Alleyway plaque commemorating the death of a fictional character in The Maltese Falcon, not far from the author's home.

An abandoned, unfinished mansion on grounds strewn with lava rocks.

A tribute to the life and work of the beloved "Peanuts" cartoonist.

Canyon walls shrouded in ferns.

Noble beasts perhaps, but not the Emperor's dogs.

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

The haunting ruins of Jack London's dream house.

Spiral labyrinth hidden in the hills above Oakland, CA.

A creepy steel gremlin has protected the Bay Bridge since 1989.

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

Bonsai garden in Oakland is curated by the first non-Japanese female bonsai master in the United States.

A crumbling Beaux Arts monument to the Bay Area's age of rail.