An installation tells of the horrific 1964 tsunami that devastated Crescent City, California.

This concrete tangle of square pipes has stood as a proud thorn in the city's side since the '70s.

A classic advertising icon immortalized in regal bronze.

Prone to disastrous fires, the city of San Francisco has the Guardian, a fireboat gifted by residents, to watch over them from the bay.

In all of the 29 years it was in operation, no prisoners ever escaped successfully... or so they claim.

At the base of the Golden Gate Bridge, a small sign basically begs for a high-five.

Beneath the southern end of the Golden Gate Bridge is the “Gibraltar of the West Coast,” a fort built to protect the San Francisco Bay from naval attack.

The southernmost outpost of the Russian Empire in colonial America.

This whimsical seashell-shaped place of worship was designed to blend into its surroundings.

A local dialect born in the late 19th century is only spoken in this isolated California valley.

Pay your respects to three butterfat queens.

Celebrating the transformation of trash into objects of beauty.

A trash dump made beautiful by nature's power.

This massive redwood tree has a hole in the base big enough to drive through.

A crumbling wizard is one of the final reminders of a roadside Middle Earth.

One of the most scenic stretches of road in America winds between some of the country's oldest trees.

A vaudeville performer mounted this hollowed-out redwood log onto the chassis of a truck, and toured the country spreading a message of conservation.

This abandoned motel doesn't welcome guests anymore, but decay and a creepy atmosphere still call it home.

When California condors were hovering on the brink of extinction, this recovery program was charged with helping the birds thrive again.

This mission, established in 1771, is the most remote of California’s Franciscan missions.

Once America’s most beautiful army base, this abandoned military fort on the coast of Monterey Bay has been left to the elements.

This municipal playground was co-created by the father of one of the most playful characters ever.

The first safe in this California town had to hold all the gold.

An old whaling station now serves to give the public a look at the commercial whaling industry, no longer a part of Monterey's economy.