On a peaceful spring day, Canadian photographer Ken Pretty noticed an unusually formed 30ft iceberg off the east coast of Newfoundland.
Pretty, who is from the village of Dildo, saw the chunk of ice had a striking similarity to a typical feature of the male human body as he piloted his drone overhead.
“Looking from the land, it wasn’t quite clear,” Pretty explained. “But once I got the drone out there, it was incredible how much it resembled – well, you know…”
Pretty’s photos of the phallic berg sparked a flood of laughter on Facebook, with others speculating that the iceberg will soon move into Dick’s Cove, Newfoundland, or proposing that it could offer ice for the “stiffest drink.”
“Is that where baby icebergs come from?” another inquired.
It was termed a “dickie berg” by one woman. “That name has definitely stuck,” Pretty added.
Pretty stated that the likeness was so striking that many people assumed the photograph was a forgery. “No one believes it’s true. “They think it’s photoshopped and everything,” he explained. “I can assure you, it’s true.”
Icebergs have long been a popular tourist attraction, with visitors flocking to Newfoundland’s east coast during the spring months to see the chunks of ice calved from Greenland’s ice shelf travel into the Atlantic Ocean.
The government of Newfoundland and Labrador operates the Iceberg Finder website, which has identified 66 bergs that are presently travelling past.
Icebergs, which are thought by many to be some of the purest water on the world, are also gathered in the spring.
Once bottled, the water is sold all over the world, including in China, Korea, and Saudi Arabia. Thieves stole $9,000 worth of iceberg water in 2019.
The bulbous top of the berg crumbled a day after Pretty shot it.
The “dickie berg”‘ds early demise generated at least one memorial film, replete with burial birds. “Dead but not forgotten.” “Forever in our hearts,” the caption stated.
Pretty agrees that his hometown’s moniker has contributed to the joke. (The Toronto Star’s piece on the berg was titled, “Dildo man captures phallic iceberg in Conception Bay.”)
“Everything is in good fun.” “Everyone is concerned about the cost of living these days,” he explained. “But if this berg can put a smile on people’s faces, it’s all worth it.”
All images are the property of Ken Pretty.
