Arizona's first government hub is a rustic cabin now preserved as part of a historical museum.

Ninety feet off the valley floor is an ancient dwelling put under protection of the U.S. government by Teddy Roosevelt.

This Arizona observatory is famous for investigations into Martian life, and as the place humans first spotted Pluto.

This golf ball–shaped former desert real estate office now houses a UFO museum.

This immigrant bridge once spanned the Thames but is now a fixture of an Arizona city.

An eatery for UFO seekers on the Extraterrestrial Highway.

In the middle of a remote desert town is a surprisingly opulent hotel.

Towering basalt columns, a creation of fire and ice.

The interior of the Overlook Hotel in "The Shining" was based on this Yosemite original.

A glimpse into the lives of the the Miwok and Paiute people in Yosemite National Park.

Under the right circumstances, this waterfall in Yosemite briefly turns a luminescent fiery orange.

Aqueducts have dramatically changed this old lake, now home to tufa towers and its very own species of tiny brine shrimp.

Standing in a state of "arrested decay," this ghost town allows for a detailed peek into Gold Rush life in an unusually harsh climate.

Bits and pieces from the ill-fated Donner Party's winter cabins.

Small Nevada town embraced its designation as the "Armpit of America" with an Old Spice-sponsored festival.

When in Idaho, sleep in a giant potato.

The world’s largest truck stop includes a barber shop, chiropractor, and a huge museum with antique trucks.

A place of great reverence for Trekkies everywhere, a hero's future birthplace.

The site of Neil Armstrong's first flight is marked by a full on replica of the moon landers.

The highest point in the state of New Hampshire, and while unlikely "the worst weather in the world," it sure seems that way to hikers.

This World's Fair showpiece was built in Chicago, but shipped to Maine.

This extraordinary Depression-era expenditure was modeled after a postcard of a Mediterranean hotel.

One day a year it is legal to jump off of this astoundingly tall bridge that spans an Appalachian gorge.

Daredevil repair workers can worm their way out the access hatch, loop ropes over the apex and rappel down the monument.