This stretch of beach along California's central coast is a busy highway for the largest seal in the northern hemisphere.

This Big Sur waterfall drops 80 feet directly into the Pacific Ocean, and inspired the hillside house up top.

More than 700 species live within this murky marvel of a swamp on California's coast.

The lighthouse central to the 1980s horror classic "The Fog" is, in fact, located in one of the foggiest areas of the Pacific Coast.

A trash dump made beautiful by nature's power.

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

Standing in a state of "arrested decay," this ghost town allows for a detailed peek into Gold Rush life in an unusually harsh climate.

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

The tragedy of the Japanese internment camps is remembered here by a stark "Soul Consoling Tower."

The liveliest ghost town in the state.

Smooth basaltic rocks tell a tale of ancient glacial waterfalls.

The lowest point in North America is home to an undrinkable pool surrounded by fields of geometric salt flats.

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

"Only the devil could play golf here."

A Norwegian-born sculptor created these soaring guardian angels at the entrance to Hoover Dam.

These markers are used to document elevation changes around the famed dam.

Experience a charming 1930's version of "infotainment."

This huge dam across the Colorado River caused an armed standoff between two U.S. states.

A world-class observatory in the California desert.

One of the largest trees of its kind in California.

Built for an exposition in 1915, these horticultural displays have stood the test of time.

An extraordinarily ornate museum in San Diego holds wondrous anthropological treasures.

The world's largest outdoor organ is played weekly by one of just two civic organists in the U.S.

L. Frank Baum wrote part of the "Wizard of Oz" series in this wooden Victorian beach resort.