A vertically floating hemlock controls the waves and weather at Crater Lake.

A Viking-style brewpub named for a Norse sea giant, in the heart of fjord country.

San Diego's most historic and haunted home.

One of the largest trees of its kind in California.

Built for an exposition in 1915, these horticultural displays have stood the test of time.

The world's largest outdoor organ is played weekly by one of just two civic organists in the U.S.

Common all over Japan, kōbans are small community police boxes, and now one is guarding one of L.A.’s megamalls.

The first privately-owned space capsule to orbit and land carried a secret payload: a wheel of Le Brouère.

A Looff creation in Santa Monica best described as “a California-Byzantine-Moorish-style fantasy.”

A common entry point to the Griffith Observatory trail holds its own wonders.

A giant donut stands as a popular symbol of Los Angeles iconography.

A "haunted" landmark on the coast of Southern California.

An offbeat angle on the ocean viewed through an antiquated lens.

In a city filled with Frank Gehry buildings, one stands out as one of the architect's weirder works.

A three-story, three-dimensional hobo clown in a tutu welcomes CVS shoppers.

This well-traveled chess park offers scenic views of the pacific and a colorful, eclectic clientele.

Scores of vintage street lamps shine along L.A.’s Miracle Mile.

These delicate buggers are some of the rarest fossils that have bubbled up from the Tar Pits.

An historic and oft-filmed spot for musclebound iron pumpers on the Pacific coast.

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

Palatial mansion estate used in films including "Flowers in the Attic" and "The Witches of Eastwick."

A Swedenborgian glass church surrounded by redwoods sits perched atop a massive landslide area.

This quirky UFO-shaped curiosity is often mistaken for the airport’s control tower.

There are lots of hands and feet stamped in the cement in front of Grauman’s Chinese Theater, but Mel left behind something extra.