Treely romantic: two trees locked in a lovers’ embrace
Visitors to Poland’s Marusian Lake District can find them standing in the forest, locked in a tight embrace: an oak and a pine, which are known as the “couple in love” (zakochana para). From a distance, they might seem like two ordinary trees, similar to the others around them. Closer inspection reveals a scene of human-like intimacy – a passionate sculpture created by nature.
About 18 metres tall and 27.5 centimetres thick, the pine has been around for 250 years or so. The oak, which is a similar height but slimmer, is around 90 years younger. Though its trunk starts slightly to the side of the pine’s, it bends towards the other tree – much like how a person might lean towards their lover. The oak’s branches reach around the pine, enveloping it in a tender embrace.
The pair are a natural monument, protected by law. In Poland, the term refers to “individual creatures of animate and inanimate nature or their concentration of a special natural, scientific, cultural, historical or landscape value and distinguished by individual features”. It encompasses trees, springs, waterfalls, rocks and ravines, among other natural features. There are over 35,000 of these natural monuments in Poland. Most of them are individual trees, which are distinguished by their size or other special features.
The “couple in love” is located by the road from the River Krutynia to Lake Mokre in Poland’s Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, which is known for its lakes. A green plaque beside them notes that they are a natural monument and includes details on the trees’ height, thickness, age and names in Polish and Latin.