I recently went to Chapel Rock at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore and took the first photo. The tree is pretty much on its own little island, and its roots are extending out to the main landmass. The second picture isn't mine, but it gives a better view of how far its roots are traveling.
I've never seen a tree with roots like this in my life, and I'm wondering how this would occur naturally.
by superoishii
14 Comments
Life finds a way
There was most likely a land bridge connecting that formation to the main chunk of land until a storm came through and caused it to erode away. All the smaller roots died off and the big ones remained.
Time
Because the trees loved each other so over the years they stretched out their roots so that they could be in contact forever.
It’s a tale as old as time!
If this is the Pictures Rocks I’m thinking of it’s on Lake Superior. That region of the lake is home to sandstone, which erodes faster than your average rock. Couple it with that lake’s ability to produce crazy waves when the Nor’easters blow through, and you get this gorgeous ever changing landscape literally held together by those very roots. Now if you go a little further west the stone changes to conglomerate and basalt formations which are an equally awesome but totally different cliff face, also battered by those same storms. There the trees can barely get a purchase in the harder rocks, so you get tiny bonsai style formations permanently bent by the wind and the waves.
they grow and reach and feel their way with much going on en route.
Kinda hard to go through the stone so it fans out. And if people don’t mess with it for a few years it will look good
One of the biggest issues for bristlecone pines is the ground they are growing from just eroding away from underneath them
i loved hiking pictured rocks.
They don’t want the separation or divorce.
u/thorwardell
Erosion
Nature. She does amazing things.
Depends on the tree, I think in most cases the roots were covered by land and now arent