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

A hidden world of exotic succulents and cacti.

The miraculous hydrant that saved the Mission District in 1906.

A library and museum dedicated to typography.

Law-protected wreckage serves as a peculiar memorial for an almost forgotten World War II tragedy.

A glittering South Asian anomaly in a wealthy Los Angeles suburb.

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

360-degree virtual reality chamber physically immerses scientists into their data.

Celebrating the transformation of trash into objects of beauty.

This partially buried wreck is one of the most complete of its kind but is only revealed when the sea allows.

A library built during San Francisco's pioneer times is a student's retreat, bibliophile's sanctuary, and chess player's delight.

An increasingly eccentric apartment building, topped with winged beasties.

Smooth basaltic rocks tell a tale of ancient glacial waterfalls.

An amazing collection of fantastic reptiles, amphibians, spiders, and insects.

Arcadia is home to a haven for nature geeks and 80s TV lovers alike.

A crumbling wizard is one of the final reminders of a roadside Middle Earth.

A vast city of the dead, where the deceased outnumber the living by more than a million.

Discover for yourself what Herb Caen referred to as "the best kept secret in the Bay Area."

The stones that traveled from Spain to eventually become a holy place for San Francisco's nature worshippers.

A working model of the entire San Francisco Bay and much of the Sacramento River Delta, complete with regular tides that change every 14 minutes.

A sign at the end of the Santa Monica Pier marks the traditional end of the legendary American highway.

An abandoned, unfinished mansion on grounds strewn with lava rocks.

The biggest pinball arcade in the world has over 600 pinball machines, and 300 arcade machines.

A fake town founded by Western movie stars is now becoming a hip desert community.