder works.

L.A.'s oldest operating bowling alley is a beautifully restored homage to its speakeasy days.

Get lost in this haunting fairytale art walk through a man-made eucalyptus grove.

Relics of the 1894 Midwinter Exposition continue to delight visitors today.

Olfactory delights in San Francisco's Botanical Gardens.

Anyone can control this glittery light installation with just a phone call.

Here, visitors can swing with the waves of the Pacific Ocean.

This 19th-century museum inside of a lighthouse is only accessible during low tide.

Centuries of crashing waves carved out this small hole in the rock, which lights up at certain parts of the year.

This unique graffiti art from the 1940s has become a staple of this local landscape in the remote California desert.

This little valley along Highway 1 is engulfed by thousands of lilies during the spring season.

A 19th-century cabin built into a hollowed-out Sequoia tree.

This restaurant offers the original California cuisine.

One of the oldest producers of hand-folded fortune cookies still uses its original secret recipe.

One of the largest Buddhist communities in the West sits on the site of an old hospital.

A giant knight, sex education, date shakes, and Jesus coexist happily in this Coachella Valley desert oasis.

This childhood throwback has hundreds of arcade games and pinball machines to transport you back in time.

The world's largest outdoor organ is played weekly by one of just two civic organists in the U.S.

This 19th-century church is now a popular roller rink.

The only standing town in the United States that early Chinese Americans built for themselves.

These unusual houses look like giant boats that washed ashore on a residential street.

The lighthouse central to the 1980s horror classic "The Fog" is, in fact, located in one of the foggiest areas of the Pacific Coast.

Thousands of migrating monarchs overwinter clustered amongst the eucalyptus trees.

The southernmost outpost of the Russian Empire in colonial America.

An off-grid art installation that encourages its visitors to imagine a world without waste.

One of the last remaining Carpenter Gothic churches is situated on a wildflower conservatory overlooking the bay.

A cozy bookstore is tucked within an old gold mine shaft beneath the cafe and ice cream shop.

Hopeless romantics will swoon over the sweet story behind this bright and colorful home.

A water tower shaped like a giant coffee pot looms over a small Swedish village in Central California.

Giant jewel-toned statues fill the grounds of this Cambodian Buddhist temple in California.

The first high-tech company in the valley that actually worked with silicon devices.

An Aladdin's cave of old Silicon Valley tech.

Beautiful Victorian buildings from L.A.'s forgotten architectural past.

The beloved dining spot stands at the cross-section of Hollywood and the Old West.

The quirky salon doubles as a retro museum run by the world's leading "hairstorian."