California Vaquero's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Los Angeles, California

Autry National Center

Wild West history in Hollywood style.
Agua Dulce, California

Vasquez Rocks

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.
Santa Clarita, California

Beale's Cut

Gouged in the mountain to make stage coach access easier through the Fremont Pass.
Santa Clarita, California

Oak of the Golden Dream

According to legend it was a nap taken under this tree that kicked off the California Gold Rush.
Tehachapi, California

Tehachapi Wind Farm

Thousands of turbines whir at at the origin of North American wind power.
Sequoia National Park, California

General Sherman

Quite simply the largest tree in the world (by volume).
Moss Landing, California

Elkhorn Slough

More than 700 species live within this murky marvel of a swamp on California's coast.
Monterey, California

Sloat Monument

This eagle-topped spire remembers the military commander who snatched up California for the United States.
Monterey, California

Monterey's Custom House

The oldest U.S. Government building in California, and it's State Historic Landmark #1.
Goleta, California

Barnsdall-Rio Grande Gas Station

This little gem of Spanish Colonial architecture has been abandoned since the 1950s.
Kingsburg, California

Swedish Coffee Pot Tower

A water tower shaped like a giant coffee pot looms over a small Swedish village in Central California.
Coalinga, California

Iron Zoo

A dwindling menagerie of anthropomorphic oil derrick animals still dot the barren California landscape.
San Simeon, California

Piedras Blancas Elephant Seal Rookery

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

Hearst Castle

The unbelievably opulent home built for an infamous newspaperman.
San Luis Obispo, California

The Dorn Pyramid

A Mysterious Masonic tomb in San Luis Obispo.
San Luis Obispo, California

Madonna Inn

A hotel and restaurant serving as the mecca of kitsch.
San Luis Obispo, California

San Luis Obispo's Bubblegum Alley

An alley covered with 20 years of bubble gum.
San Luis Obispo, California

The Bells of El Camino Real

A chain of bells connect the California Missions and honor the legend of the "King’s Highway."
Shandon, California

James Dean Memorial Junction

A remote crossroads honoring a fallen talent.
Morro Bay, California

Morro Rock

A massive volcanic plug is now a protected area that hosts a number of bird species.
San Luis Obispo, California

Poly Canyon - Experimental Structures Lab

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