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

The graffiti-covered remnants of a former triangulation station are balanced precariously on this California peak.

The most beautiful Taco Bell in the world even has surfboard parking.

Concrete strongholds stand guard over the Golden Gate.

This residential door allows San Francisco muggles a glimpse at the wizarding world.

Furniture tries to escape an abandoned building in San Francisco.

Visible below the waves are memorials to the city's Gold Rush dead.

A historic hotel that made a cameo in Hitchcock's classic film has no intention of letting guests forget its fame.

Once the fastest ship from San Francisco to Tahiti, the Galilee now lays in pieces in three different cities.

Chevron maintains one “Standard” brand station per state so it doesn’t lose the trademark.

One of few lasting examples of the brief octagon craze that developed into folly.

These subterranean storage areas hold emergency water reserves.

This Japanese treats shop may have been the first business to mass-produce fortune cookies in the United States.

A brooding mansion of clinker brick stands out among the Victorian houses of Pacific Heights.

An artsy hidden staircase leads to breathtaking views of San Francisco.

This shop specializes in oddities and Victorian-inspired wonders.

The key to turning shifting dunes into the green oasis of Golden Gate Park.

This private residence was the template for one of the most beloved television homes of all time.

The seawater playground of gilded-era San Francisco burned to the ground in 1966.

Golden Gate Park's historic collection of plants.

San Francisco's urban bison herd has persisted in the face of extinction, development, and disease.

Carnivorous plants, medieval aphrodisiacs, and the largest original wood structure glass conservatory in the western hemisphere.

Relics of the 1894 Midwinter Exposition continue to delight visitors today.

The rustic cabin-like decor of this Arts and Crafts-style church reflects the love of nature central to its little-known theology.