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A 40-foot sculpture of a sandhill crane stands in a small park beside Interstate 94 at Steele, North Dakota. Completed in 1999 by James Miller in his farm shop at Arena, it was commissioned because of the state's place on the cranes' migration route.
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World's Largest Sandhill Crane
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Site-level location · 46.8606° N, 99.9132° W
FIELD GUIDE
The story
Real sandhill cranes stand three to four feet tall; the sculpture at Steele, North Dakota, is about ten times that. Best of the Midwest, reporting in 2026, described the 40-foot bird as towering over a small, grassy park behind a Travelodge just off Interstate 94.
The crane was completed in 1999 by James Miller in his farm shop at Arena, North Dakota, and was commissioned because of North Dakota's place in the sandhill crane migration. Many of the birds pass through each year on their way south from Canadian and Alaskan breeding grounds, and the same article calls the state a favourite spot for birders and hunters.
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PRACTICAL
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WHAT TO EXPECT
A small park with the sculpture, a water pond, plantings and signs about local birding. North Dakota Tourism's page, archived in July 2025, lists free admission and year-round opening; Best of the Midwest photographed the site in May 2026.
ACCESS
In a small park behind a Travelodge just off Interstate 94 at Steele, near exit 200; North Dakota Tourism gives the address as 255 5th St NE. It lists the park as open year-round.
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