A sign at the end of the Santa Monica Pier marks the traditional end of the legendary American highway.

A second generation sun-powered marvel lights up the night.

A deserted hodgepodge of experimental structures designed by nearby university students.

A massive volcanic plug is now a protected area that hosts a number of bird species.

This stretch of beach along California's central coast is a busy highway for the largest seal in the northern hemisphere.

The unbelievably opulent home built for an infamous newspaperman.

This Big Sur waterfall drops 80 feet directly into the Pacific Ocean, and inspired the hillside house up top.

A reproduction of earth's many biomes.

Limestone caves with spectacular showcase chambers.

Stairs often replace streets on the steep slopes of this old mining town.

A National Historic Landmark with a scenic clock tower and park filled with deer and peacocks, plus a military museum.

A 36-ton remnant of the last Ice Age now resides amid picturesque vineyards.

10,000 flowered plants bloom in the City of Roses.

Home to the only outdoor municipal elevator in the United States.

This little slice of the Netherlands in the Pacific Northwest blooms in a rainbow of color each spring.

World's largest porcine hairball sits in a collection maintained by Benedictine monks.

A massive sea stack famous for its appearance in The Goonies.

This unassuming cheese empire in rural Oregon churns out more than 150,000 pounds of cheese each day.

This lighthouse has been guiding shipping into the Golden Gate since before the American Civil War.

Concrete strongholds stand guard over the Golden Gate.

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

Its buzzing collection honors vibrator history.

A psychedelic labyrinth on the San Francisco bay.

A huge musical instrument played by the ocean.