A walk through the historic city center, under the streets of Seattle.

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

A trash dump made beautiful by nature's power.

The fossilized remains of ancient California redwoods.

California's own majestic geyser is powered by a subterranean volcano.

A working model of the entire San Francisco Bay and much of the Sacramento River Delta, complete with regular tides that change every 14 minutes.

Concrete strongholds stand guard over the Golden Gate.

Internationally-recognized arts center housed in a century-old former military barracks.

San Francisco's newly reopened hands-on science museum.

This private residence was the template for one of the most beloved television homes of all time.

A modern day curiosity cabinet.

A remote crossroads honoring a fallen talent.

A hotel and restaurant serving as the mecca of kitsch.

An alley covered with 20 years of bubble gum.

A massive volcanic plug is now a protected area that hosts a number of bird species.

Cambria's most unique B&B features creative surroundings and fantastic food.

A house built from trash known as the poor man's Hearst Castle.

Chewing gum tycoon's memorial lies perched over wife's botanical gardens on Santa Catalina Island.

A herd of 150 bison live on California's Santa Catalina Island and are at the heart of an ongoing debate between environmental protection and economic expansion.

A cow in the road might subvert the flow of traffic but this one's above it all, quite literally.

Come crisp December nights, this fairly plain neighborhood becomes a holiday dream world.

This former stomping grounds of the most eminent astronomers of the early 20th century.

An historic and oft-filmed spot for musclebound iron pumpers on the Pacific coast.

After starting as a whimsical tourist attraction that eventually found its way to ruin, these renovated canals offer a lush and exotic locale on the Pacific Coast.