Places amesvannah Wants to Go

Texas's oldest bakery serves authentic German pastries, including legendary strudel.

This lake sits on an estimated 4 million tons of salt.

Bits and pieces from the ill-fated Donner Party's winter cabins.

An early 20th-century fire lookout, still in intermittent use, preserves legacy fire-locating equipment.

A little-known, but surprisingly large waterfall on the Little Truckee River in the northern Sierra Nevada.

Eons old volcanic activity created one of the most stunning rock formations in the United States.

It reportedly took three years to sort through all the objects in this eclectic lifelong collection.

This abandoned, windowless concrete block is one of the strangest buildings in Tulsa.

One of the best examples of Art Deco architecture in the United States.

In Tulsa's Oil Capital historic district, even the bus station is "fauxback" Art Deco.

A former chicken restaurant that doubled as a speakeasy is now a quirky home full of wonderfully strange traditions.

A popular swimming hole that hides one of America's most deadly diving spots.

An immense cave that has served as an outlaw's treasure trove, an underground dance hall, a nuclear fallout shelter, and much more.

Civil War dumping ground for the bodies of terrorized Union sympathizers.

A tiny graveyard with a mysterious past.

An entire subdivision was accidentally built on a flood plain, resulting in its eventual demolition—but the streets are still there.

This eclectic Austin curiosity shop is home to all things strange and unusual.

This unique structure in suburban Austin is made up entirely of other people's castaways, and constantly changing.

One part antique store, one part curiosities hodge-podge.

This beautiful grotto is one of those places where you can't believe you're just outside Austin.

The final resting place for an internet icon.

An old spiral fire escape dangles above a public courtyard in Midtown Oklahoma City.

An indoor botanical garden for tropical plants looks like a giant cylinder lying on its side.

The surprising home of the iconic Santa Monica Pier Ferris Wheel.