Looking to spice up your next road trip? Take a drive down Regent, North Dakota’s 32-mile Enchanted Highway.
Along this highway, you’ll find massive scrap metal sculptures that depict animals like geese, deer, grasshoppers, and pheasants. There’s also a sculpture of the 26th U.S. President, Theodore (Teddy) Roosevelt, and another one that features a full family made of tin.
In this collection, one sculpture, titled “Geese in Flight,” currently holds a place in the Guinness World Book of Records as the world’s largest scrap metal sculpture. The others might not be record-holders, but they are still enormous creations that are absolutely worth taking a trip to see.
Artist and Regent native Gary Greff created these sculptures. Describing his childhood in Regent, Greff says it was a place where residents developed themselves and their character.
Originally, Greff’s career was in education. However, his path took a sharp turn when he was gardening with his mother.
While gardening, he pulled an onion out of the ground and found himself wondering why you couldn’t buy freshly diced onions in the supermarket. He went on to pursue the idea of establishing a factory that would “keep Regent alive” by creating jobs and supporting the local school.
A research firm developed an interest in Gary’s plan and wanted him to be readily available for the next couple of years so he could consult with them. He had to abandon his educational pursuits and found himself with extra time on his hands.
With this additional time, he started brainstorming other ways to bring people to Regent, North Dakota. This is where the idea for the world’s largest sculptures was born. He took up welding and got to work.
In addition to creating these sculptures, Greff has invested more time and energy into other projects that keep Regent alive. These projects include converting a local school into the Enchanted Castle, a medieval-style hotel complete with a tavern and steakhouse.