Maine WinterFest & Derby 2007 goers last weekend witnessed a bestiary of white frozen creatures, including wolves, an eagle, a moose and a fire-breathing dragon.

The Maine WinterFest snow sculpting exhibit also featured a life-size Mercedes made out of solid ice.

Maine WinterFest organizer Ed Jarrett lit a stream of propane gas coming from a metal tube in the giant snow dragons mouth on Friday, giving the creature a flaming exhalation. It was ignited every 15 minutes after dark.

Seven snow sculptors from the Milwaukee, Wis. area started hacking, slicing and sanding the mounds of machine-compacted snow on Wednesday. The snow is so dense that it would take until June to melt if the statues were left alone outdoors.

“I wish it would last forever,” said snow sculptor Mark Hargarten while putting some finishing touches on a white moose.

“We’ve never seen anything like this,” said Brenda O’Neil while eying the dragon. She owns a resort cottage at Point Sebago in Casco but lives in Massachusetts.

Steps were carved into the backside of the dragon and a slide for inflatable tubes was gouged down its back and tail.

Marvels of snow and iceMarvels of snow and ice