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There's a strange forest in Poland that's filled with crooked trees - and no one can explain how it got that way

There's a strange forest in Poland that's filled with crooked trees - and no one can explain how it got that way

There's a strange forest in Poland that's filled with crooked trees - and no one can explain how it got that way

There's a strange forest in Poland that's filled with crooked trees - and no one can explain how it got that way

There

"There is no final explanation yet," Schoönberger said. One theory, according to Schoönberger, is that the trees could have been planted specifically for growing bent wood to help construct things like ships, rocking chairs, and sleighs.

Others have speculated that the war had a significant impact on the landscape. "Some people speak about imprints of the war, since there was so much fighting between the Red Army and the Wehrmacht in this area," he said. "More obscure theories talk about witchcraft and energy fields ... but perhaps there will never be a final answer."

There's a strange forest in Poland that's filled with crooked trees - and no one can explain how it got that way

There

Schoönberger ventured to the Crooked Forest for the first time a few years ago. When he came back to photograph it this year, he got lucky with the weather conditions. During heavy fog is one of his favorite times to shoot.

For these images, he took a spontaneous 450-mile night ride from his home in Cologne, Germany to Poland.

There's a strange forest in Poland that's filled with crooked trees - and no one can explain how it got that way

There

It's Schoönberger's full-time job to travel across Europe and document its scenery. Over the past 12 months, he's driven more than 40,000 miles in Germany alone.

There's a strange forest in Poland that's filled with crooked trees - and no one can explain how it got that way

There

"I've seen many wild and strange forests throughout Europe," Schoönberger said. "But this grove in Poland is unique."

You can see more of his work on his website or Instagram.


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