The key to turning shifting dunes into the green oasis of Golden Gate Park.

This California tree is the single source of the state's entire orange industry.

Mexican food and folk art.

These structures were inspired by both Native American shelters as well as, strangely, an ice cream shop.

The only museum and archive west of the Mississippi that is dedicated to the study of Abraham Lincoln.

The Route 66 institution that inspired Taco Bell also served as an important headquarters for Mexican-American social movements.

This house turned museum chronicles the life and work of Richard Neutra.

The outside of this theater is decorated with a Diego Rivera mural that explores the history of Mexico.

This colossal ancient sculpture of the monstrous Aztec rain god has a literally stormy history.

This incredible college library is a visual masterpiece of mosaic art. It also looks kind of like a giant boombox.

The drama of nature in full effect in this Nevada State Park.

One of the most extensive and well-preserved collections of dinosaur footprints in North America.

The ghost town that ended up on Ebay.

A classic Route 66 landmark that was built with scrap lumber and is held together with kitsch and puns.

The world's only teal arches exist in a city that cares more about its aesthetic than an Instagram influencer.

A spiritual vortex among the red rocks in Sedona.

A sculpture made of 10 Cadillacs as a monument to the "Golden Age" of the American automobile.

This small, unassuming street is now a canvas for color and creativity.

A 250 million-year-old rock formation has earned a rather unique nickname.

Instead of faces, these sculptures have barcodes—statements on societal dehumanization.

You don't have to be a diplomat to visit the so-called Camp David of the West.

The ghostly remains of an accidental sea.

This abandoned Navy base was transformed into an off-grid alternative living community for thousands of people.

An off-grid art installation that encourages its visitors to imagine a world without waste.