These once-beautiful historic graveyards are set against the barren Virginia City hills.

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.

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

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

Quite simply the largest tree in the world (by volume).

Four hundred granite steps were built into this massive rock by the National Park Service.

This small shack near the entrance to Sequoia National Park has been in almost continuous operation for the last century.

This massive statue of John Muir on the side of a California highway was carved from a redwood tree.

Thousands of turbines whir at the origin of North American wind power.

Exotic feline breeding compound and conservation center.

Inspiration struck on this seat outside the Griffith Park merry-go-round.

The lead horse on a Disneyland merry-go-round that is older than the park itself.

This iconic L.A. bookshop is housed in an abandoned bank—both symbolic and chic.

Historic funicular railway, believed to be the shortest railroad in the world.

The private clubhouse for the members of the Academy of Magical Arts.

The oldest attraction in Disneyland is a prehistoric stump that Walt may have bought for his wife.

The legendary building that needed ghostly approval before being built.

The world's largest second-hand graces a clock surrounded by constantly changing flower beds. 

Take a dip in the world's largest mineral hot springs pool.

An increasingly eccentric apartment building, topped with winged beasties.

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.

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

The words of the neighborhood's most famous poets adorn four concrete walls.