A massive iron eagle is turning heads on U.S. Highway 2 just south of Columbia Falls.
The big bird is owned by art collector Paul DeToni and was recently erected in front of Equipment Connection in Columbia Falls. Todd Berget of Libby made the iron bird and it was trucked over in three pieces. Berget has made more than 50 iron birds since 1997.
“It’s getting a lot of attention and people are stopping,” DeToni said.
He said the bird is for sale, but a price has not been set.
This isn’t the first of Berget’s birds that DeToni has displayed. In the early 2000s, he put up an iron eagle in West Glacier. This new hatchling has a 48-foot wingspan and is 30 feet long from its head to his tail. It weighs in at more than 10,000 pounds.
Berget was born and raised in Libby and has worked as an artist most of his life. He made his first iron eagle in 1997 with a friend and since then has been selling them around the country.
For more information about Berget’s work, visit www.sites.google.com/site/customironeaglesmt.