Lick Observatory is located on Mount Hamilton, visible from everywhere in San Jose and the Santa Clara Valley.
Here are some pictures of my most recent visit to this lovely observatory.
This dome contains the famous 36" refractor. The observatory's at 4200 feet elevation, and has a commanding view of the Central Valley as well as the Santa Clara Valley. On a very clear day you're supposed to be able to see Yosemite from this location. There's a huge photo in the museum in the observatory that shows this; I imagine the picture was taken in the 20s or 30s before the Central Valley became fog- and smog-bound all year. I'm planning to make the drive up to the summit in the winter if it's dry and cold and clear one day. Maybe I can get some pictures of Yosemite!
Another view of the dome doors. Very nice angle, I thought. I retouched this image and made a nice desktop picture out of it.
This is the interior of the dome. The refractor optical tube assembly (OTA) is not curved: that's an artifact of the very wide angle used for this picture. The concrete pier on which the scope mount rests is also the tomb of James Lick, who was laid to rest at its base back in the late 1800s as the observatory was under construction. I hope to get an even wider angle view that connotes the enormous interior space of this room.
This is a close-up of the monumental equatorial mount of the gigantic refractor. The entire OTA weighs 5 tons.
That'll give you some perspective when you're lugging your miserable little 30 pound SCT to your observing site. Try hauling this sucker around a mountain top.