If You Find A Bent Tree In The Forest, You May Have Just Stumbled Upon A Centuries Old Secret

As a boy I was in the forest with my grandpa, he was a shipbuilder and sailor. After carefully searching for the right sapling he tied it into a loose knot. About 5-6 years later we walked by the same tree. It had a bit of a kink, and a huge burl at the knot. He cut the sapling down and fashioned a cane from it, using the burl as the handle. When I walk the forest these days I see signs of him - trees twisted together in spirals, tunnels formed with living trees, and a huge “bowl” made of 8 oak trees, planted together, but bent out at the root. I wish I had learned a lot more from him

When I was a kid I made kind of a "hut" in the woods by my house. I took saplings and bent them over, tying their tops to the base of other saplings, which in turn were bent over and tied to other saplings. I used about 10 saplings in a circle and covered it with sticks and leaves. Imagine my surprise when I was walking by that long forgotten "hut" 10 years later and all of the trees had kept growing. From a distance it looked like a huge crown. Shortly after that someone bought the woods and turned it into a housing development. They bulldozed most of the trees and my "hut."

when i was 8 years on this earth i lived on top of wye mountain in arkansas. we had forty acres of land chocked full of old forest. my favorite tree was a tree such as these bent trees in the video. some days it was my horse, others my jet! i spent hours of my childhood playing on and around that old tree. i’m inspired to go there now and see if it’s still standing, 50 years later.

On my property I just moved onto. I stumbled up on a hidden creek. I have been drawn the this creek as I walked further and followed it into a very secluded well hidden meadow or field I found the strangest trees. All like these but one in particular is the strangest. There are stone foundation ruins as well as the most beautiful streams and plant life and herbs growing within this site I've seen. I have found arrow heads. Spear heads and tanning tools. Due to the season and cold weather and rain it's hard to do much study but I can say it is very sacred and unseen by people for many many years. The creek itself when the water is shallow is a treasure trove. I am looking to buy the rest if the land to preserve it. Thank you for this video. I will post a video of my walk through the creek and marker trees. But for now I keep this place sacred and secret.

At the Polynesian cultural center on Oahu, I met a man who researched and reenacted ancient Hawaiian ship building. He told me his ancestors would shape growing trees like this to harvest for specific parts of the ship once grown.

In the UK Oak trees like this were shaped in the same way to be used in the construction of vaulted roof beams and for building ships. They would have the same strength as straight beams but require no joining to go around a corner, making ships and roofs much stronger. They didn't really go for "Just in time" manufacturing methods in those days.

Unless the tree is over 250 years old it is just a crooked tree.

I have a favorite tree in the forest by my house. It started to fall sometime many many years ago, but it was caught by several trees in its path, so the roots never fully tore, they just lifted halfway out of the ground and created a small hill. The main tree kept growing across the trees that caught it, bending those trees over time, and a brand new tree sprung straight up from the roots at the base. So it became two trees from one root system, the original one growing at an angle and the newer one straight up. A bunch of mushrooms spring up on the root hill too. Its an amazing little spot to go and be in awe of nature. Edit: The tree in question is in the woods around Proud Lake. Commerce, Michigan.

The property I grew up on had some trees like this. I never knew why they were like that but looking back on it now...they were all leading to an area that had multiple natural springs.

There is a bent tree like this on the bank of the Deschutes River in Oregon about a quarter mile upstream from Benham Falls. The location suggests that it marks the last place a traveler going downstream can safely land a canoe before being swept over the falls (which would likely be fatal).

A tree fell on it when it was a sapling held it down for a few years until the Fallen tree rotted away. it grew up around the fallen tree and back to where it could reach toward the sun again. It doesn't take a rocket surgeon to figure that out if you've been in the woods in the amount of time. The node on the bottom is where it was once touching the ground and tried to reroot.

we have a tree like this on our ranch and have found arrowheads underneath. the tree is probably 200 yards from our mound. the mound and tree are surrounded by 2 creeks that connect. it's fascinating to discover history on our own place.

I have photographed several of these tree ( mostly maple or oak) near shallow river crossings, natural topographical area described as gorges, and near natural spring clusters at headwater springs. Upper Peninsula tribal elders have drank of those springs and traveled those corridors in their youth. They are starkly unique in appearance. However, being nearly 80 years old, I have witnessed this phenomenon be created by larger falling trees upon smaller ones over decades in areas of solitude, revealed in the deep roadless forest. I appreciate the conscious respect for aboriginal legacies. Miig’wech Riverwalker🦅🙏🍀

I've seen trees like these while working for the Forest Service in the Pacific Northwest. Heavy snow forces young saplings over. Once the snow melts, the trees recover, and grow normally.

Back in the late '60s and early '70s, we did similar things to trees on my grandpa's farm as most of it was heavily wooded. Most of the northern and western boundary didn't have any marks so when we were about to figure that out, we arched several small saplings at various points along it. Occasionally, we'd take a few, tie them together, and bend them toward the house, so that if we ran into them at night, we'd know the way even if we couldn't make out landmarks. I haven't been there in 20 years, and I have no idea if they are still there or not. The family doesn't have it anymore, so not much chance of spending a day looking for them now.

This happens all the time naturally. A sapling is pinned to the ground by an older tree that has fallen. One of the side branches from the pinned tree shoots up into the opening made by the fallen tree. The rest of the pinned tree dies off over several to many years. This causes the angular bend by the ground and the sharp turn upwards. The dead part rots away, and is eventually encompassed by bark. If you walk thru the woods by my place you will easily find a dozen or more of these of all different ages. Native Americans may have mimicked the natural process, but it is so common that I don't see why they would rely on something so common for navigation.

These also happen naturally. Ive got like 12 of them in my back yard that are still growing. When a dead tree, or limb falls on top of a sapling, it pins the sapling to the ground but doesn’t really hurt it. We had a wind storm in the late 90’s up here that took down half the trees in the forest. But when a sapling is pinned it still searches out light so the top half slowly bends and grows vertical again making the double 90 bend you see in these photos. If you look at the second bend (at the base of the final vertical section) they are rounded almost perfectly. Indicating that it was likely bent back vertical slowly over time. And also that it could have been up against a rounded object when it went vertical again. Like the circumference of a tree. Anyway, ive got a handful of now 8 foot or so saplings with double 90’s at their base. In a few more years they will make fine wooden canes with excellent natural handles.

My Grandmother told me the Indians would deform trees to mark their trails.I believe it was back in the late 1950's when she told me this.I have one of these trees on my land located in Auburn, NH. Thank you for this videos as it brought back memories of my Grandmother

I’m 73 and I remember my dad always telling me this and showing me a few trees like this. Southwestern Michigan right near Lake Michigan in the town of Bridgman and also on my grandparents farm near Texas Corners Michigan. Also used to find a lot of arrowheads on my grandfathers farm. Fond memories

I was using one as a handy place to sit while hunting deer in Northern MIchigan 50 years ago. It was near a small swamp and next to an ancient, worn down trail. It was very large at the time and probably is gone, but I should try and find it again and relive part of my youth.