Locals often dress this effigy of Traverse City's founder in festive outfits.

Easily overlooked in favor of the wineries that dot the region, this blast from the past is equally worth the visit.

A 12-foot sculpture serves as a constant reminder of the importance of protecting and restoring the Boardman River.   

For more than 50 years, an iconic sign has greeted visiting “fudgies” to the Traverse City area.

This enchanting forest trail leads to ethereal abodes and a giant bird's nest.

A subterranean world of tunnels links several buildings of this rare 19th-century asylum.

Every year, festive decorations appear on this juniper tree located in the median strip of a busy highway.

This curiosity shop contains a museum filled with bizarre, unique objects.

Outsider Art Community.

A Saint Nicholas-themed ghost town in the Mojave desert.

A giant mascot, a car bomb, and the mafia mingle in the history of a defunct restaurant chain.

More than 25 fully functional scale replicas of famous lighthouses dot the shores of Lake Havasu.

A tribute to the statues of Easter Island along Route 66.

A strenuous, unofficial trail leads to spectacular views in one of America's most remote national monuments.

Petroglyphs, bird watching, and a 100-year-old Ranch in one location.

This collection of vintage signs reflects the long and colorful history of this Arizona town.

These elusive, isolated rodents evolved into a distinct, locally iconic subspecies.

One of the final grand railway depot hotel complexes is slowly being restored to its former glory.

Inside this store, a mysterious statue draws visitors from the world over.

One man handcrafts "the best sake made outside of Japan" in a tiny desert town on Route 66.

The state's only comprehensive museum dedicated to the mineral that defined its history and economy.

Rusting dinosaurs frolic at the entrance to this roadside "snake sanctuary."

An off-the-beaten path cave with an underground lake.

Every Christmas, one Arizona city makes the most of its dry climate by creating an arid desert tannenbaum.