Nevada's largest cactus collection stands outside a candy mogul's small factory.

The oldest lighthouse on America's west coast no longer needs keepers, yet they maintain the site anyhow.

The first safe in this California town had to hold all the gold.

The stately birthplace of California's statehood.

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

The oldest continuously operating church in California.

It should come as no surprise that the world's largest artichoke lies in the town that calls itself the "Artichoke Center of the World."

At this California chicken ranch, four bucks will get you 18 eggs and a chorus of dancing animatronic poultry.

This concrete ship has had four careers - World War I tanker, floating amusement park, fishing pier, and artificial reef.

Housed in a memorial lighthouse, this museum relays the history of surfing, beginning with the antics of royal Hawaiian teenagers.

A strange house built only at night, with rumored mystic inspiration.

The most beautiful Taco Bell in the world even has surfboard parking.

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

This grinning pup statue is all that's left of what was once a ubiquitous Bay Area diner chain.

The sole surviving relic of the San Francisco neighborhood cobbled together from old horsecars and streetcars.

The key to turning shifting dunes into the green oasis of Golden Gate Park.

George Lucas donated this park to honor the birthplace of his two biggest movie franchises.

A celebration of once forgotten materials.

A private home built to resemble the shape of a microscopic creature.

A burnt orange monolithic dome structure perched on a hillside near Interstate 280.

Thousands of turbines whir at at the origin of North American wind power.

Albuquerque found the perfect use for tumbleweeds at Christmastime.

This whimsical home made entirely from clay is basically a giant piece of pottery.

Despite being burnt down multiple times, the ruins of this South Carolina church are still standing.