Saskatchewan's mysterious grove of crooked trees beguiles visitors

Just off a secluded Saskatchewan grid road is a botanical wonder that draws people from far and wide.

“The crooked trees are aspen trees and an aspen grove that grows mangled and crooked in this little bluff. Across the road, the trees are perfectly fine,” Harlene Simmonds, the landowner explained to CTV News.

Simmond’s family owns the land that the crooked trees sit on, which is about 15 minutes from the town of Hafford.

She estimates they get hundreds of visitors in the summer, although they don’t officially keep track.

What all those people come to see is the twists and turns of the unique aspen trees, which the Rural Municipality of Redberry's website says are 70 years old.

However, according to one expert, they could be much older.

“They could be 100 years old for all we know,” Bob Bors from the University of Saskatchewan told CTV News.

Bors is an associate professor in the university's horticultural department.

“It’s a weird genetic anomaly,” he says.

The mysterious trees piqued the interest of a group of Manitoba researchers about 20 years ago.

Bors says they observed that when the trees are young, they grow straight.

“Then they started to curve, and as they curved, they curved too far where they’re not getting light,” he says.

That causes the branch to die and another bud becomes dominant and goes another direction.

Bors admits the wilder theories are fun too.

“They used to have fun signs at that location, but they took them down. They said some people think a flying saucer landed here or aliens peed on it.”

While standing in the grove on a sunny summer day, Simmonds points out the lack of sounds coming from the immediate area. Also, she says cows in the area don’t come near the grove.

“If you stand still you hear the trees rustling, but you don’t hear birds chirping,” she explained.

There are no birds' nests, according to Simmonds, which is the type of detail that stokes the more unusual theories some people have about the grove: that it's haunted or is home to supernatural powers.

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A boardwalk that allowed easy passage through the grove, as well as the entire area, was looked after by a group from the nearby town of Hafford, but they disbanded because of lack of funds.

Trees have been damaged by vandals, according to the landowner. The boardwalk is crumbling – causing a potential safety hazard.

“We’re looking for money to keep it up, otherwise there will be 'no trespassing' signs.”

She hopes it doesn’t have to shut down but can’t guarantee they will have the manpower or funding to keep the area open indefinitely.