at North Dakota's Offbeat Roadside Folk Art
on The Enchanted Highway
in Regent, North Dakota
June 6, 2012
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at North Dakota's Offbeat Roadside Folk Art on The Enchanted Highway in Regent, North Dakota June 6, 2012 |
| The Enchanted Highway
features the World's Largest Metal Sculptures produced
by artist Gary Greff. On this date, there was no charge to drive along The
Enchanted Highway to see the fabulous sculptures.
The Enchanted Highway is off Interstate 94 (Exit 72) approximately 20 miles east of Dickinson, North Dakota. It then extends for 32 miles south to the town of Regent. The sculptures are spread out along the 32 miles of The Enchanted Highway. |
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| The Enchanted Highway had eight exhibits at this time. Below are pictures and descriptions of each of the eight (8) sites in the order that the two RV Gypsies photographed them. |
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| 1. Geese in Flight
This site is in the Guinness Book of World Records as the World's Largest Scrap Metal Sculpture. The sun burst is made of over 300 lengths of well pipe and more that 4.4 miles of welds holding everything together. The geese and hills are made from oil well tanks. More than $9,000 in paint was used to complete the sculpture. The sculpture is 110 feet tall and 154 feet long and weighs 78.8 tons (157,661 pounds). A large goose has a wing span of 32 feet and is 20 feet long. |
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| Below: The dirt road leading up to this sculpture was lined with birds. | Karen
Duquette standing by the Geese in Flight sculpture |
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| 2.
Deer Crossing
This site displays a white tail and mule
deer. This sculpture uses a technique known as shadowing, which
removes pieces of metal from the sculpture to accent the muscles and different
parts of the deer's body. The metal used to create the deer originated
from seven rusty oil well tanks. |
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| Below:
Karen Duquette under the sculpture entitled Deer Crossing |
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3.
Grasshoppers Delight
This site has a number of grasshoppers in
a wheat field setting. The largest grasshopper is 40 feet tall and 50
feet long. There are two medium sized grasshoppers that are 12 feet tall
and 15 feet long. There are also three smaller grasshoppers. The grasshoppers
were made from four oil field tanks. |
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| 4. Fisherman's Dream recreates a lake surface 50 feet above the North Dakota prairie, beneath which swim an assortment of 30-foot-long game fish: a northern walleye, a small mouth bass, a bullhead, a bluegill, and a salmon. A rainbow trout, 70 feet long, jumps through the surface of the suspended "lake." | |||
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| 5. Pheasants on the Prairie
This site containing contains four
pheasant sculptures was created to honor the bird that is in
abundance in this area. The rooster stands 40 feet tall and 70 feet
long and weighs 13,000 pounds. |
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 Below:
Karen Duquette gave a baby Pheasant a big kiss  |
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Lee Duquette and the Mommy Pheasant. |
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Below:
The Landscape and the two RV Gypsies' truck by the sculpture entitled Pheasants on the Prairie |
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6. Theodore Roosevelt Rides Again
This site depicts a silhouette of Theodore
Roosevelt on his horse and a stage coach. The silhouette is made from
1-3/4 inch well pipe. Teddy stands 51 feet tall and weighs 9,000 pounds. |
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7. The Worlds
Largest Tin Family was the first site to decorate the Enchanted
Highway. The Tin Man stands 45 feet tall and has 16 telephone poles anchoring
him to the ground. His cap measures 6 feet in circumference and is 5 feet
tall. The tin boy stands 23 feet tall. |
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Lee Duquette
just loved the hair of the tin lady |
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close-ups
of the Tin lady and the Tin Son |
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Karen Duquette by the Tin Lady. |
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| 8.
Whirly Gigs: a moving sculpture that visitors can activate
by pushing a button - a movie of this has been posted and be reached by using the TOC button above and choosing Movies/Videos. But be sure to return to this page to continue to see the rest of North Dakota adventures. |
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| The sign outside the gift shop at the end of The Enchanted Highway | Tree
outside the gift shop, made by the same artist. |
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Menu for the two RV Gypsies in North Dakota,
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Below are eight (8) sections of the adventures of the two RV Gypsies in North Dakota. You may view them in any order you wish. Remember the link to Montana located below this menu. |
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Enchanted Highway (this page) |
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Theodore Roosevelt Nat'l Park
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Rugby - the Geographical Center |
The Painted Canyon |
The
International Peace Garden |
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Gary
is a native of Regent, North Dakota and a teacher and school principal
and had never done any art work or welding prior to 1989. He then began
dreaming of ways to bring people and businesses to the small community
of Regent -- fearing the town might someday die if it relied solely on
farming. A hay bale strongman built by a farmer inspired him. He watched
people pull off the road to snap photos of the oddity. He wondered how
many people would stop for huge metal sculptures. He began designing,
welding, and painting. The Tin Family was erected in 1991; Teddy Rides
Again in 1993; Pheasants on the Prairie in 1996; Grasshoppers in the Field in 1999; Geese in Flight in 2001; and Deer Crossing in 2002. He was working
on Fisherman's Dream from 2003 to 2006, and it is now erected.
AFTER you have seen all six (6) sections above, 
