Hotel Cecil is the wooden stacking doll of historical hotels in downtown Los Angeles. As it’s changed hands over the years, it’s continued to serve as a relic of what once was—and the grandness of its marble lobby and Beaux Arts-style architecture is not lost on us today. But unlike the children’s toy, the hotel’s…
California is celebrated for its natural beauty. Many admirers of the Golden State will enthusiastically insist that no corner of California is more breathtaking than Big Sur. One of Big Sur’s loveliest vistas is a slim 80-foot waterfall called McWay Falls. McWay Falls qualifies as a tidefall since it empties directly into the Pacific Ocean…
In the early 1900s—Fort Bragg, California was home to a popular garbage dump. Residents discarded broken bottles, tin cans, and even the occasional piece of large industrial machinery. It was common for California residents to chuck their garbage into the sea without a second thought. The owners of “The Dumps” would set large fires to…
Leave it to an aerospace engineer to insist on building a flying saucer shaped house on a dangerously steep hillside. Engineer Leonard Malin’s father-in-law gave Malin a sloping plot of land that seemed extremely inhospitable to any type of development. Malin swore that he would build a home for his wife and kids upon the…
Outsider artist Leonard Knight’s vision began with a hot air balloon in the 1970’s. Knight dreamed of painting “GOD IS LOVE” on a balloon that he would release into the heavens. Unfortunately, Knight was never able to construct a hot air balloon that was fit to take flight. Leonard Knight eventually migrated to an artist’s…
Approximately 22 miles from the western gate of Yosemite National Park, in the Californian town of Groveland, stands an RV park quite unlike any other. Yosemite is well known tourist attraction. Besides, the familiar trappings of traditional cabins and yurts, the Yosemite Pines RV Resort boasts some magnificently restored Conestoga Wagons for the more adventurous…
Just 13 miles of Yosemite National Park, on California‘s Highway 395 you’ll find an amazing lake. Located near to the town of Lee Vining, Mono Lake is not only beautiful, but also has one of the most important ecosystems in the world. Thought to be around 760,000 years old, Mono Lake is one of the…
If you find yourself in the famously affluent Beverly Hills area of Los Angeles, California, head to Walden Drive and Carmelita Avenue’s intersection. There, you’ll find a house both utterly enchanting and at odds with the slick and modern mansions of the area. Spadena House (otherwise known as The Witch’s House) stands like real-life recreation…
