This trench, some 2,300 feet long, is only the most prominent relic of a largely forgotten episode of placer mining on the east slope of the Sierra Nevada.

This dry lake bed contains the oldest known petroglyphs in North America.

The long, arduous journey of the stones of the Abbey of New Clairvaux.

This hiking/biking/horse trail along an old railroad grade features trestles, tunnels, and a roadless stretch through the scenic Susan River canyon.

This Nevada lake holds its titular natural pyramid and, if the legends are true, a number of dangerous spirits.

The longest covered bridge west of the Mississippi River.

This hidden amusement park is a magical escape for kids and kids-at-heart.

The largest drain hole in the world.

Giant jewel-toned statues fill the grounds of this Cambodian Buddhist temple in California.

Over 300 taxidermied animals in a Californian restaurant make for a taxidermist's dream and an animal lover's nightmare.

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

Colorful outcrops and cliffs just north of Reno provide a scenic backdrop for hiking and mountain biking.

This graffiti-covered bridge is the quintessential vision of a place for disillusioned youth to escape the complexities of burgeoning adulthood.

A popular tourist cave with a dark past.

This museum boasts the ninth-largest collection of insects in North America.

Seven ceramic sculptures are scattered around this California college campus.

Outsider art or homage to aliens?

California's longest-running tourist attraction is a stump.

Beneath a Virginia City bar is the entrance to an abandoned gold mine.

Ruins of the original wooden flume that carried water to Virginia City are still visible high on the Virginia Range.

Decor at “Nevada’s Oldest Thirst Parlor” includes Raquel Welch's brassiere hanging from a stuffed moose head.

This wilderness hike to a waterfall has an unlikely beginning in suburban Reno.

A showcase of engineering might that was also symbolic of westward expansion.

One of the oldest reform schools in the United States, home to wayward boys such as Merle Haggard, now abandoned.