In the middle of a remote desert town is a surprisingly opulent hotel.

Decommissioned experimental solar facilities that pioneered solar energy technology.

Each year these high desert hills are absolutely covered with poppy flowers in a surreal show of nature.

The liveliest ghost town in the state.

This sun-scorched lakebed contains samples of half the natural elements known to humankind.

Explore the largest pure gypsum deposit in the world, and go dune sledding while you're at it.

Home of mutant livestock.

16,500-acre ranch filled with American heritage, geological wonders, and a giant pile of tires is the crown jewel of an intriguing tug-of-war.

This mining town boomed in the Atomic Age when uranium was gold, only to be abandoned when the industry collapsed.

A popular rock that acted as a waymarker for American pioneers.

The high point on the 16th president's eponymous roadway is marked by a massive version of his head.

The world's largest mountain carving could fit all of Mount Rushmore inside it many times over.

A shape-shifting buy-sell-trade bookstore, born to Beatnik Era spirit.

The newsstand that never closes its doors—well, almost never.

This mysterious series of teeny guerrilla installations sheds a whimsical light on street art in Oakland.

Neither Spanish settlers nor anyone since has been able to tell who built these strange California rock walls.

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

One of the most unusual geological features, recognizable from a dozen hit movies.

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

California's own majestic geyser is powered by a subterranean volcano.

The fossilized remains of ancient California redwoods.

The self-made house sculpture of an outsider artist who named himself "Chief Rolling Thunder."

Come for the speed, leave in love with the desert.

There's nothing creepier than a cemetery next to a clown motel.