Get up close to emus and ostriches, or buy their tasty meat.

Where there's quartz, there must be gold. Thus is the story of the mines of Julian, and the titillating times of the Gold Rush.

Gorgeous purple flowers drape from the world's largest blossoming plant.

An eccentric folk art landmark made out of discarded bottles by an inspired "grandma."

An abandoned, unfinished mansion on grounds strewn with lava rocks.

The graffiti-covered remnants of a former triangulation station are balanced precariously on this California peak.

The rusting remains of the largest assembled WWII fleet on the West Coast.

A hidden world of exotic succulents and cacti.

While exploring the desert, you can stop by the home of a fictional heretic from a parallel universe.

On a barren hillside in the Yucca Valley, the recently restored Desert Christ Park has attracted pilgrims and kitsch hunters for over 50 years.

An abandoned Jazz Age dream home and con man's hideout in Death Valley.

Millions of years of oxidation make a drive down this winding Death Valley road surprisingly colorful.

From the sky, a kaleidoscope of color brightens the grey landscape of the San Francisco Bay.

Art from the latest counter-culture; kids who dye their hair blue and believe the future will be a post-apocalyptic water world.

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

Discover for yourself what Herb Caen referred to as "the best kept secret in the Bay Area."

The overgrown ruins of a once thriving World War I-era copper mine.

San Francisco's most expensive hotel suite includes a secret passageway rumored to have been used by JFK.

The largest dune field in the Mojave offers a chance of hearing the 'singing sands.'

Arcadia is home to a haven for nature geeks and 80s TV lovers alike.

A man-made island in scenic San Francisco Bay.

Handmade treasures from around the world.

Coastal dunes, site of buried Egyptian movie set and former utopian colony.

Nursery with extensive collection of flesh-eating plants operated by the author of "The Savage Garden."