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

[@savyor1839]

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

[@tenaciousbeep1802]

wish you had pics!

[@savyor1839]

@@tenaciousbeep1802 that’s a great idea! I’ll see what I can do, but it’ll be a while before I’m back in that part of the world. I’ll post a link here eventually 👍

[@savyor1839]

My mother still has the cane too

[@deborahpalmer8298]

What a wonderful tribute to and memory of your grandfather. The cane is a treasured family HEIRLOOM!

[@MeMyrrh]

❤

[@justdoingitjim7095]

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."

[@elliejobonney2926]

Sorry xxx

[@SirWetBiscuit]

What you created was more beautiful than any modern housing development

[@TheGreenHeartofItaly-fl3wv]

And you had huge fun shinnying up those saplings to bend them over! My version of the hut is in maple, and now 30 years old. I haven't seen it in 20, but it is in a PA state forest, so no developers.

[@Chris_winthers]

Moral of the story: the machine comes for all. Be absorbed

[@дЖф-с7ч]

@@Chris_winthersfed

[@archarliegirl64]

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.

[@VoiceForTheSilenced]

Promise us you’ll go!!!!!!

[@Mia-baddie]

That’s so cool ❤

[@hillbilly4895]

I was up there last week...they're starting to develop that side of the lake. (LR's moving W) Did your 40 overlook the lake or the river? The daffodil's are still there.

[@rexstocephirxiii4263]

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.

[@HookBeak_66]

Your theory sounds more plausible than this yawn worthy load of bunkum. This nasal sounding narrator does talk over, on so many videos I get sick of him.

[@kndvolk]

​@@HookBeak_66 Amen. So darn annoying and chose to read the comments instead.

[@proto57]

@@HookBeak_66 Exactly. I clicked through the video to try an find the "meat" of it, but failed. So instead, I came to the comments to learn what the video was about.

[@sharonkaczorowski8690]

Makes my teeth hurt.

[@WakeupnTwinkle]

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.

[@clausroquefort9545]

you might want to inform the local natives and/or archeologists about that location. They would have an interest in documenting and preserving it.

[@WakeupnTwinkle]

@@clausroquefort9545 I will do so

[@eetuthereindeer6671]

​@@WakeupnTwinklevideo?

[@WakeupnTwinkle]

@@eetuthereindeer6671 I will post one

[@safeysmith6720]

Please please post a video or at least pictures! I hope you successfully bought the rest of the property and will preserve that area. Also please invite archaeologists from a local university or museum in to do some work. Do not hire an archaeological company, who comes in before development… they will ruin your site. Archaeologists from museums or universities will do the site justice.

[@PlanetMojo]

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.

[@gretafields4706]

This makes sense. I have a tree that must be old, because it grows on an arrid ridge where it diesnt get much water. It has two trunks. People in a tree preservation group say ut us not a true pathmarker. For one thing, it has two trunks. But the second trunk is smaller, so I wonder if the tree just started growing again. I still think it might be a pathmarker because it points to the opposite ridge, which is an easy path to the top ridge, which is a straight highway between ky and tenn., betwern river valleys. If you tried to take the ridge that the tree us on to reach the top, it is a bad route. I hike, so I know the other ridge is a better route. It ultimately leads to good water too, and even old bogs in the tip top where you could live on top and have water. There's even beavers sometimes with ponds on the tip top. A forest ranger showed me one. Another one is privately preserved. Indians lived on tops of the summits in the southeast! Archaeologists don't go there much, but that is where they will find arrowheads and old ruins, really old.

[@ajhedgecock]

I was about to say exactly this. Seen it all the time in UK ancient woodlands

[@jimmace6148]

There is NO WAY native americans mimicked this because as you stated it is so common. This story is ludicruous LOL

[@PlanetMojo]

@@jimmace6148 Agreed. The Native Americans were AWESOME navigators, this just isn't part of that awesomeness . The foot trails themselves were the main navigation as the animals would use them as well, and they are very pronounced - a lot of our roads are old trails. They may have used these markers here and there, but a couple of rocks was a lot easier and more permanent. 😊

[@General_Confusion]

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.

[@russelllukenbill]

I heard about this in a lecture by Terrence Mckenna, that there are churches that have these trees out front that are used for beams in the roof, and just when the beam is rotten and not able to be used any more, the new tree is grown and ready to be used for the new support.

[@reginaldbowls7180]

@@russelllukenbill that’s pretty cool!!

[@sasachiminesh1204]

Except they were then cut down and used for that purpose, so none of them would be standing today. Folks didn't go through that trouble and then not use the tree.

[@General_Confusion]

@@sasachiminesh1204 It's not something you do today and use tomorrow. They were thinking 50-100 years ahead, they didn't know that ships would one day be made of steel and buildings would have different construction.

[@thenaturalmidsouth9536]

In the Gulf Coast, near Pensacola is a Naval Oaks preserve. It's part of the Gulf National Seashore. The Live Oaks were set aside by the Navy for shipbuilding and there were lots of trees like this.

[@mnh1956]

I grew up in Michigan, these trees were always a fascination. I took many photos of these unique trees.

[@rebeccaharper1322]

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.

[@dreb6818]

Interesting

[@Bok2022st]

The Aboriginals of Australia used marker trees they had a different technique but basically with the same purpose these people could have taught us so much but their ways have been mostly lost . But to there credit these people still live on.👍

[@eldermillennial8330]

@Whiterun Guard Ones that have to be felled for whatever reason offer unique opportunities for woodworking. Shapes that are normally impossible to get in one piece without softening wood to bend it in hot water can be made without that extra trouble. Seamless archway for a door would look amazing!

[@jacktaylor1030]

@@Bok2022st I watched a YT video on how the Aboriginal people are now being treated and killed in Australia, and found it so disgusting. How can this Racist Genocidal shit continue on in this day and age is beyond me? I used to think highly of Australia as an American ally, not so much after seeing such hateful crap.

[@markfreeland1027]

Hardwood trees which grew in these shapes, were and still are, prized by wooden ship builders for structural parts of the frame. With the grain following the bends of the growth, the knees of a ship could be made from a single piece of wood, rather than pieced together. Knees of a boat/ship are like gussets which strengthen the joints between larger pieces of the frame. I've read that areas of civilization that took on the building of large wooden boats/ships, would intentionally cause trees in the vicinity to grow in such shapes, for use after they matured to build more boats.

[@nedporkus8602]

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).

[@longsleevethong1457]

Go dig around the base of it if it’s allowed. You’ll find arrow and spear heads. Beads….all kinds of shyte

[@pgfairbanks]

I know that tree!

[@longsleevethong1457]

@@pgfairbanks go dig around it

[@kcender3771]

Ned, it would seem like there were faster ways of constructing a "signal" for the falls. Could it be that during a flood (frequent I imagine), that another tree landed on it and bent it into this shape? Just sayin, but I love the story ntl. Hell, you might be right, who's to say.

[@mocha2259]

you see trees like that everywhere when you hike long enough

[@user-uh6fd3wr1b]

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.

[@bobbygomez2365]

What you saying not man made

[@johnhill7585]

So they are not trail marker trees.

[@AcrosstheTraxks]

Depends the age of the trees the logs out west were cut alot more recently, also the intricate highway system of trails is confirmed out east not sure about that out west

[@ericdollarhyde3296]

@@AcrosstheTraxks what kind of highway? Can you tell me about it? Who made it? I've seen several of these in cali

[@jckdnls9292]

I've seen similar in Florida... with no snow though?

[@jonathanpittman9210]

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.

[@spencertwoeightyz3383]

maybe. or maybe something else that occurs naturally. (ice storm, wind, deer breaking a branch) but you know what it ISNT? it isnt humans mimicking something that occurs in nature as a method of marking trails.

[@mikescan7050]

That makes so much sense, I bet that’s what it is.

[@danharasty6686]

Fully agree. A walk thru any forest hit by an ice storm or major wind event thirty or so years ago has many, no doubt 😅 l

[@bonzobrothers1504]

Rocket surgeon haha

[@pong9000]

Yes, I've seen saplings pinned down by fallen branches, adapting in a way that predicts the specimens in this video.

[@junebug313]

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.

[@virginiamoss7045]

Are you trying to disprove the marker tree information here?

[@candidlens]

@@virginiamoss7045 One plausible explanation is that this bending phenomenon was occasionally observed occurring naturally and then was adopted and utilized for navigation purposes, building with curved lumber etc.

[@virginiamoss7045]

@@candidlens Absolutely. Native Americans did the same but used the results differently and long, long before ship-building.

[@candidlens]

@@virginiamoss7045 Interesting. What's the the evidence for this? Ship building is a practice thousands of years old in many parts of the world.

[@playdiscgolf1546]

Fellow Michigander and disc golf course enthusiast, I see much of the same thing all over the woods. It’s amazing how resilient plants are, especially trees. Quite a phenomenon . On my property there are many trees that fell like that and actually started growing into the other trees branches.

[@carlguinesso3136]

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

[@SkeletorJenkins]

I was told this also. Where I live if you find one, you can usually see another way off, and so on. Until you find a fence or a posted sign.

[@virginiamoss7045]

I have one, too, and there are 18 in my small county in north Georgia where the Cherokee had a rather advanced and thriving population until Europeans came. There's a rare pine one next to a river in north Florida on my grandparents property. Mountain Stewards has a web site pinpointing with photographs and coordinates marker trees all the way down to the tip of South America and north into Canada.

[@deborahpalmer8298]

Saplings were tied down in the direction of where to find water.

[@virginiamoss7045]

@@deborahpalmer8298 Yes, sometimes, but there could possibly other reasons, like navigation, as well. We don't really know for sure though there has been some corroboration from elders passing down knowledge from those earlier times.

[@deborahpalmer8298]

@ Virginia Moss, I rely on the validity of Indigenous knowledge and storytelling. But like you say, we don't really know about other reasons.

[@hoppinonabronzeleg9477]

It would be interesting to draw up a map of these trees, and see the resulting trails!

[@kasondaleigh]

Great idea!

[@charredolive]

Almost like in RDR2 lol

[@nickhockey96]

I think they got washed out from glacial melt I see them around creek beds in my area

[@tnerbnilgdom]

there is one already.\

[@jimmace6148]

There is no trails. This is just folklore started in the 1940s. This is naturally occurring around the world.

[@wowens1218]

We have one of these trees on our property. It points straight to a major spring system and a big cave system opening. From the tree to the spring/cave opening is a mile as the crow flies.

[@rlb96]

They were also created by shipwrights. Saplings would be tied so they would grow to certain shapes that when harvested they would have grown naturally in the shape of keels, keel-sons, and other parts of a wooden ships frame. By the mid 1800's this practice was almost completely abandon as iron ship building techniques had been developed.

[@ReaverTheSurvivalist]

That’s an ingenious method, my goodness. Must take a long time though

[@Cindy-wm5lg]

Wow! Very interesting. Thank you.

[@virginiamoss7045]

This is true, but those wanting to disbelieve these marker trees and call it natural circumstances will have to also disbelieve this shipbuilding practice which is very well documented. Why are some humans so closed to logical explanations? Might it have to do with the fact that native Americans were involved instead of white Europeans? I suspect so.

[@renterp]

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.

[@silkysmoof5697]

Best explanation . Thank you

[@jeffmahoney1271]

Don't tell the History Channel, they'll make a 5 season show from your place.

[@kenlelon369]

yep that's the only way I know this to happen, me being raised in the woods. Nothing special or fancy purpose, just life finding a way

[@feedigli]

Both causes are true. I've seen both situations in my travels.

[@alternativeharvey7]

​@@feedigli agreed. Lots would be natural and some could be manipulated.

[@clarktesar3721]

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

[@ellenmoon1787]

Yes they alwise think Indians didn't live much in Michigan but yes they did lol

[@grahammewburn]

When the tree is young it can be pruned into any shape desired by the gardner. My grandfather did this for an interest and had grown trees into many shapes. Back in the days when ships were built from timber trees were encouraged to grow in shapes needed by the ship builders. Cheers Gray

[@ximono]

That’s what I’ve learned too, people did this in my country (Norway) back in the day. It can also be done to bend wood (it becomes very strong) for use in more artistic architecture.

[@DevinMcSalty]

It’s like hedge sculptures on steroids

[@ytsn_THE_OG]

@@DevinMcSalty no lol it's different than that. Closer to a Bonsai Tree

[@jeanponce2017]

The thing about this theory is you have to start the bending process 30 to 50 years before you're ready to build your ship. It might be true these trees were cut for this use but for the modern day man to have a tree this big with this bend native American basically would have had to start this process. I've dug many native artifact from around these tree. At the Jersey shore they are long know as a marker for fertile summer hunting land for the Iroquois who spent the summers here hunting and fish them migrating west to winter over far from the shore where they are all over in the pinelands and almost everyone is an old growth cedar tree which are very flexible when small. Then bend the 2 opposite lower branches and let the main stem grow up straight and the 2 side branches look like goal posts. I found one with the lower 4 growing up. I considered cutting it and using the 4 branches as a set of legs and the main trunk could hold a massive table top. It is sitting at the bend of a creek and due to erosion it is going to fall over into the creek which is the only reason I would cut this marvel down. It's the craziest sight it has 4 equal branches growing almost perfectly square around 10 inches but the base below the 4 is over 2 feet. Nature did not do this. No how no way. Nature doesn't make early clay pots and flint arrowheads and deposit it around these trees 3specially when flint is not a natural stone you find at the Jersey shore. We even find bone tools that were hardened in a fire used to scrape hides and some as drill bits for putting holes in wood. Nature does deform trees also but these bent branches were tied down by natives then the branch wound turn to bend towards the sun on its own all they had to do was bend the branch, secure it out to the side for a set distance then allowed to turn itself to the sun so they could make these perfect goal post looking trees. Some were cut at the top around 50 years later and carved and we're said to be totem poles that told stories of the area and how good the hunting and fishing was

[@slapt3245]

@@jeanponce2017 Most of the main streets in your town (assuming US idk why), were the original foot highways of whoever thought that area was the shit and started building. You're overthinking this lol. And, outside of the US, 30-50 years isn't long for cultures that have been building ships for thousands of years lmao.

[@P.FProductions]

I have one in the woods of my house that I call “The Sitting Tree” sometimes I go there and just chill on it. After seeing this it made me fill with joy knowing about the history behind these trees

[@jerrymoran8323]

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🦅🙏🍀

[@lifeforcepowercenter]

Wow 😮Tree Prophecy. I have the most amazing tree marker story. Over 20 yrs ago I met this native American in a dream. Few years later later I had a death experience and met her in the other world. And received many prophecies about Earth and lessons how the Universe works. I was convinced to comeback and I received a logo along with some books to re write on Earth. I trained and studied in the hills for over 10 years. There where many bent trees that I followed to sacred and hidden paths. Even one point finding a labyrinth. I was forced to move a couple a years ago. And after 10 years I see freshly grown tree in the shape of the Logo I was given. It was beyond mind blowing but confirmation that all info given to me was true. I took a picture of it before I left. And funny this vid just pops up in my feed and I here this info. Much more to this story and prophecies. Will one day share with the right people. Thx for posting video. Be well.

[@raynameadows2152]

….🦉🧿🪶🐺♾️

[@imallowedmyopinionok2354]

We have pine plantation trees here in south nz which are bent like that. It is caused by snow damaging the seedlings. Flattens them and damages the fibres at the stump so they cant stand up again when the snow melts so they start growing from where they can, usually resulting in bent trees.

[@IratePuffin]

Which is likely what happened to most of the trees in the video. The guy lived in Michigan and they get enough snow & ice that stays around for months that could’ve caused the trees to grow like this. I live in southeast Texas, however. Near the Gulf of Mexico. A 1/2 inch to an inch every few years is a blizzard for us. 😂 We do get some nasty ice storms (for us) occasionally but it all melts usually within a week or two so I don’t think it’s the cause here. I too have always been told that the trees we find here that are like this are native Indian tree markers. It makes a lot more sense here given our lack of snow but who knows? Maybe some of them are markers but most of them are probably just natural, no matter where you find them. I can think of several ways it could happen naturally. Snow and ice being one. Wind being another. I’ve seen areas that get a lot of strong sustained winds that will cause trees to grow like this. There’s a forest, I think in Japan(?) where all the trees are bent like this in the same direction because of wind. I think the more likely reason is because a tree or heavy branch fell on it early on causing it to bend over. The tree will then grow up towards the sun, exactly like the ones that are covered in snow & ice. The dead tree eventually rots away completely leaving a weirdly shaped tree.

[@TheVTRainMan]

A fallen tree over a sapling will bend it over as well... the bent tree will then grow up towards the sky (as they always do). Over time it creates the S shape and the fallen dead tree rots away. Also flooding will permanently bend a tree low too the ground, and if the tree survives will them curve upwards. There are so many reasons for this tree to form that way. Not saying a human couldn't bend a young tree like this, and I am sure there are many instances of it. But, it is going to take a long time for it to be visibly noticeable enough to be of any use while navigating the woods.. Furthermore, during the middle of the winter, that tree bend will be completely buried in snow (especially when it was younger). That makes no sense. I guess I'm skeptical.

[@philosothink]

you'll notice that all of them have a "nub" pointing at the ground. This will be where one branch was tied down to point the sapling in the desired direction. If you look at the trunks of all of these trees, the original trunk stem points up, not sideways like a tree that has fallen over. While it's possible for a a tree to naturally snag a branch in this fashion, if there are multiple trees in a row, that lead to a natural spring, or in place before a dangerous place in a trail, it's hard to just assume it was an accident.

[@morgangarrett5142]

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.

[@jimmace6148]

Not history. Just trees. This is totally bogus.

[@rodneyf.9595]

I am thankful to know of 2 of these near my home in North Carolina and 1 is near a fresh water spring the other near a Indian settlement ,now a corn field. I believe they should be protected from harm if possible , I am of Cherokee decent and believe nature is a very important part of all our lives. Thank you for such a beautiful video.

[@edwardgomez5616]

@@Dougarrowhead cause you're an azz hole.

[@edwardgomez5616]

@@Dougarrowhead I can, you azz hole. I know of trees that are possibly 300- 500 yrs old.

[@bobwhite2]

Agree, we are nature.

[@jackjohnson291]

@@Dougarrowhead Why?

[@CraigBrosRacing]

One in an empty lot beside my grandparents old home in gamewell NC..NEVER HEARD OF THIS ITS STILL THERE AND IM ALMOST 50...

[@tommissouri4871]

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.

[@ErvinandMFantasyFootball]

1000% still there. But you’d be surprised to see they haven’t gotten all that big in all those years.

[@davidbarnes241]

The estate woodlands in Britain have many such characteristics. Some are marker trees that can be found at various junctions of paths and ancient tracks. Others are formed that way for shipbuilding and construction of timber framed structures such as crook barns. Some are simply old coppice trees that have developed into these forms through neglect after the First World War, when labour became less cost effective. Either way, they are magnificent living history and it’s great that you highlighted them.

[@matthewj.harrison116]

Hi David, do you know of where I could look into this more? I'm struggling to find examples in England. I've defiantly seen some on woodland walks, but it would be great to see if there's any write up about this in England.

[@davidbarnes241]

My father was a timber feller during and after the Second World War, he took me on many walks in the various places he’d worked, but mostly it’s just a keen eye and personal experience wandering the copice, woods and forests that you build up a picture. I’m not aware of any literature, it’s mainly just verbal tales from generation to generation. Sadly the woodsmen are virtually gone, replaced by managers and contractors, the estates are mothballed and hopefully they will enjoy a renaissance at some point. Having spent almost an entire working life myself in an allied industry, I fear for the knowledge will soon disappear. A great place to start would be OS maps, get into divining and discover the joys of finding routes in what little ancient woodland we have left and connect with nature.

[@howardcoles3537]

@@matthewj.harrison116 I know of one in near where I live in a wood in North Somerset .

[@hilltoprestoration]

We have 2 of these trees on our 150 acer island in the U.P. north of Watersmeet, MI. Both are on the path that's been there since who knows when. One is pointing north, the other towards a spring about 600 yrds away.. Really neat to stumble across this info! Thanks.

[@outdoorlifemaine6691]

They got underneath it it might be a cash I live in Maine and I know a guy who found a cash in Ashland Maine and it had a bunch of stone tools in it and stuff

[@jnooney8225]

@@outdoorlifemaine6691 Cache?

[@outdoorlifemaine6691]

@@jnooney8225 yes do not know what it is it's a like a storage area that you would leave and come back to

[@gerardgauthier4876]

We have the same thing on the east coast of Canada! Its basically young trees that were exposed to heavy freezing precipitation that bend them over for the winter. We have entire sections of forest that have these bent sections near the bottom.

[@grominwithrob1339]

As a kid in Michigan, we had a tree across the road that was shaped like a large U. There were more in the area. We found arrow heads around the area as well. I live about 50 miles from the large U shaped tree. Might be a good summer ride on the motorcycle to get a few pictures. 😁👍

[@TheAndrew363]

These tree's are also found in the UK and other European countries , they are also found in many other countries . I was told by my grandfather who was a shipwright that these tree's were bent so that when they grow they could be used on timber ships as bow keels .

[@gwendolynmeredith5779]

Indians used these trees to lead to various places

[@clittle1559]

@@gwendolynmeredith5779 Yelp out in the Water for ship biulding

[@someotherdude]

Proof that native american indians were in the UK. They were very good at hiding, you see.

[@HighWealder]

No evidence for this happening in England. Bent oak was sourced from trees grown in an open environment and since English Oak species are known for their lack of apical dominance they tend to grow very bent unless grown in a dense woodland where they are forced up by the light.

[@54RKY]

Farmers in uk often cut a tree and lay it down then weave the supple branches together over time to form a sort of hedge but much stronger with usually 5/8 trees growing upright in it......they aren't it's just the one tree. amazing stuff ..... It's called low stress training when done with plants....not sure about what's it's called in forestry

[@ronh4458]

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.

[@terryfennell3331]

I seen trees like this a lot when I was young. As a child we would walk thru the woods and see trees like this. Never thought much about it but it help us know where we were in the woods

[@chadmace3355]

When you have a map of these please. It would great is people could add their own sightings with pictures, location and direction. Curious if you know the direction the "pointed". In other words, when you found how did you which direction the trail continued from it.

[@MidwestBenji]

Growing up on my grandparents land there was a marker tree, we even used it for our own trails, as youngsters we’d refer to it as the “butt tree”, what’s honestly baffling is the consistency in the bends and shaping, it was without a doubt Native American made, I hope to one day explore that area again and catalog my findings, we found anything from Native American artifacts to 1800’s dump sites, that land was full of history.

[@unionmen2312]

My family has a farm out in the country and nearly the same thing, Indian artifacts and an old dump have been found, as well as one of these marker trees. I hope to travel it’s path and document what I find as well, Godspeed to you.

[@Kenneth-mx5lx]

Exactly

[@jefftaylor8254]

I have a huge tree like this on my farm in Missouri. I always wondered about that massive tree. We played on it as children. After watching this, I realize it makes sense. My tree is near 2 old native american settlements and points toward a natural spring on land with an aquifer.

[@jasonashley4579]

I live in Missouri too, not far from the James family farm where Jesse is buried, there's trees like that along the river everywhere.

[@debrawiberg5371]

I live in Iowa on the bluffs of the Mississippi River,there are two trees like this on our property. My grandmother told me when I was younger the Indians formed them pointing the way toward our family home because my ancestors provided bread and food to hungry Indians. After reading and hearing about pointing towards fresh water springs, it resonated with me because a fresh water spring is in the direction the trees are pointing.

[@KevinKarlStudio]

I'll second the vote for tree markers in Missouri as well as a rich documented history of Native American activity throughout the state.

[@yourrealdad816]

None remain in Missouri. Our trees done live long enough. There are a few left in Texas and some out west

[@paleogeology9554]

My father and I use to go out looking for tree's shaped this way to build the Bow of boats. Nothing works better then a tree like that! They been harvesting bent trees for this reason for thousands of years all across the world

[@suziq1533]

My grandmother, who spent years living with an Apache clan in the SW, taught me about these trees when I was a child. She showed me several of them and taught me how they were made.

[@danherrick5785]

Did they tie them to the ground to force them to grow horizontal?

[@akayokaki]

Idk about trail marker trees. I would interpret them as trees that are used for hide-tanning

[@davidcopperfield-DickensBook]

There are a few of these bent trees in the Redwood Forest in northern California/southern Oregon. One fell over and grew a limb straight up into a massive redwood tree. It is called The Never Dying Redwood. Worth going to visit there!

[@MW-on1ft]

They are have long been referred to nurse trees. The fallen tree feeds the new trees.

[@Robo-xk4jm]

all i can find from that is a photo in the 40s of like 5 trees sprouting out from the log lying flat on the ground. ig its not around anymore since it seems like all photos were taken before color photography existed

[@bobbyhill3323]

@@MW-on1ft Actually, the fallen tree is often the same tree still growing. Redwoods are incredibly resilient, and an old growth cut down will often sprout shoots straight from the cut trunk.

[@Kira_Martel]

@@Robo-xk4jm But color photography existed in the 40s. Unless you're talking 1840s.

[@skyblue2636]

The natives do it for trail markers. They don't tell you how they do it. There, you don't have to watch it now.

[@leonrussell262]

not true, that a old wives tale.

[@skyblue2636]

Yes, "have been told", "was said". tbt, they prolly used them for markers, but make them? hmm

[@chrisstiff4734]

The natives would stake the tree branches down with leather straps, this would allow the tree to grow and keep their bent shape.

[@bonkeydollocks1879]

Thank you

[@donaldsharpless1746]

@@chrisstiff4734 You know more about the subject than they do. Why don't you make a video showing us some proof of your findings and don't waste our time trying to learn something about our past and the great outdoors like this video did.

[@BigBrownCar]

I have several younger trees in my woods with these growth characteristics, and no human was responsible. The tree was pushed and bent down to some degree by another larger, naturally falling tree, rendering the smaller tree pinned down for years. The small tree, still able to survive, sends several "water sprouts" vertically out of the now horizontal trunk. The strongest sprout now becomes the main trunk and over time, it's former and now useless trunk rots away. As does the larger fallen tree which caused this. The smaller, now disfigured tree continues to grow into what we see here.

[@Kenneth-mx5lx]

Wrong. These were done intentionally by native Americans to point a direction to a water source.

[@Kenneth-mx5lx]

😔

[@bruceh4180]

​@@Kenneth-mx5lxlearn to read. They are referring to their own experience with younger trees known personally to them.

[@Gnarmarmilla]

That sounds interesting but I have a contradicting story. The one I have appears to be doing this strictly because it got too much phosphorus or rooting hormone. It’s a red oak

[@BigBrownCar]

@@Kenneth-mx5lx the trees I'm referring to are 70 years old or less. They were most definitely not manipulated by Native Americans 🤣

[@888_ooo]

These are all walking stick trees, based and growing around where old homestead were. Look for fruit trees etc... When someone gets old they need a walking stick and grow a tree in this shape for a walking stick, with a rounded handle And harvested alot younger trees.

[@MrHowieZ1973]

Never sub to this guy . All he does is talk your leg off and never gives any real information . He never said how they did it .

[@howtoteachscience]

@Harvey Zearing or what they point to, nearby, or how long it takes to do it...so many things....

[@EvilSearchEngine]

Are your fingers broken? We do have search engines.

[@howtoteachscience]

LOL, you sound like my daughter. Okay, I've thought about this all day and I'm going to go research it. Thanks :)

[@kinochdotcom]

Lycos is in Waltham, MA, Google in Menlo Park, CA, Bing in Redman, WA, Archie, Veronica, Alta Vista...all examples of a search engine, plural so yes engines made and stored in "stupid" America the land that sent the first TCP packet also I may add

[@EvilSearchEngine]

Kinoch Wow, Lycos is still around? :-) You know, I kind of miss Netscape Navigator. That could just be the fuzziness of time.

[@moncier77]

I am from Native American descent and we were told this as kids. My grandmother showed us where some trees were and it showed us caves, rivers and traveling trails.

[@rodneyf.9595]

Runswithwind Thank you for your comment i also are of Indian decent and do believe in marker trees they are. 2 near me here in North Carolina.

[@jackm9612]

Runswithwind I always believed that when someome dies //who touched the tree is always connected to the tree When sick or deathly sick the tree curves.... Or sick etc. I will always believe this ..Broken

[@funkidboo7864]

Is this Liz warren?

[@Ananias03]

yes these were trail markers. Iam from the Poarch Band of Creek Indians from Alabama. There are many of these tree markers still around the state

[@brianboisguilbert6985]

Around here also in East Texas. My daddy pointed them out as we walked through the woods back when I was a kid in the 60s, brought up some old, fine memories

[@KarinToKatahdin]

Interesting! I vaguely recall learning about these in geology class, I think they were labeled as sigafoos trees, I think named after the geologist that hypothesized they were bent by the elements (wind, water, snow) without dying, then eventually continued growing upward.

[@musicman0423]

Yep. But everyone in here thinks it’s a trail marker. Cause that makes total sense lol.

[@heathermarshall1485]

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

[@jaypercival431]

Thank you.

[@joejones9520]

you can tell by the sound of the narr-tor that it's a bsht channel.

[@spencertwoeightyz3383]

you dont think that bending a tree similar to how it happens in nature is a good way to mark a path? according to the logic in this video, native americas would have always been getting lost after storms.

[@jasminelindros8923]

@@spencertwoeightyz3383 Yes, because a sapling that's bent over three feet above the ground looks EXACTLY like a mature tree that's been blown over and had its roots pulled out of the ground.

[@tylerdavis7306]

Wrong. Over 150 years old* confirmed by the the state of Iowa and Missouri conservation. Under 150 settlers likely made the tree and is not considered a true tree marker.

[@mikegraves3673]

There was a colonial trading path through on my parents property. I was told that it was once an Indian travel route. There’s a spring there. While hunting the area in the 1950s and 60’s I saw a few of these trees. I remember one big one along this old trail. I don’t do not think any of the trees are alive now.

[@sheriw53]

About ten years ago while walking in the woods in a park in Jacksonville FL I came upon some bent trees. I am so glad I took pictures. Someday I will go back and see if I can find them again.

[@Mercenary_32]

This was in recommendations from Red Dead Redemption 2!

[@Dont_Scream]

That’s why I’m here too lmao

[@ziggiesaquaticexotics8270]

Lol yea

[@thee_undertaker]

Sad

[@Mercenary_32]

@@thee_undertaker Have you ever played RDR2?

[@esandiawaves8151]

Anyone else recognize the voice?

[@vanhouten64]

I was told that such trees pointed towards water, but I am skeptical of this claim because I think the Native Americans would know that one can just walk downhill to locate water.

[@tootsie5052]

My dad, now 93 years old, saw a tree like this when we were driving a back road in West Virginia and he said that years ago people bent the saplings of trees in this shape to make walking canes. Of course you had to wait a while to get the wood to make your cane. That tree is still there, and it is not old enough for Indians to have shaped it this way. I believe my grandfather had one of these, because I remember the odd shape of his cane.

[@rickmorrow6703]

Up high in the mountains of Colorado you can find runs of twisted trees and the old miners looked for them. Under the trees would be a mineral vein and they would dig up the minerals. I have searched them

[@slc308]

I know of 50 trees near my house like this that are less than 40 years old (youngest is a known 15 years old... and all have this same kink. None were altered by anybody. They grew this way.

[@jamespmorganjr4276]

They most likely had older dead trees fall on them, leaving them this way. The old tree fall rotted away over the years.

[@Faesharlyn]

​@James P Morgan Jr a whole tree rotted in 15 years without anyone noticing it doesn't seem a likely cause..

[@lovernchristopher]

I have one of those trees on my property. I thought it was natural until this video. This one is much much larger than the ones on the video. The horizontal portion is around 30' or more and then radius upwards another 40-50'. The circumference is probably 40"-50" inches. I'm very interested now and will be taking good measurements tomorrow evening.

[@JulieWallis1963]

I didn’t realise that! I live in the UK, it seems a long way to come to mark trees. 😮 just call me a sceptic. But we have bent trees in England.

[@Fpvfreaky]

I found a tree that was hovering. No roots. It was just hovering.. I had just eaten turned around and there it was. I thought nothing of it tho. But I’ve got to go back there and pick some more mushrooms up I’ll try find it again.

[@Rooster8182]

Bigfoot

[@tammi3121]

Avatar

[@bennystrong5254]

The mushrooms you were picking

[@mikaelafox6106]

Trail marker trees. What fascinating history! Hopefully more can be saved.

[@virginiamoss7045]

- The Trail Tree Project, http:www.mountainstewards.org/project/project_home_public.html

[@Me2Lancer]

I grew up about 10 miles west of downtown Dallas, near Loop 12 between Shady Grove Road and Irving Blvd. It wasn't uncommon to see bent trees like those described here. Also, I was told the legend of how bent trees were created by American Indians. Most of the bent trees in this part of Texas are found in the CrossTimbers region.

[@Edward.Rippett.]

I was always told that's how native Americans used to mark trails. It's very common to see them In Maine!

[@kriscarrillo6434]

There are some still around off hwy 87 if ever on that hwy keep an eye out.

[@CiaofCleburne]

Cool. I live in a forest and there’s a set of trees here we call the lovers because they are so gracefully entwined. We protect them.

[@yx6889]

What a fascinating story! These trees need to be protected!

[@WhosRight]

These are known as "thong trees". And, yes the Native Americans used them as trail markers to point out trails, fresh water sources, Indian villages, etc. They were fashioned in such a way when the trees were just saplings (easier to bend and bind). .

[@garyleonard8495]

Who's ? Right

[@quantrillraider4093]

neither of you.... trees were bent up to take a dump out in the woods.

[@alexriddles492]

As recently as the 1960's (that I am aware of) this was documented in boy scout literature. I remember finding one in a state park in Iowa. I would not assume all examples are produced by native americans.

[@bustedford]

They are over around BC they got that way being injured from old logging operations

[@jeffreycrawford4283]

Yes thong trees was used in missouri to point to fresh water springs...i had one on my farm near noel mo.with a fresh water spring near by

[@emersoneee2008]

This video are way too long to get 5he point

[@ychnnm2676]

Right!

[@virginiamoss7045]

Agreed.

[@richardbradfield7437]

emersoneee2008 àaa

[@wesleyAlan9179]

These videos are for entertainment...if you want to get to the point of something, just google what you are looking for, quick and fast, and to the point.... Geez, this generation is the most SPOILD generation ever, yet we have everything we can ask for, you ever gave that a thought?

[@USVIsteve]

That’s the reason I hate these videos every once in a while I get suckered into clicking on them

[@mafrugal]

The native Americans used saplings to stretch hides they were scraping and tanning..... I've seen many.

[@WinkTartanBelle]

Native oak and pecan trees along the Llano River in Texas can be found to have such shapes, often located in canyons or "draws" that are frequently temporarily flooded when the river gets high. Some trees get buried in debris and silt, resulting in them rooting along branches and the new growth shooting upwards to reach the sun. Some trees get partially uprooted and tipped over, with similar results. When subsequent floods wash away debris around previously buried parts the roots die back, leaving the odd twisted and angled parts above ground. The same mechanism can affect many species of trees in many locations, again resulting in such growth habits which may appear man-made. This of course doesn't mean that humans shaping trees to form particular shapes does not happen/has not happened.

[@cynthiaayers7696]

I used to make chairs out of Vine maple weaving them together when they were young and keeping them trimmed to make a front porch chair's.

[@tracyiler8650]

I lost a good friend a few years ago to the quick flooding of the Llano river....

[@turbochevelle5641]

Interesting, I had one such tree on my ranch that was on a edge of a down slope leading to the creek flowing through my property. The tree was an oak and was older and the right angle section of the trunk sat a good 4-5 foot off the ground. Never really put much thought into it other than taking some pictures with my children sitting on it.

[@romeolima5339]

I have one on the downslope of a hog back on my property near Gowen Michigan. It points right to the river about 75 to 100 yds. Away.

[@Farmhouselivingroom]

@@romeolima5339 I saw three of these trees while fishing a trout stream near Pittsburgh Pa . Makes me wonder if native Americans used them to mark streams or burial grounds

[@The_ZeroLine]

Seems water signaling is one of the undoubted uses of these trees.

[@The_ZeroLine]

@@Farmhouselivingroom I think the burial ground thing has been debunked by research. A problem with us whites, is that we tend to immediately associate anything left by the Indians with burial grounds. Kind of morbid when you think about it and their fate.

[@jakebarnhardt8238]

These are the trees home depot uses for lumber.

[@ericschmuecker348]

Lmfao. They should!

[@SurprisedFlyingSaucer-ck9en]

when i was 9 i pulled a mamossa tree up as a tiny sproutling and i tore the tree top into 3 ways and broke them .i planted it by the river where i liked to fish .Its a big tree now with a flat top with 3 limbs growing up from it .a panther likes to lay up there and it sharpens its claws on the tree .whew amoung other things lol ..beautifull tree .

[@lizfox4898]

What a fun video! Cool to see so many pictures of my boss, Dennis, in a video put together by another group. So many of these photos were in our book, "Native American Trail Marker Trees: Marking Paths Through the Wilderness" that we published in 2011. Great!

[@baldieman64]

It would be interesting to see them mapped along with an indicator of the direction that they point in.

[@kbuctearnes8303]

baldieman64 all of the ones around my property point to water

[@sevenmile]

They all point to the Great Pyramid

[@virginiamoss7045]

- Thanks for asking; I meant to post this long ago. The Trail Tree Project, http:www.mountainstewards.org/project/project_home_public.html

[@eurekauniverse]

We have one about 8 feet from our creek that we've been calling "The West Tree" since that is the direction it points. It points away from the water but I think it was used as a crossing marker since the area of the creek directly behind it is one of the only easily accessible places to get down to the water.

[@individualg8383]

It's a big Oak down here in Louisiana, on hgw big trunk to sky and knee kicking South towards tha Gulf of Mexico. Natives been in North America for at least 10,000 years.

[@rahawk69]

This may be correct, but this also happens naturally

[@supplement420]

Nothing makes sense when you think about those trees being used as markers...i doubt they used tiny saplings to navigate... except they wanted to provide navigation 3 generations later

[@M3MAX]

Exactly. These are just silly stories for children.

[@jonathanpeterson1984]

I just found a tree like this on the Appalachian trail in NC, it bent and grew towards the ground, then sharply turned back towards the sky. So cool looking.

[@ericah6546]

I've seen one like that. It was in NC or VA a long time ago. Added beauty to the woods.

[@schneir5]

I'm watching this because in the video game "Red Dead Redemption 2" there are some bent trail trees. A bunch of people have been pulling their hair out trying to figure out their significance, but it seems like they were just being historically accurate.

[@stevegoodwin803]

I grew up in eastern NC in the Rosewood district of western Wayne Co. We had one of these very distinctive marker trees on our 3-acre property. It was a very large pine with the classic distinctive "saddle". As kids in the early 70's, we climbed and played on it, not realizing what it actually was. I know I have pictures of it but I'm not sure where. Interestingly, in the weeks we staked out the foundation of the house (1974'ish) my sister found a very large spearhead point in the newly dug irrigation ditch on the roadside front of the lot. Now, I'm beginning to put together all of the other interesting "facts" of the property we experienced.

[@helenarusso]

Hello Steve how are you doing, nice to meet you here 😊

[@cliffordbradford8910]

I've seen quite a few of these in Ohio. Always wondered about them because plainly something weird was going on. Some shaped like American football goalposts etc

[@ludditeneaderthal]

I dunno... Looks like deliberate shaping alright, but the configuration screams "boat keels" to me. That kind of natural knee shape makes a tree quite desirable for the bow end of a boat, and thus more valuable than a straight trunk. The age quoted also fits an era when wooden boat building was a HUGE industry here. Is it possible they are basically "engineered lumber" for an industrial demand that has since dried up? The tail end of the date range is basically the dawn of iron boats, and such a trunk would need several decades to grow from freshly bent sapling to usable boat lumber. As many tribes plied rivers and lakes, it doesn't seem inconceivable for it to be a "traditional" technique for insuring future availability of stock suited to the task.

[@erinwebber88]

ludditeneaderthal indeed

[@jackleeman4655]

The boat keel I what it makes me think too.I have one just outside the kitchen window that a I have watched grow for years.I should get a picture.

[@ludditeneaderthal]

@jeremy lahey the idea is your grandkids have the materials at hand because you invested a few hours work, Jeremy. Orchards don't grow in a single season. Citrus groves don't either. Tree nut cultivation is a multi decade wait. Folks who farm with trees have to be patient. So you bend a couple dozen a year, after the first harvest the payoff begins. Read the comments below, Europe has forests full of such "customized lumber on the hoof" because people went for the long term payoff. Bent or straight, that tree isn't lumber til it's mature. Bend it, you triple the value of the final product, and if the market goes south it's still wood. There is no loss, only gain.

[@ruthieohair4743]

Jack Leeman - I have quite a few on my property - live in NW Oklahoma - yes , by a creek. please tell me there worth a lot of money.

[@johnriordan6606]

I like that

[@paulosullivan3472]

We have trees like this in England too. I have also seen them hiking in the mountains in Poland. Unless you're suggesting Native Americans popped over to Europe to do this I would say your explanation has problems.

[@weedmanbrandon]

Paul O'Sullivan I think it could be a really old technique use buy ancient peoples all around the world. It would make sense

[@jessmichigan3241]

Sure did! Have you heard of Andrew Thaddeus Bonaventure Kosciuszco? The Polish Lieutenant who helped with the Revolution, won awards, then went back to Poland to fight in in Polish-Prussian war? As it so happens, he brought some Natives back with him, it wasn't that uncommon. He was a hero, and thus admired by many, and Native Americans assisted in his fight for the poor.

[@aubreyatwell2724]

Yeah actually early Europeans use to bring over native Americans either by talking them into it or sometimes unwillingly so yeah they could have gotten away n left clues for their people to find them if they got away as well in a an unknowland

[@stevehaupt5709]

Paul O'Sullivan But explorers could have seen this technique and utilized it upon return to Europe. Or perhaps the people from 200 years ago just happened to think up the same notion. If one person can think of an idea then its not unreasonable to believe another will eventually think of it as well.

[@supremenovah8013]

Native Americans popped over to Ireland to keep those geniuses from starving, so it's plausible and likely.

[@UnderASwiftSunrise]

We have one of these trees on our place in Texas. It's a known Tonkawa encampment, and was even excavated by a university. We occasionally still find arrow heads in the area. The tree may point to the river, which is 2-3 miles away, or maybe to a spring that has since dried up.

[@sparra3819]

We had one of these trees on our family lake lot. As a young 12/13 yr old I would sit on it, imagining it to be a horse. We had been told of an old logging trail that passed mid property. The trail could still be made out as no mature trees grew in its path and the path was more level than the rest of the land.. As it happened, the trail passed this tree. It could well be expected the logging trail had been set to follow a much older indigenous trail. Fascinating!

[@claytonnans5639]

Trees were bent as saplings to grow into timber suitable for making knees for ship building.

[@mato1875]

We call them prayer trees here in the Rocky Mountains. Tied down when saplings from many of the Ute tribes and others. Used for trail markers and directions to sacred sites. Each tree was tied from one person who kept it tied down while it was growing. Some other tribes still do this.

[@jimbob465]

It was also a grave marker, by the way the tree was altered would tell you about the indian and their lives.

[@YT-mn4eq]

There's a tree like this near my work, over a foot thick, so probably old. Is there any way to figure out what it was marking? This sparked my curiosity.

[@Magpie_the_SpottedWolf]

That's pretty cool we've actually got one on our property and I had no clue I just thought it was nothing more than an interesting looking tree but there were native american here at one point so it would make sense

[@chadrushing4685]

During severe ice storms many tree saplings are bent by snow and then frozen in place for the winter. In the spring they begin growing up from the bend.

[@JAMESMANHUNT9]

thats actually true and i have seen it happen myself to my neighbor's evergreen bush that was bent by the snow storm in febuary 2011 and when it warmed up in spring the bush was bowl shapped

[@cynthiaayers7696]

I seen the same thing many years and I'm going on 61 I've seen it first-hand so this guy is so full of BS anything to get your face on the internet huh

[@tyleratchley8669]

Yep, trees like that all over our place. Most not over 80 yrs old. And ice storms can do this to any small tree.

[@danielshy9176]

@@cynthiaayers7696 yes these trees do bend. And sorry to tell you the Red Natives did bend them. They were to lead towards rivers & You will see old campgrounds.

[@pos6666666]

Kinda like supercropping

[@jfurlu]

I live in the PNW and we have some of these bent trees here in my neighborhood! Always thought they were strange but this makes total sense to me. We even found one at the coast near Cape Argos. So awesome I wish they had historical protection. But I guess ya can't save everything.

[@bruceb6529]

As a young timber-feller in the '80's I felled a fir onto a madrone sapling that simply bent the sapling into the shape described in this article. 20 Years later upon my return, that very madrone maintained it's bent shape permanently and remains a 2ft thick double "U" shape to this day! No big mystery here!

[@heidibabcock9986]

Bruce B (

[@WisGuy4]

Before you get a bit too proud of yourself and start wearing a "World's Greatest Debunker!" t-shirt, I think you need to consider something else that wasn't addressed in this video but was just as obvious of an inquiry as your "Why can't they be simply a natural phenomenon?" What percentage of these bent trees are 150+ years old (i.e could have been created by Native Americans as markers) and what percentage are obviously newer growth? If there are as many or more bent trees that are younger and more recent, that would point to a natural explanation. However, if most of these bent trees are older, that would suggest they were created by Native Americans, not nature. I don't know the answer to this question, but it is a question that must be answered before one can scoff and sneer at the theory presented in this video.

[@integr8er66]

Yep, mg land was cut about 25 years ago and there are tons of these trees. It happens when the people cutting your woods don't give a shit about the next guy cutting that woods

[@alanzlotkowski2695]

These aren't "u" shaped trees; look again, they have a right angle. That is not natural.

[@integr8er66]

@@alanzlotkowski2695 It happens all the time, the trunk of a young tree is bent over, then one limb becomes the new trunk and the old tree top dies off. This is what creates the 90 deg part. This happens because of logging or wind storms. I can send you a picture of one in the process of becoming one of these.

[@whiggy6976]

I have often seen similar trees in the UK, where there never were any Native Americans

[@slowstang88]

I've also heard that boat builders did this because it was easier to cut a bent piece of a tree than use joinery techniques of 2 or more individual pieces

[@jnooney8225]

One did have to have patience, though. 😊

[@liannesadler5771]

I know these as "lobbed trees" which were used to mark property lines, and don't think they were ever a secret.

[@blarneyserver1504]

Shipbuilders used to search forests for just the right natural formations in trees to be able to cut specific shapes of lumber for their designs. So, they started going into forests and manipulating the growth of trees in preparation for future shipbuilding. Problem is, technology advances faster than trees grow, so many of these trees were simply not cut down.

[@Foundry_made]

Historically, boat builders used steam to bend wood for ships keels and such.

[@ailanifeather2320]

Just another euro guy walking over the Tribes of America

[@Ozarkprepper643]

Bent trees exist around the world not just in America. Back in the day of the Wooden Ships pre-bent trees were stronger and allowed quicker Shipbuilding. But no doubt bending for many types of construction took place. Never heard the Native American story part. There is about a two acres section on my Ranch that has purposely bent trees. Some are even tied in a loose knot. there are three in that area that are all about 3 -4 ft diameter. They all have other visible tree trunks showing that they were devoured by the larger tree. They are perhaps the most interesting. if they should ever come down for any reason it will be interesting to see what the grain inside looks like. But they are White Oaks. and likely have a good hundred years left. Not sure Humanity does but.....

[@stevenrauschelbach5913]

Very interesting.

[@Liberty4Ever]

I've seen these strange trees in my many travels in Kentucky woods. I always assumed they arose from natural causes. It's easy to imagine a tree falling and bending a smaller sapling horizontal and it continued to grow that way, but the unrestrained end responded to phototropism and continued to grow vertically. Eventually, the dead fall tree decays away and only the bent tree remains. I couldn't help but wonder if people didn't cause some of these bent trees.

[@rancidpitts8243]

My first guess before viewing the video was that they were bent to those shapes by ship builder's. Wooden ships required many bent beams with the grain following the bend. Water proof adhesives came into being in the early part of the Twentieth Century lowering the need for bending saplings in the wooden boat industry. "Natural" bends are still desired in the custom wooden pleasure boat industry. It looks like I was mistaken here.

[@beverlybalius9303]

rancid pitts no.... Native Trail markers.

[@rancidpitts8243]

You are correct as the video shows. I was mistaken as I worked in a Boat Yard in High School and that was my exposure.

[@mitchbookey4930]

Interesting train of thought

[@dukecraig2402]

rancid pitts That's correct, I'm a former ship fitter and I have done a good bit of reading on old ship building and 90° bends like that were used for "knees" in ships.

[@timothylongmore7325]

I think that's a good theory. I sold larch flitch sawn lumber to a shipwright in main who told me there is a sawyer back home who specializes in bent butt logs to be used in exactly that fashion. As a child I also red of natives tieing knots in saplings , letting them grow then harvest them for war clubs. People alter trees for many different reasons. I found an "h" Tree about a month ago. Took photos. This tree wasn't more than 30 years old more or less. Nature also does freaky things too.

[@dexine4723]

Interesting. There are trees like this on the far side of my garden - they're not marker trees, but as saplings, they were cut and laid to grow into a hedge, along the top of a low stone bank that used to enclose the field beyond. That was probably a couple of centuries ago, from the size of the trees, some of which have grown upwards again in some bizarre shapes, with one having a stretch of thick, horizontal trunk that's almost like a seat. Just shows how humans can influence tree growth, with dramatic results even centuries later.

[@bigswift6118]

Very cool, I always wondered about the tree in my backyard. I live in Virginia and I have one. I’m going to check the woods around my house for more. Very cool, thank you for this video.

[@helenarusso]

Hello Big Swift how are you doing, nice to meet you here 😊

[@edaboodie6346]

If they had gotten straight to the point instead of dealing in vaguery and repeating nonsense, this video could have been 90 seconds. You can’t get the other 5 minutes back. You’re welcome.

[@mrebutuoy1979]

Sometimes life throws right angles at you

[@765respect]

I'm from San Antonio. There are a considerable amount of mesquites that are bent like this. My mother appreciated and loved them, so now do I. I always thought that is the way they grew. As a kid, I felt they needed swings on their bent limbs.

[@jamessmith4455]

I live in San Antonio too! Where abouts do you see these? I’ve never seen one before

[@angelinawisinger5565]

Same?!

[@musicauthority9939]

There is a tree in a park where I live, the trunk of the tree runs on the ground for about 8 to 10 feet. before it turns skyward. the reason this tree is like that, is because when it was a sapling the wind blew it over. and it grew like that, if someone would have propped it straight up it would grown normally.

[@phoenixkali]

I’ve seen trees like this in Lough area in Ireland. Can’t imagine many native Americans hanging about there!

[@michaeladams3500]

sometimes when a tree falls down it takes a sapling with them. The sapling wants to grow up so it reaches for the sky. A decade or so later the old tree rots away but by that time the sapling has grown and become strong. I have also made trees' like these at various places I frequented as I grew up. Now, I can go back to these places and admire "my" tree.