A desert ghost town—occupied for only 12 years—was once home to more than 500 silver mines.

Smooth basaltic rocks tell a tale of ancient glacial waterfalls.

Under the right circumstances, this waterfall in Yosemite briefly turns a luminescent fiery orange.

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

Standing in a state of "arrested decay," this ghost town allows for a detailed peek into Gold Rush life in an unusually harsh climate.

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

The tragedy of the Japanese internment camps is remembered here by a stark "Soul Consoling Tower."

Towering basalt columns, a creation of fire and ice.

This naturally heated mountainous creek has created a group of neon blue pools of potentially deadly boiling water.

The echoes of a railroad town that solemnly mark the end of the line.

A charming desert roadside bakery that produces 10 times more bread daily than it has residents in its town.