This sun-scorched lakebed contains samples of half the natural elements known to humankind.

Haunting and beautiful trees, doomed to die.

Made famous by cable TV, this oddball collection of antiques and collectibles is a cut above the rest.

A watering hole where the options for seating include a bar, patio, or subterranean cave.

An eatery within a Bay Area Buddhist temple pulls off all your favorite Vietnamese classics without the meat.

A glimpse into the lives of the the Miwok and Paiute people in Yosemite National Park.

A rare surviving example of a pre-WWII Japanese garden, restored after years of neglect.

This enormous World War II relic is one of the largest wooden structures in the world.

A restored 1920s cascade stairway provides one of the best views of Oakland's Lake Merritt.

Four hundred granite steps were built into this massive rock by the National Park Service.

This museum boasts the ninth-largest collection of insects in North America.

This ramshackle ghost town is comprised of mining-era buildings collected from around the region.

The Empire Mine is "one of the oldest, largest, deepest, longest and richest gold mines in California."

Antiques by the Bay.

Law-protected wreckage serves as a peculiar memorial for an almost forgotten World War II tragedy.

Hike amid the palm trees that thrive among Southern California's Indio Hills.

Abortion, prohibition, religion, war, and fear all play a part in the history of this idiosyncratic Pacifica castle.

This odd California folly seems like it was almost designed to accumulate urban legends.

A tree grown from astronaut seeds which were exposed to cosmic rays.

Forgotten and then destroyed by fire, this was once one of the largest saltwater swimming pools in the world.

"The greatest unknown literary treasure in Los Angeles."

Dioramas and animatronics lead you through the story of Bhagavad-gita, the Indian literary classic.

This dormant volcanic crater has been converted from a roiling pit of magma to a pleasant hiking spot.

North America's largest accredited model railroad museum.