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

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

This Pringle-shaped ledge makes for the perfect photo op.

Come crisp December nights, this fairly plain neighborhood becomes a holiday dream world.

A deserted hodgepodge of experimental structures designed by nearby university students.

San Francisco's oldest operating hotel, with a Victorian atmosphere and a "haunted" fourth floor.

L.A.'s oldest operating bowling alley is a beautifully restored homage to its speakeasy days.

A playground built by the kids that is a child's wonderland, and a helicopter parent's nightmare.

This little blue house pokes out over the campus of UC San Diego, seven stories high.

A cozy bookstore is tucked within an old gold mine shaft beneath the cafe and ice cream shop.

A raised boardwalk winds through a thicket of stunted, century-old trees no more than nine feet tall.

A beloved carnival gets a modern makeover in Los Angeles.

Bits and pieces from the ill-fated Donner Party's winter cabins.

This Oakland fairytale kingdom, fiercely devoted to childlike whimsy, was an early inspiration for Disneyland.

Neoclassical Revival mansion and set of horror cult classic Phantasm.

An ultra-modern vista that has been featured in so many films the house is a celebrity in its own right.

A shape-shifting buy-sell-trade bookstore, born to Beatnik Era spirit.

“It's the quality” (but probably also the drive-through donut tunnel) that has attracted diners since 1968.

An extraordinary final resting place full of oversized art, amazing statues, and dead celebrities.

This beautiful ridge-top trail is dotted by tiny homes apparently built by a group of itinerant fairies.

Crumbling pink walls and murder memorials preserve the pioneer history of Joshua Tree.

The space-age building is home to one of the few remaining rotating restaurants in America, and the only one that inspired a 1980s sitcom.

The California capital city once stood 10 feet lower than it does today.

A master of deception, Harry Houdini's greatest trick may have been living in two places at once.