Places HootEye Wants to Go

This serene oasis in an affluent Los Angeles neighborhood holds some of Gandhi's ashes and got Elvis into Eastern Philosophy.

World War II-era Nazi compound nestled in the Santa Monica hills.

Hundreds of trees made from glass bottles make up this forest on Route 66.

Mediums from a psychic utopian community lead a trippy VR journey on a parked desert bus.

A small space-exploration exhibit hidden in a hotel.

A mountain range on an active U.S. Navy base hides thousands of mysterious prehistoric rock carvings.

The liveliest ghost town in the state.

Smooth basaltic rocks tell a tale of ancient glacial waterfalls.

A charming easy-to-miss sculpture garden filled with whimsical and thought-provoking metal sculptures.

This rock formation named for its unique shape is one of many that call the Alabama Hills home.

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

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

This naturally heated mountainous creek has created a group of neon blue pools of potentially deadly boiling water.

Towering basalt columns, a creation of fire and ice.

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

A new monument to an old grave that was uncovered during the rebuilding of a California ghost town.

Aqueducts have dramatically changed this old lake, now home to tufa towers and its very own species of tiny brine shrimp.

One woman's Viking Castle on Lake Tahoe.

A walk-in working camera obscura produces 360-degree live images of the San Francisco coast.

Abortion, prohibition, religion, war, and fear all play a part in the history of this idiosyncratic Pacifica castle.

This old-world mansion with lush gardens is a gem in the heart of Silicon Valley.

A burnt orange monolithic dome structure perched on a hillside near Interstate 280.

A comprehensive collection of Pez dispensers.

This controversial depiction of the "Founder of California" looks as though it was sculpted from mashed potatoes.