Now that summer is on its way back, you can expect some more outdoor activities to come back as well. For me and my father, it was always camping. We would have this ‘boy’s night out’ and do boys stuff. This is something that I have the greatest memories of. It was not only to set up camp, there was an entire process with my father explaining what each thing was for.
This was the time when all fathers were the source of knowledge. It was a wonderful time. We all wanted to be like our father because they knew how to do everything. If you had a question about life, nature or homework, your father was the source of answers. Today, kids just Google stuff. The father can try to answer something, but he must be sure because he doesn’t want to get embarrassed by a 5-year-old and a tablet.
Times have surely changed, but outdoor exploration has been made easier. There are many more things that enable more people to do it. If you go before summer hits you, then the cooler temperatures will allow you to spend more time outdoors. Especially without all those mosquitoes that you used to get way back when. There is also more improved camping gear like hiking boots that have anti-slip strips. They can certainly save you from a couple of bruises.
If you are planning to camp in a forest, there are a few things you should know if you happen to run across bent trees. American Forests has a friendly website that warns hikers about the meaning of bent trees in the area. If you come across one, this will typically indicate the presence of a Native American trail. The trees were purposely bent by Native Americans in the region, so they would grow in this unique form. They wanted it to be a permanent feature.
This unusual method of marking a trail would ensure that the path would be marked permanently. Back in the day, they needed to know and tell each other where they could find food and water as well as indicate the presence of important landmarks. One important thing to note is that not all bent trees can be attributed to Native Americans.
There will be plenty of other times where Mother Nature created these unique shapes. But a good indicator to know if it was Native Americans or not is following the notes in the following video. You won’t regret you did!
