Places Annie Oortman Wants to Go

Machinery left over from California's once thriving mercury industry now attracts artists and explorers.

The former Naval shipyard is open for exploring - mostly.

A watering hole where the options for seating include a bar, patio, or subterranean cave.

The key to turning shifting dunes into the green oasis of Golden Gate Park.

The hundreds of movies and television shows shot in this high desert town are commemorated in a unique museum.

A working miniature city designed to teach kids about safety and presumably city planning.

This stockpile of junked electronic and mechanical gadgets is a favorite among Hollywood prop masters.

Honoring the famed folktale author, this California museum looks like it belongs in the Black Forest.

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

The peaceful gravesite of a rugged wild west gunman echoes the touching story of his last days.

This historic California cemetery holds the bodies of veterans of both the Civil War and the Donner Party.

A free, public museum dedicated to the fascinating science of sight.

The only thing stranger than stumbling onto these philosophical musings is the story of the homesteader who created them.

Where the writer penned his famous story about a jumping frog.

About 80% of all U.S. avocados are descendants of Rudolph Hass's glorious tree.

A Roman-inspired temple once controlled half of San Francisco's waters.

A crumbling Beaux Arts monument to the Bay Area's age of rail.

Former 1954 Del Mar Train Station now serves signature cocktails and delightful culinary treats, and still operates as a Metro stop.

A museum, art project, and institution that demands we look at the world around us in a strange new way.

An abandoned Cold War missile radar site.

Collective dedicated to restoring steam engines.

This graveyard is the eternal home of the residents of a vanished California town.

This San Diego museum is dedicated to preserving women’s historic achievements.

The awe-inspiring ship from the golden era of cruising has an incomparable history and a reputation as one of the world’s most haunted places.