Red sandstone structures dominate this landscape, which has been inhabited for some 5,000 years.

Over 80,000 carved wood blocks make up one of the world's oldest intact Buddhist canons.

Burping, gurgling geothermal mud pots by the Salton Sea.

The largest drain hole in the world.

Giant Redwood-themed cafeteria operates under the golden rule, "Dine Free Unless Delighted."

One of the last free public hot springs is decorated with hippie art.

The neighborhood shop is a sort of tiny cactus museum full of exotic specimens you can take home.

The L.A. Zoo has a secret garden of rare bootleg cycads, a palm specimen dating back 280 million years.

From pre-war whiskey cocktails to prohibition-era speakeasy secrecy, this bar has seen it all.

Acres of natural wonders left behind by a socialite-turned-gardener.

Hundreds of trees made from glass bottles make up this forest on Route 66.

Julia Morgan's Moorish-Gothic labyrinth of fountains, trees, natural light and Oakland's notable dead.

A bigger-than-life pun that has become a beacon of altruism.

This concrete tangle of square pipes has stood as a proud thorn in the city's side since the '70s.

Lucha Libre (Mexican Wrestling) themed taco shop.

The now-abandoned tunnels were built for the transcontinental railroad on the route where the first wagon train entered California.

These millipedes glow not out of attraction, but as a not-too-subtle warning.

The abandoned personal amusement park of the King of Pop.

Exotic feline breeding compound and conservation center.

This rare example of a "tidefall" is a spectacular drop from the cliffs down onto the beach.

This naturally heated mountainous creek has created a group of neon blue pools of potentially deadly boiling water.

Once thought to be the oldest living tree in the world, Methuselah was germinated before the Egyptian pyramids were built.

Abandoned bridge hidden deep in the San Gabriel Mountains.

Big gun installations, built over a massive cemetery, now abandoned & hidden in trees.