This seems to be the cause of the strangely shaped trees that can be seen all over the United States. Many of them have unusual trunk bends or other noticeable kinks that make them impossible for onlookers to ignore.

Well, according to the American Forests website:

“There are peculiarly shaped trees all over the United States. Their trunks bend at strange angles or have peculiar kinks in them. The majority of these trees are in fact landmarks that assisted native people in finding their way, even though some of them may just be oddities of the natural world.

“To make permanent trail markers, Native Americans would bend young trees. These markers would indicate safe routes through rugged terrain and direct travelers to food, water, or other significant locations. The trees have grown over time, maintaining their original shape, but as modern life has sprung up around them, their purpose has all but vanished.

To distinguish trees with artificial kinks from those that just grew at unusual angles according to Mother Nature’s design, the Native Americans apparently had a habit of adding a noticeable nose, or notch, protruding at the end of the bend (as seen in the figure below).

According to sources, another minor characteristic that distinguishes man-made bent trees is that they have scars where straps were placed during the tree’s early years (a procedure that is a component of bending).

Although their numbers are still declining due to deforestation, many of the bent trees that remain today are believed to be at least 150–200 years old.