Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Macchu Picchu
Peru • 10 days, 9 nights
Peru: Machu Picchu & the Last Incan Bridges
from
Central Asia yurt night stars
Uzbekistan • 15 days, 14 nights
Central Asia Road Trip: Backroads & Bazaars
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Saquon Barkley Plaque
Kirkkasik Bedesten inside
Kirkkasik Bedesten
Someshwar Temple
Someshwar Temple
Grilled cheese and tomato soup are soulmates.
The Palisades Restaurant
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
A skeleton on display contemplating its own mortality.
Kid Mai Death Awareness Cafe
This classic London pub has a surprising history behind it.
John Snow
The beef, Guinness, and oyster pie sports a rich, flaky crust.
The Guinea
Welcome to one of the only floating pubs in the world.
Tamesis Dock
This may be the oldest pie in the world.
St Helens 'Oldest Pie' at The Turks Head
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Decoy’s wines reflect the terroir of California.
How a Wooden Duck Migrated From the California Wetlands to a Wine Label
10 days ago
There’s more to the French capital than the Eiffel Tower.
Dear Atlas: What Are Some Non-Touristy Things to Do in Paris?
14 days ago
The plants around Liz Dauncey in this photo are not poisonous, but many common garden and houseplants are.
Are Some of Your Favorite Houseplants Poisonous? AO Wants to Know.
20 days ago
“There may be a collective sense of a dark loneliness,” Dahl says, referring to Norway’s natural landscape.
In Norway, Easter Means Tucking Into Crime Stories
20 days ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Poland Gryfino Crooked Forest

Crooked Forest

Countless stories attempt to explain Poland's mysterious J-shaped trees.

Gryfino, Poland

Added By
ser flac
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
Crooked Forest (krzywy las)   ivabalk
Crooked Forest (krzywy las)   ivabalk
Gryfino Forest   Artur Strzelczyk on Wikipedia
Crooked Forest in Nowe Czarnowo   Kenji
Crooked Forest (Krzywy Las)   Kalasancjusz
Gryfino Forest   Kengi on Wikipedia
Crooked Forest   Zavijava2
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Blending science fiction and ecological abnormality, a group of 400 trees in Poland's Krzywy Las or "the Crooked Forest," are mysteriously and identically bent. Hovering just inches above the ground, the trees dramatically take a sharp turn toward the sky, rounding into little J shapes as they make their ascent.

There is no definitive answer for these pines' bizarre shape, and the stories about them run the gamut from the practical to the bizarre. The most grounded explanation among those seeking answers is that the trees may have simply been buried beneath a terrible snowstorm in their infancy. Others still believe the gravitational pull in that area has morphed their trunks.

The most intriguing explanation suggests that local foresters manipulated the trees after planting them in 1925-1928. Apparently, the foresters hoped to make furniture from the bent shapes and intervened when the trees were only 10 years old. Refusing to let the trees grow upwards, the foresters severely stunted their growth. Likely abandoning their efforts after the start of WWII in 1939, the foresters left a lasting ecological mark 80 years later.

Every tree in the Crooked Forest has the same haunting bend, but despite bent beginnings, they have all grown to be tall and seemingly unhampered by their C-shape curves. Trees are resilient, and so they continued to thrive, relying on the one branch they had left to take over complete function and grow upwards. Whatever damage occurred to one tree must have happened to them all because they remain uniform in deformity.

Related Tags

Natural Wonders Forests Trees Ecosystems Nature Plants

Know Before You Go

The easiest way to get to the Crooked Forest is by taking a taxi or bus line 1 from Gryfino.

Community Contributors

Added By

serflac

Edited By

JackBlades, MVX, EricGrundhauser, ThomasSchneider62...

  • JackBlades
  • MVX
  • EricGrundhauser
  • ThomasSchneider62
  • Meg

Published

April 9, 2013

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://laughterizer.weebly.com/1/post/2011/7/polands-mysterious-crooked-forest.html
  • http://news.discovery.com/earth/polands-crooked-forest-mystery-110628.html
Crooked Forest
Gryfino
Poland
53.214163, 14.475731

Nearby Places

Schiffshebewerk Niederfinow

Niederfinow, Germany

miles away

Signpost Park

Witnica, Poland

miles away

Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster Traffic Signs

Templin, Germany

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Poland

Poland

Europe

Places 201
Stories 14

Nearby Places

Schiffshebewerk Niederfinow

Niederfinow, Germany

miles away

Signpost Park

Witnica, Poland

miles away

Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster Traffic Signs

Templin, Germany

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Poland

Poland

Europe

Places 201
Stories 14

Related Stories and Lists

Get Lost in These Real-World Fairy Tale Landscapes

forests

By Meg Neal

8 Real-World Forests That Look Like They Belong in a Fantasy Novel

forests

By Eric Grundhauser

Related Places

  • The Enchanted Forest

    Whitethorn, California

    Enchanted Forest

    A grove of "candelabra redwoods" deep in California's Lost Coast.

  • The ghost forest in the fog.

    Neskowin, Oregon

    Neskowin Ghost Forest

    The eerie remnants of an ancient forest were hidden under the sand for centuries.

  • The Tambopata Research Center

    Tambopata, Peru

    Tambopata Research Center

    One of the most remote lodges in the Amazon offers rare wildlife encounters and undisturbed views of the Peruvian rainforest.

  • A small waterfall in the Gourgue d’Asque

    Asque, France

    Gourgue d'Asque

    A French valley with forests so lush it was nicknamed "the Small Amazonia of the Pyrenees."

  • Rybachiy, Russia

    Dancing Forest

    The reason for the strange contortions in the trunks of these "drunken" pine trees in Russia is still a mystery.

  • Cape Flattery

    Neah Bay, Washington

    Cape Flattery

    At the most northwestern point of the contiguous United States lies a trail leading through an ancient forest to stunning cliff-side vistas and massive oceanside caves.

  • Green arch in Fragas do Eume.

    Cabanas, Spain

    Fragas do Eume

    This enchanting natural park is a magical example of a temperate rainforest in Europe.

  • Flora, Mississippi

    Mississippi Petrified Forest

    A preserved stretch of ancient fossilized trees with an impressive gem collection to boot.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.