Travel the Enchanted Highway in North Dakota

Many years ago, an anthropology professor told me that people who live on flat land seem to have a drive to build large structures. A look at some Midwestern attractions shows the truth in this: the world's largest ball of string, the world's largest frying pan, the world's largest prairie chicken, and so on. But when it comes to world's largest things, North Dakota is the place to visit.

If you doubt the claim to large things, take a look at the capitol building. Unlike the low-silhouette domed state houses in most other states, the capitol building in North Dakota, at 22 stories, stands high above the prairie like an Art Deco grain silo. And in the rest of the state, you can find equally large things -- statues of animals, people, and more.

Driving into North Dakota from the east on Interstate 94, after about two and a half hours you'll reach Jamestown. Jamestown is the home of the World's Largest Concrete Buffalo, which other than the capitol building, is the oldest giant thing in North Dakota. It also boasts a herd of live buffalo; one of them, Mahpiya Ska (White Cloud, in Lakota) is a true albino buffalo, a rare sight indeed. She came to Jamestown from her birthplace on a private farm in Michigan, ND. When she was four years old, she gave birth to a male calf, called Dakota Miracle. Like his mother, Miracle is also a white buffalo, though he's not an albino. White Cloud had four calves now, but none are albino. The white buffalo cow is sacred to many Native American peoples, and is believed to fulfill a prophecy that great change is coming. The buffalo herd is in a large pasture, with plenty of room for them to roam and feed, so those passing by the Concrete Buffalo may not always see the herd, or Mahpiya Ska and her offspring.

The next giant thing is in Steele, almost at the halfway point between Jamestown and Bismarck. It's a 40 foot iron statue of a sandhill crane; undoubtedly the Largest Sandhill Crane in the world. Built by James Miller of Arena, ND, in 1998-99, at the request of the Sandhill Crane Foundation, it towers above the Coteau Rangeland of North Dakota. The Coteau Rangeland is a "prairie pothole" region, in the middle of the flyway for migratory birds. The crane is the oldest known bird species, and in nature stand up to 4 feet tall, with a wingspan of six to seven feet. Three informational kiosks have since been built by money from the US Game and Fish, Long Lake Refuge, to provide self-guided tours of four area lakes and the different migratory birds that can be seen there in spring and fall.

Continuing west, in another 40 miles you'll reach Bismarck. Although the only "big" thing in Bismarck is the capitol building, you may want to overnight here, especially if you've driven from Minneapolis. Along with the typical chain restaurants, motels and hotels, you can find luxury -- and room service --at the Marriott and Ramkota hotels. While you're in Bismarck, you may want to visit the Heritage Center, the state museum on the capitol grounds. It contains dioramas of the state's history, from the age of dinosaurs to the 1950s cold war age, complete with fallout shelters, and is also the repository of the state archives. North Dakotans don't generally brag, but the Heritage Center has been called the "Smithsonian of the Plains." (Quite possibly by someone who has never seen the Smithsonian, but I digress.)

When you're ready to head on, continue west on I-94 for about 30 miles, and you'll reach the small town of New Salem. New Salem's sole claim to fame is "Sue," the world's largest fiberglass Holstein cow, complete with full udder. Sue looms above the surrounding area, a surreal testimony of the dairy farms in the area. She's been known to induce nightmares in tourists who claim that on the longest night of the year, she breaks free of her concrete and goes to Jamestown to see the buffalo, where they hold an annual size competition.

Keep going on I-94 until you reach exit 72, and turn south on the road you've been driving all this way to reach: the Enchanted Highway. From it's northern point at Gladstone to it's southernmost point at Regent, the Enchanted Highway is lined with seven enormous metal sculptures, all made from scrap metal by area farmers working together. The first to be completed was the Tin Family, in 1991, made of used farm equipment. The "Tin Pa" is a whopping 45 feet tall, and the builders used 16 telephone poles to prop him up. The "Ma" is 44 feet tall, and the "Son" is the runt of the family at only 23 feet. Next to be made, in 1993, was a tribute to late President Theodore Roosevelt, who enjoyed and wrote of his stay in the North Dakota badlands; "Teddy Rides Again" is a wagon with two black horses, entirely built of used well pipe. in 1996, a family of "Pheasants on the Prairie" was completed -- after three years of work. The family is made of wire mesh and paint. The male pheasant is 40 feet tall and has a length of 70 feet. The pheasant hen is smaller, at 35 feet high and just 60 feet long. The two chicks that complete the family are 15 feet high and 20 feet long.

The next sculpture to be completed was "Grasshoppers in the Field," finished in 1999. The farmers who constructed this enormous insect out of old fuel and oil tanks say it is a reminder of the constant threats by nature that the farmers must endure. The grasshopper is 40 feet high and 50 feet long. The builders made the Guinness Book of Records with their next project, called "Geese in Flight" and completed in 2001. It is the largest scrap metal sculpture in the world. Built of oil tanks and oil well pipe, it shows a sun surrounded by 10 geese. The sculpture is 110 feet tall, 156 feet long, and weighs over 75 tons. The largest goose is 19 feet long with a 30 foot wing span.

"The Deer Family" was finished in 2001, and put in its place by the Enchanted Highway in 2002. It's made of oil well tanks, taken apart, flattened, and welded together, and shows two deer in silhouette jumping a fence. The buck, completed in a farmer's barn, was too big to be taken through the streets of Regent, so had to be taken apart to be moved, and re-welded at the statue's location. The buck is 60 feet long and 57 feet tall, while the doe is just 50 feet tall and 50 feet long. The last sculpture to date is called "The Fisherman's Dream." It's a three-dimensional work made from tin, showing 7 different fish. Under "water" are a bluegill, salmon, northern pike, catfish, walleyed pike, and small mouth bass, and leaping out of the water is a rainbow trout. The trout is 70 feet long, the other fish, all North Dakota game fish, are about 30 feet long each.

If all these big things have worn you out, you may want to spend the night in Regent. A typical small prairie town, the people are friendly and welcoming. It's the county seat of Hettinger county, and is home to 6 building museum showing parts of town and the region the way they used to be, and recognizing the German/Hungarian and Norwegian heritage of area residents, as well as a unique collection of Native American heritage. There's no problem finding a bed for the night; there are two spacious bed and breakfasts. The Crocus Inn is a lovely example of early 1900s prairie architecture, and can accommodate up to 19 people. Each room has a private bathroom, free wi-fi for travelers who can't bear to be away from their computers, and air conditioning. If you ask in advance, owners Don and Bonnie Gion will be happy to make you dinner, or you can choose to eat at the Cafe (which seems to have no other name). The other B&B is the Prairie Vista, the boyhood home of North Dakota Senator Byron Dorgan. It has 10 rooms that can hold 20 people, an indoor pool, and a large back yard that's open for the use of guests. Two gift shops are available for buying mementos of the Enchanted Highway, or gifts for your friends or family who couldn't come along. In addition to handmade metal gifts, the Metal Magic Gift Shop has wi-fi and a selection of specialty coffees and sandwiches. The Enchanted Highway Gift Shop also has metal souvenirs, and serves 16 flavors of ice cream. It also offers RV Parking (for more information, call 701-563-6036). Regent also has a bar, the Cannonball Saloon, a popular watering hole with local residents, and the Regent Co-op Grocery store offers convenient grocery shopping, pizza, sandwiches, and fresh home-baked treats. If mere sightseeing isn't your idea of a vacation, the Enchanted Highway is in the middle of some of the best hunting and fishing areas in the state. Go to www.regentnorthdakota.com to hook up with an area farmer or the Cannonball Company for your hunting experience or to get a fishing license.

Before you leave North Dakota, you may want to visit the Dinosaur Museum in Dickinson, just over 15 miles from Gladstone on I-94. It doesn't have the "world's largest" anything, but it does have 11 full scale dinosaurs (91% of which are actual fossil, rather than the imitations that make up many skeletons), an exhibit of the minerals of the world, an articulated bison skeleton, and seashells from the era when the badlands were at the bottom of an inland sea. Dickinson is also a gateway to the south unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, and Theodore Roosevelt National Grasslands, one of the first parks and grasslands to be created by presidential order in the U.S. The badlands are beautiful at any time of year, and provide opportunity for hiking, biking, rock-climbing, and nature photography. Just remember that the bison are very much alive, and they aren't friendly. Neither are the mountain lions (cougars) or prairie rattlesnakes. So take your pictures from a distance, and leave the wildlife alone. There are designated camping grounds and trails in the south unit of the National Park; in the North Unit, there is only one small walking trail; the rest is wilderness area which can be hiked, but allows no motorized vehicles or bicycles.

From Dickinson, it's about 55 miles to Beach, the last North Dakota town you'll see before you enter Montana. While Montana may have Rocky Mountains and raging rivers, be aware that it doesn't have the world's largest anything. Enjoy your trip! North Dakotans hope you'll stop by soon!