Concrete Park Bicycle Tour

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A roll around Solberg Lake just north of Phillips will make you fall in love with the forested landscape of Price County. The county park is a lovely spot set on a peninsula; a delightful mix of woods and sun and wildlife. South of Phillips stands Concrete Park, a testament to what one man can do with hard work and imagination. In 1950, at age 65, arthritis forced Fred Smith to give up a forty-year logging career. But that didn't stop him from working. Over the next fourteen years he created more than 200 sculptures of concrete emblazoned with bits of broken colored glass and stone. It is American folk art in fantastic form: rearing horses, baleful moose, errant cowboys, wagon drivers, lumberjacks, and dozens more. If the Phillips area had earthquakes and floods, its natural disaster portfolio would be complete. In the 19th century, a fire burned over the area. In 1977, a downburst - a tornado-velocity wind with a real attitude - flattened great swaths of forest along this route. It must have been one heck of a tailwind!

Phillips, WI