A cozy bookstore is tucked within an old gold mine shaft beneath the cafe and ice cream shop.

The geographic center point of the Golden State.

A campy fiberglass statue welcomes visitors to this small town in central California.

A small research station sits at the summit of this mountain, which is one of the few U.S. peaks higher than 14,000 feet outside of the Sierra Nevada.

Once thought to be the oldest living tree in the world, Methuselah was germinated before the Egyptian pyramids were built.

A charming desert roadside bakery that produces 10 times more bread daily than it has residents in its town.

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.

Towering basalt columns, a creation of fire and ice.

A natural dome made of volcanic glass in Inyo National Forest.

A volcanic cone that formed over 600 years ago.

The first lookout in Yosemite.

Under the right circumstances, this waterfall in Yosemite briefly turns a luminescent fiery orange.

The interior of the Overlook Hotel in "The Shining" was based on this Yosemite original.

A glimpse into the lives of the the Miwok and Paiute people in Yosemite National Park.