This is one really big nut.

Giant origami sculptures tucked into desert scenery beckon passers-by to explore further.

A multi-storied adobe complex has been inhabited for more than a thousand years.

A futuristic temple of light uses prisms and rainbows to create an atmosphere of peace.

Where a guard killed nine German prisoners during one of the worst 20th-century POW camp massacres in U.S. history.

This former rail stop in Utah was abandoned, repopulated by some nostalgic friends, and now is home to a single DIY aviator who lives in a hangar.

This plaque marks the site where the penultimate chapter in the journey of two doomed boys unfolded in an imagined parallel universe.

An Ancestral Puebloan ruin that appears to burst into flames in the sunlight.

This concert pavilion on the shore of the Great Salt Lake has been destroyed by fire, water, and disinterest but keeps coming back.

Sandstone rock formations that look like they belong on the cover of a progressive rock album.

This hands-on math museum believes in turning concepts into constructs.

Dozens of lights dangle from the branches of what may be the brightest tree in Los Angeles.

A classically trained chef makes beloved burritos inside a gas station.

A Cold War site complete with rusty structures, hiking trails, and beautiful views.

Every weekend, the parking lot of this Buddhist temple turns into a Thai street-food paradise.

The final resting place of one of Hollywood’s most prolific and talented actors is on the grounds of a California Mission.

This centerpiece of the Hollywood & Highland shopping center is a recreation of a long-lost movie set.

This peaceful garden is hidden on the grounds of a spiritual organization founded by a pioneer yogi.

The blinking light atop the iconic landmark has been sending secret messages for decades.

A beautiful memorial tells the story of a formerly enslaved woman whose kindness shaped a burgeoning city.

Raised illegally, Reggie now lives at the Los Angeles Zoo after authorities spent years tracking him down.

Hollywood's oldest hotel is the site of the first Academy Awards, the birthplace of Marilyn Monroe's career, and the home of Montgomery Clift's ghost.

This symbol of peace is appropriately positioned overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

Hand-crafted tributes to a stray cat named "Room 8" now cover this LA elementary school.