russellnelson's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Places visited in Oakland, California
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Places visited in Berkeley, California
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Places visited in Bernal, Mexico
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Places visited in San Bernardino, California
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Yosemite National Park, California

The Ahwahnee Hotel

The interior of the Overlook Hotel in "The Shining" was based on this Yosemite original.
merhutch Added by merhutch
Avalon, California

The Catalina Island Bison Herd

A herd of 150 bison live on California's Santa Catalina Island and are at the heart of an ongoing debate between environmental protection and economic expansion.
lewblank Added by lewblank
Palomar Mountain, California

Palomar Observatory

A world-class observatory in the California desert.
San Juan Capistrano, California

Mission San Juan Capistrano

Oldest building in California still in use.
Added by nitikp
Riverside, California

The Parent Washington Navel Tree

This California tree is the single source of the state's entire orange industry.
christopherldrozd Added by christopherldrozd
Riverside, California

The Ark of Citrus

The Citrus Variety Collection at UC Riverside contains two trees of each of the 1,000+ varieties of citrus.
Gastropod Added by Gastropod
San Bernardino, California

Unofficial McDonald's Museum

This unlicensed collection of fast-food memorabilia sits on the site of the first ever McDonald's restaurant.
Heather Arment Added by Heather Arment
Near Lake Arrowhead, California

SkyPark at Santa's Village

Costumed elves and mountain bikers co-exist peacefully at this abandoned Christmas-themed adventure park.
kcmick Added by kcmick
Agua Dulce, California

Vasquez Rocks

Named after a bandit and the star of several Hollywood prehistoric landscapes, these sandstone formations are a historical part of the Los Angeles natural landscape.
Erin Johnson Added by Erin Johnson
Lancaster, California

Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve

Each year these high desert hills are absolutely covered with poppy flowers in a surreal show of nature.
Allison Added by Allison
Daggett, California

Solar One and Solar Two

Decommissioned experimental solar facilities that pioneered solar energy technology.
Allison Added by Allison
Yermo, California

Peggy Sue's 50's Diner & Diner-Saur Park

Like a kitschy mirage in the Mojave, this eatery serves up classic 50s-style diner meals and a dinosaur sculpture garden.
Added by laurenmishgraf
Yermo, California

Calico Ghost Town

A desert ghost town—occupied for only 12 years—was once home to more than 500 silver mines.
Added by pushstart143
San Bernardino, California

Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex

Where NASA's satellites and rovers phone home.
Trevor Added by Trevor
Baker, California

World's Largest Thermometer

This giant temperature attraction created some giant electric bills.
Added by octoberwitch
Tecopa, California

China Ranch Date Farm

This secluded date farm can be reached only by following a bumpy, single-lane desert road.
Britta Shoot Added by Britta Shoot
Inyo County, California

Amargosa Opera House

Marta Becket's hand-painted theater in the desert.
Amargosa Valley, Nevada

Devil's Hole

Water of undetermined depth has attracted rare fish and cult leaders alike.
Added by zackofalltrades
Beatty, Nevada

Rhyolite Ghost Town

Odd outsider art installations surround a Gold Rush-era ghost town.
Beatty, Nevada

Albert Szukalski's Last Supper

Twelve plaster figures inspired by da Vinci's famed painting haunt the desert landscape above a real-life ghost town.
littlebrumble Added by littlebrumble
California

Eureka Dunes

The highest dunes in California are the most likely place in the area to hear the Singing Sands.
Added by zackofalltrades
Inyo County, California

Ubehebe Crater

A massive hydrovolcanic explosion left a half-mile wide crater in Death Valley.
Tony Dunnell Added by Tony Dunnell
Inyo County, California

Scotty's Castle

An abandoned Jazz Age dream home and con man's hideout in Death Valley.
Tre Added by Tre
Three Rivers, California

Moro Rock

Four hundred granite steps were built into this massive rock by the National Park Service.
Added by mtodd51