Once America’s most beautiful army base, this abandoned military fort on the coast of Monterey Bay has been left to the elements.

The oldest lighthouse on America's west coast no longer needs keepers, yet they maintain the site anyhow.

Two rocks in a perpetual kiss and one of "the most romantic spot in America."

Every year, over 25,000 monarchs overwinter in Pacific Grove.

Steinbeck's old stomping grounds, immortalized in Cannery Row.

Fake rail crossings mark the site of an influential doctor's demise.

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

This eagle-topped spire remembers the military commander who snatched up California for the United States.

An old whaling station now serves to give the public a look at the commercial whaling industry, no longer a part of Monterey's economy.

The stately birthplace of California's statehood.

This remarkably simple jail went over a century without an escape.

The oldest U.S. Government building in California, and it's State Historic Landmark #1.

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

The first safe in this California town had to hold all the gold.

An unfinished rail tunnel that has since been used to house cheese and bats.

The oldest bridge in South Carolina may have been designed by the same man who created the Washington Monument.

The world's largest fire hydrant is supposedly tornado-proof.