Meet the 'Granddaddy' of All Snowmen That Has Whole Trees for Arms

Forget the carrot for the nose, coal for buttons and sticks for arms. The snowman built in Gilman, Minn., required what appear to be whole trees instead, and not even the largest of carrots would cut it on "Granddaddy" of all snowmen, so a 55-gallon barrel had to fit the bill.

"Granddaddy" is a 50-foot snowman in Minnesota that's drawing crowds of visitors. (Image source: St. Cloud Times)

Taking the bounty that winter dropped on his farm Greg Novak took five weeks to build the 50-foot-tall snowman.

It all started when heavy snow collapsed one of the farmer's greenhouses, according to the St. Cloud Times. After that, Novak was proactive at removing the snow from structures.

“As long as you’re moving it, might as well do something practical with it,” Novak told the newspaper.

And what's a more practical use than building a giant snowman?

Image source: St. Cloud Times

More than 20 years ago, Novak built a 29-foot snowman, but this year, he decided to go bigger.

Unlike normal size snowmen, which are generally rolled, Granddaddy was shaped into makeshift molds. The St. Cloud Times reported that Novak made a 45-foot wide cylinder base and smaller ones on top. He blew the snow using a silage blower into the cylinders.

Watch the Times' report with Novak talking about his project:

After completing the behemoth, people have been stopping by to visit.

Gerald and Diane Harbarth drove 70 miles on Sunday to get a look at Granddaddy.

“This is unreal,” Gerald Harbarth told the Times.

“When people smile, you know you’ve done a good thing," Novak said.