Bikes, Planes and a Shark Stuck in Odd Places (11 Photos)

November 14, 2026

By Vidar

Nobody is moving these

Some vehicles get abandoned, some get stranded, and some are put up there on purpose by artists and museums. Either way, the parking attendant has given up.

More: Trees Grown Around Objects (14 Photos)

🚲 The Bike in the Tree — Vashon Island, Washington, USA 🇺🇸

Not parked so much as absorbed. An old child’s bicycle is embedded in a fir trunk in the woods off Vashon Highway on Vashon Island.

💡 Bike Fact: The bike belonged to Don Puz, who was given it as a boy after his family’s home burned down. He told the Vashon Beachcomber he was “too big a kid to ride it,” so in 1954 he left it in the woods while playing with friends and never went back for it. Berkeley Breathed, who grew up on the island, wrote his own version of the story as the picture book Red Ranger Came Calling.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsBike in the TreeVashon, United StatesSmall red child’s bicycleRider: Don Puz (HistoryLink)1HistoryLink identifies Don Puz as the boy associated with the bicycle in 1954.HistoryLink2KUOW reported in 2014 that Jeff Ammon had replaced the missing handlebars and a wheel.KUOW20132 JanReported by ABC News201320 SepPhoto uploaded by this date201410 SepLocal KUOW report202424 MarVisitor account published; visit and photo dates unstatedRead the full file →

📷 Photo and cover crop: rev.sherm / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0)

🦈 The Headington Shark — By John Buckley in Oxford, UK 🇬🇧

On August 9, 1986, residents of New High Street woke up to a 7.6-meter (25-foot) fiberglass shark nose-diving into Bill Heine’s roof. Sculptor John Buckley made it; the council tried for years to get it taken down.

💡 Shark Fact: It went up on the 41st anniversary of the Nagasaki bombing, and Bill Heine said it stood for the anger and helplessness people felt about nuclear weapons.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsThe Headington Shark — John Buckley, OxfordJohn Buckley · 1986 · 2 New High Street, Headington, OxfordInstalled 9 Aug 198625 ft (7.6 m) longFibreglass1The shark was put up in the early hours of Saturday 9 August 1986, without planning permission.Headington.org.uk2Oxford City Council approved the shark for its Heritage Asset Register on 23 March 2022.Oxford City Council198926 AugPhotographed from New High Street199221 MayAppeal allowed; the shark stays202118 AprPhotographed on the roof202223 MarAdded to Oxford’s heritage register202430 DecShark House photographedMore photos1989 Three years after it landed, seen down New High StreetPhoto: Robert Linsdell / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)Read the full file →

📷 Photo and cover crop: Balon Greyjoy / Wikimedia Commons (CC0)

🚌 “Hang On A Minute Lads, I’ve Got A Great Idea…” — By Richard Wilson in Bexhill-on-Sea, UK 🇬🇧

In summer 2012 a full-size replica coach teetered over the roof edge of the De La Warr Pavilion, a straight quote from the cliffhanger ending of The Italian Job. It was hydraulically driven to teeter on the edge, so the gold-heist joke kept moving.

💡 Coach Fact: The artwork was made for the 2012 Cultural Olympiad and stayed up from July until October. Comedian Eddie Izzard, the Pavilion’s honorary patron, was its principal sponsor.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsHang On A Minute Lads, I’ve Got A Great Idea… — Richard Wilson, Bexhill-on-SeaRichard Wilson · 2012 · De La Warr Pavilion, Bexhill-on-SeaLondon 2012 FestivalOn show 7 Jul–1 Oct 2012Sponsor: Eddie Izzard1According to What Hi-Fi, a hydraulic mechanism gently rocked the replica coach back and forth on the roof edge.What Hi-Fi2Eddie Izzard, the pavilion’s Honorary Patron, was the principal sponsor, with Arts Council England and the Henry Moore Foundation.De La Warr Pavilion201224 FebAnnounced, funded by Eddie Izzard · Chortle20123 JulCoach photographed on the pavilion roof · Geograph201226 JulReported rocking on its hydraulic mechanism · What Hi-Fi201228 AugPhoto: coach on the pavilion roof · Commons201231 AugVisitor finds the coach static, likely too windy · C20 Society20121 OctScheduled last day on the roof · De La Warr PavilionRead the full file →

📷 Photo: Chris Sampson / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)

🚙 “Test the Best” — By Birgit Kinder at the East Side Gallery, Berlin, Germany 🇩🇪

Birgit Kinder painted a Trabant breaking straight through the Wall in 1990, one of the best-known images at the East Side Gallery.

💡 Title Fact: In 2009 Kinder renamed the painting “Test the Rest”, as a critique of how the City of Berlin was handling the East Side Gallery at the time.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsTest the Best — Birgit Kinder, BerlinBirgit Kinder · 1990 · East Side Gallery, BerlinPainted 1990Renamed Test the Rest, 2009East Side Gallery1The Trabant driving through the Wall stands for East Germany’s peaceful revolution, the exhibition site says.East Side Gallery Exhibition2In 2009 Kinder renamed it Test the Rest, as a critique of the City of Berlin’s handling of the gallery.East Side Gallery Exhibition1990Collection photo, Berlin ca. 1990 · Stiftung Berliner Mauer1990JulWoman with a Test the Best T-shirt in front of the painting · Deutsche Kinemathek1995Wall shown damaged five years on; Kinder repainted her section in 1996 · German Way2009Renamed Test the Rest as a critique of the city’s handling of the gallery20161 JunPictured at the East Side Gallery (publication date) · Insight Guides20234 MarPhoto at the East Side Gallery · CommonsRead the full file →

📷 Photo: Jörg Fuhrmann (Intermerker) / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

🚲 Bike in the River — Maastricht, Netherlands 🇳🇱

The Dutch way of not finding a parking space. This one lies on the bed of the Meuse, slowly turning into a garden.

💡 Canal Fact: Amsterdam fishes an estimated 12,000 to 15,000 bikes out of its canals every year. The city’s water authority, Waternet, hauls them up with a claw on a barge-mounted crane, and it believes most of them were stolen or vandalized before they went in.

📷 Photo: Palauenc05 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

✈️ The Jumbo on Stilts — Technik Museum Speyer, Germany 🇩🇪

Built in 1978 and once flown by Lufthansa, this Boeing 747 came to the Technik Museum Speyer in 2002. Getting there was half the show: the fuselage was floated up the Rhine on a pontoon before the jet was hoisted onto steel stilts.

💡 Visitor Fact: The jet is open inside, and visitors can explore even the cargo hold and climb out onto the left wing, about 20 meters (66 feet) up, according to the Technik Museum Speyer.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsBoeing 747 “Schleswig-Holstein” — Technik Museum SpeyerTechnik Museum Speyer · 2002 · Speyer, GermanyEx-Lufthansa 747-200Built 1978Wing walk ~20 m (museum)1Too big for the roads, the dismantled jet’s fuselage travelled to Speyer on a pontoon along the Rhine in 2002, according to the museum.Technik Museum Speyer2Visitors can climb onto the left wing at around 20 metres, and the cabin and cargo hold can also be entered, the museum says.Technik Museum Speyer201328 AprPhoto: the 747 next to the Antonov An-22 at the museum20142 JulPhoto: D-ABYM on display, Commons201510 AugPhoto: D-ABYM at Technik Museum Speyer201812 MayPhoto: D-ABYM during an event day at the museum202123 SepStars and Stripes visits; walkway on the left wing open202421 MaraeroTELEGRAPH: spring cleaning of the 747 on its stilts20266 MarWochenblatt Reporter: weeks-long spring clean of the JumboMore photos2014 The whole structure, with its stairway to the wingPhoto: Bahnfrend / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)Read the full file →

📷 Photo: Horst / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

🚢 The Eduard Bohlen — Conception Bay, Namibia 🇳🇦

The steamship ran aground in thick fog on September 5, 1909. Since then the desert has pushed the coastline out, and the wreck now sits in the sand about 470 meters (1,540 feet) from the water, according to the Atlas of Namibia.

💡 Desert Fact: For a while the stranded ship served as a makeshift hotel for diamond miners working the coast. The mine manager got the captain’s quarters.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsEduard BohlenBlohm & Voss, Hamburg · Conception Bay, NamibiaBuilt by Blohm & VossWoermann-Linie shipGrounded 5 Sep 19091NDR reports that fog and strong wind accompanied the grounding on 5 September 1909.NDR2The Atlas of Namibia places the wreck about 470 metres inland, compared with 390 metres in 2004.Atlas of Namibia189023 OctLaunched at Hamburg.19095 SepGrounded near Conception Bay.2004Atlas records the wreck 390 metres inland.201412 AugMartin Cígler photographs the sandbound wreck.202528 NovNDR reports the wreck remains visible in the desert.Read the full file →

📷 Photo: Anagoria / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0)

🚗 “Quo Vadis” — By David Černý in Prague, Czech Republic 🇨🇿

In the fall of 1989 thousands of East Germans climbed into the West German Embassy garden in Prague to seek asylum, leaving their Trabants in the streets outside. David Černý gave one of those little cars legs.

💡 Trabi Fact: Černý’s original stood on Old Town Square in 1990 and is now in Leipzig; a bronze cast has stood in the embassy garden since 2001.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsQuo Vadis — David Černý, PragueDavid Černý · Vlašská 19, PragueBronze cast 2001Original 310 × 390 × 170 cm1The legs stand for the escape of the East Germans who fled into the West German embassy in 1989, according to Deník.Deník2The original is reportedly on long-term loan to the Zeitgeschichtliches Forum Leipzig, which lent it for display at the 2019 Leipzig Book Fair.Leipziger Internet Zeitung1990First shown on Old Town Square, Prague, on the day of German monetary union20079 MayMoved forward in the embassy garden so tourists see it better · Deník201017 MarPhotographed in the embassy garden from the hill behind · Fotoeins201917 MarOriginal lent for the Leipzig Book Fair · Leipziger Internet Zeitung20195 NovShown at Walter-Benjamin-Platz, Berlin, for 30 years since the Wall fell20216 OctBronze parked in front of Liberec town hall for a year · Forbes Česko202622 MarReported standing in the embassy gardens · JalopnikRead the full file →

📷 Photo: VitVit / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)

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🛥️ The Ship Graveyard — Moynaq, Uzbekistan 🇺🇿

Moynaq was Uzbekistan’s only port, a town that lived on industrial fishing and canning. Then Soviet irrigation projects diverted the rivers that fed the Aral Sea, the water retreated, and the fleet was left behind in the sand.

💡 Sea Fact: The shoreline is now around 150 km (93 miles) from town. Since 2018 the Stihia electronic music festival has been held on the town’s former seashore.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsMoynaq Ship CemeteryMoynaq, Karakalpakstan, UzbekistanFormer fishing portFishing boats and bargesOn the former Aral seabed1Uzbekistan’s embassy describes the cemetery as an open-air museum on the site of Moynaq’s former port.Embassy of Uzbekistan2According to Uzbekistan Travel, the sea’s accelerated retreat followed Soviet irrigation for cotton.Uzbekistan Travel200829 AprArian Zwegers photographs the stranded vessels.2025Khusen Rustamov documents the cemetery; month differs between caption and metadata.More photos2025 The cemetery in 2025Photo: Khusen Rustamov (Koshkinhome) / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)Read the full file →

📷 Photo: upyernoz / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)

🚲 The Bike on the Trestle — Washington, DC, USA 🇺🇸

And a second bike that stayed too long. Someone left it in the fork of a tree growing on an abutment of the old Foundry Branch Trestle in Georgetown, and the trunk has swallowed it up to the seat.

💡 Trestle Fact: Built in 1896, the bridge carried streetcars of the Washington and Great Falls Electric Railway from Georgetown toward Glen Echo. It is the last streetcar bridge left in DC, and it is due to be demolished; the concrete footings are to stay.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsTree Eating a Bike — Foundry Branch Trestle, Washington, DCFoundry Branch Trestle, Georgetown, Washington, DCGlover Archbold Park280-ft trestle (Atlas Obscura)1According to the Commons description, someone left the bike in a tree fork on a trestle pier; the tree grew around it.Wikimedia Commons2A 2017 Georgetown Current story listed a bicycle lodged in a tree atop the bridge among the curiosities at the site.The Georgetown Dish20175 MayAtlas Obscura entry added; a photo caption notes the bicycle consumed by a tree201715 JunGeorgetown Current: a bicycle lodged in a tree atop the bridge2019Atlas Obscura user photo from the eastern pier shows the bike in the tree202623 JulPhoto: the tree has grown around the bikeRead the full file →

📷 Photo: G. Edward Johnson / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0)

✈️ Concorde and Tu-144 on the Roof — Sinsheim, Germany 🇩🇪

Speyer’s sister museum went one better: two supersonic airliners, climbing off the roof side by side. Concorde F-BVFB left Paris by road in July 2003 and was lifted onto the roof in March 2004. The Soviet Tu-144 next to it had an even longer trip: by ship from St. Petersburg to Rotterdam, then up the Rhine and the Neckar.

💡 Supersonic Fact: The museum calls the pairing a sight unique in the world, and you can walk through Concorde’s passenger cabin and look into the cockpit. This one made 5,473 flights for Air France, including a round-the-world trip in 1988 that took just over 38 hours.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsConcorde and Tu-144 on the Roof — Technik Museum SinsheimTechnik Museum Sinsheim · Sinsheim, GermanyConcorde F-BVFBTu-144 on roof since 2001Concorde mounted 20041Concorde’s road trip began on 19 July 2003 on a tiltable low-loader to pass motorway bridges; it was mounted above Hall 2 in March 2004.Technik Museum Sinsheim2In 2026 the Tu-144 is being repainted under a free-standing scaffold, with a tunnel so visitors can still reach the Concorde, Stuttgarter Zeitung reported.Stuttgarter Zeitung20135 JunPhoto: Concorde F-BVFB and Tu-144 on the roof201516 NovPhoto: Air France Concorde F-BVFB on display201810 SepSBS German: Concorde is the highlight of the Sinsheim collection202421 MaraeroTELEGRAPH: spring cleaning of the aircraft on stilts202416 AugPhoto: Tu-144 and Concorde side by side202613 Aprheidelberg24: Tu-144 restoration begins; Concorde drone-cleaned last autumn202626 JunStuttgarter Zeitung: scaffold around the Tu-144 on the roofMore photos2013 Both jets seen across the museum forecourtPhoto: Valder137 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)Read the full file →