BY: JESSICA BEUKER

If you’re taking a stroll outside the village of Nowe Czarnowo in Western Poland, you may come across a grove of oddly shaped pine trees. Nearly 400 trees are all bent near the base at 90 degrees, creating a unique, curvy, J-shape. This strange and mysterious woodland is known as the Crooked Forest.

Outside the village of Nowe Czarnowo in Western Poland is a section of 400 trees that are bent at 90 degrees at their base to make a J-shape. This area is known as the Crooked Forest.

The Crooked Forest has remained a mystery for over 80 years. There are many theories surrounding the cause of their interesting curvature.

According to IFLScience, one theory is that heavy snow may have flattened the trees for an extended period of time when they were saplings. This would be capable of permanently misshaping the trees – if there was still a layer of snow sitting on them while they experienced a growth spurt in the springtime.

One theory to explain this phenomenon is that heavy snow flattened the saplings, which followed by a growth spurt, could have given the trees their shape.

What’s interesting is that the Crooked Forest is enveloped by a larger forest of straight growing pines. Since these surrounding trees were not affected, the snow theory seems unlikely.

Another theory is that fluctuations in gravitational forces are responsible for the bending, but there is no evidence to support this.

A second theory states that gravitational forces gave the trees their shape, but surrounding straight trees have been unaffected.

The most widely agreed upon theory is that the trees were shaped that way on purpose by human hands and tools, most likely in the 1930s when they were first planted. The purpose or motive is still debated, but one idea is that the trees, with their curved shape, would be useful in boat or furniture making. This seems especially likely since all of the trees are bent in the exact same direction.

While the exact cause or purpose of the trees shape may forever remain a mystery, the Crooked Forest is nonetheless a strange and beautiful pocket of the world.

The most popular theory is that the trees were given their shape by human tools. Whatever the reason for their odd shape, the Crooked Forest is a strange and beautiful place to visit.

Image sources: foreignersinpoland.com,  blogspot.ca,  raredelights.com,  enkivillage.com,  wordpress.com