A graceful natural rock formation stands astride the point where the Gulf of California meets the Pacific Ocean.

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."

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

A large instrument played by the wind.

Nursery with extensive collection of flesh-eating plants operated by the author of "The Savage Garden."

Once the largest windmill outside of Holland, with enormous 114 foot sails.

A modest reminder of treacherous waters at the Golden Gate.

After starting as a whimsical tourist attraction that eventually found its way to ruin, these renovated canals offer a lush and exotic locale on the Pacific Coast.

Nestled in the heart of San Francisco’s bustling Financial District stands a unique homage to the Mayan and Beaux Arts.

Only hotel where you can legally launder money.

One of the largest free-standing structures ever built, this dirigible hangar is now simply a giant skeleton.

Sports history, made in the Arroyo Seco.

A giant donut stands as a popular symbol of Los Angeles iconography.

Oldest building in California still in use.

This giant temperature attraction created some giant electric bills.

The second-largest gold nugget in existence, displayed in a Las Vegas casino conveniently named the Golden Nugget.

The largest drain hole in the world.

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

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

The short oil boom of Venice Beach, and its swift removal from the tourism-laden landscape.

A massive volcanic plug is now a protected area that hosts a number of bird species.

Sitting in the basement of a castle, the largest wine barrel in the world is bigger than most apartments.

The last remaining relic of San Francisco's glittering 1915 Panama Pacific Exposition.

This 4,000-foot-diameter hole is touted as "the most well known, best preserved meteorite crater on Earth."