Artist Jack Pierson made this surreal sculpture in honor of Wonder Valley, a countercultural community on edge of civilization.

At the edge of the high desert, California's second-largest natural lake is home to a unique subspecies of trout adapted to its alkaline waters.

Unusual white sandstone formations in the Los Padres National Forest.

Beneath the southern end of the Golden Gate Bridge is the “Gibraltar of the West Coast,” a fort built to protect the San Francisco Bay from naval attack.

A hidden courtyard houses early 20th-century plaster masterpieces.

The longest covered bridge west of the Mississippi River.

A volcanic cone that formed over 600 years ago.

California's largest steel arch bridge.

Will Geer's outdoor theater started as a mountain retreat for actors, musicians, and other artists who were blacklisted during the Red Scare.

Colorful sedimentary rock layers provide opportunities both for hiking and photography.

The first lookout in Yosemite.

Take a leisurely ride on a 1906 cable car or a 1907 steam locomotive.

Built to hold Gold Rush wealth, this building has withstood the test of time.

Under the shadow of its towering parent tree, a rare specimen of sequoia produces ghostly white leaves.

Deep vertical fissures like miniature slot canyons cut across the cemented volcanic rock of Black Point above Mono Lake.

Someone really, really wanted to save this fast-food icon from demolition.

The oldest pictographs on this decorated rock formation in California's Carrizo Plain date back as many as 4,000 years.

Believe it or not, this is the final resting place of the man who created the Odditorium.

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

Try the frozen treat that inspired Arrested Development's famous banana stand.

In one of the hottest parts of the Mojave Desert, shallow bedrock forces the typically dry Mojave River to the surface in this canyon, providing a vital oasis for humans and wildlife.

A monument to the legacy of the man who created Spongebob Squarepants at the school where his passion for art and marine biology began.

Outside San Francisco lies a small clown cemetery and memorial.

A unique museum where guests can rent and operate a locomotive.