A giant chess set, minus the psychedelic drug trip.

This little valley along Highway 1 is engulfed by thousands of lilies during the spring season.

This 252 step staircase offers stunning views of San Jose.

This municipal playground was co-created by the father of one of the most playful characters ever.

This quirky roadside attraction dives into the many theories surrounding North America's most infamous hairy cryptid.

A plaque and memorabilia collection mark where A&W got its start.

A crumbling Beaux Arts monument to the Bay Area's age of rail.

From the sky, a kaleidoscope of color brightens the grey landscape of the San Francisco Bay.

A trail weaves through the verses of a poem illustrated by stone sculptures inspired by Native American pictographs.

A 140-year-old castle with underground caves hidden in San Francisco.

A large instrument played by the wind.

Handmade treasures from around the world.

A grove of "candelabra redwoods" deep in California's Lost Coast.

A tree grown from astronaut seeds which were exposed to cosmic rays.

This stunning sea creature-shaped home blends into the landscape like a fantasy villa.

One poet's handmade, anachronistic home.

Dive bar built out of the remains of a whaling ship.

A restored 1920s cascade stairway provides one of the best views of Oakland's Lake Merritt.

At this California chicken ranch, four bucks will get you 18 eggs and a chorus of dancing animatronic poultry.

This cabin from the 1850s is one of the first structures built by Chinese immigrants in California.

Sunset-colored dunes of volcanic ash make taking a poor photo impossible.

Eastern zen meets Western grit in these four little trees growing out of a rock on Lake Tahoe’s Nevada shore.

The first U.S. town to secede from the Union, only to vote themselves right back in.

Built in 1895, this bed and breakfast was once a hospital that served an early 1900s Gold Rush boomtown.