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

The lighthouse central to the 1980s horror classic "The Fog" is, in fact, located in one of the foggiest areas of the Pacific Coast.

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

The fossilized remains of ancient California redwoods.

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

Named after a bandit and the star of several Hollywood prehistoric landscapes, these sandstone formations are a historical part of the Los Angeles natural landscape.

Half of a house.

Sunset-colored dunes of volcanic ash make taking a poor photo impossible.

One of the oldest reform schools in the United States, home to wayward boys such as Merle Haggard, now abandoned.

Gold Rush-era tombstones line the park's paths.

This print shop boasts one of the largest pinball arcades in San Francisco.

This “living museum” at UCLA exhibits thousands of plant species from all over the world.

An overlooked and unassuming engineering marvel.

The highest dunes in California are the most likely place in the area to hear the Singing Sands.

An extensive collection of ancient Egyptian artifacts and mummies.

An eclectic trailer park retreat in the middle of the California desert.

Commonly referred to as the most photographed Victorian home in the United States.

Every weekend, the parking lot of this Buddhist temple turns into a Thai street-food paradise.

A desert ghost town—occupied for only 12 years—was once home to more than 500 silver mines.

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

The quiet canyon has a tumultuous history involving a doomsday cult.

A volcanic tunnel illuminated by natural skylights offers a shaded respite from the desert sun.

A historic hotel that made a cameo in Hitchcock's classic film has no intention of letting guests forget its fame.

A storybook European village in Berkeley.