Black Forest has many prayer trees that were culturally modified by the Ute people, who had a special relationship with the trees. The band that lived in Black Forest eventually moved to Southern Colorado, but the trees they modified continue to be a part of the landscape.Sister Jan Ginzkey, Order of St. Benedict, who is with the Sisters of Benet Hill Monastery, said she became interested in learning about the trees in the late 1990s, when a lady, who wanted to write a book about the trees, asked if she could walk the property and look for the trees. Together, they identified eight culturally modified trees on the Benet Hill property.There are several different types of modified trees, but they are all considered prayer trees, she said. The medicine man or woman would select a tree, pray to the Great Spirit and the tree, and ask permission to modify it. Ginzkey said the process to culturally modify a tree started when it was small and pliable. They would tie a rope, which was probably made of yucca, or a piece of leather around the area they wanted to start modifying and shaping. A family or clan would then be responsible for the care of that tree, which was passed on from generation to generation, Ginzkey said. Each year, the Ute would come back during their migration and tend to the tree, by either tightening the rope or putting on a new one so the modification would continue.Trees are identified as marker, burial, solstice/equinox, vortex and medicine to mention a few, said Ginzkey, who described how to distinguish each tree and its purpose.For example, marker trees have a 30-degree angle and point to a landmark or destination that was important information for future generations. A burial tree has two distinct 90-degree angles, created in memory of a chief, a medicine person or someone important.The solstice/equinox tree was used to celebrate and acknowledge the changing of the seasons. Two trees were grafted together, leaving an opening designed specifically for the sun to shine through on the day of the solstice/equinox.Ginzkey said the Utes were in tune with the earth, and created the vortex tree to mark a spot of energy. The tree was modified, so that the grain on the trees went in two different directions.The medicine tree can be identified by the scarring on the tree, where the inner bark was used to make teas, compresses and nourishment. Ginzkey also mentioned a cat face tree, which they donít have on their property, but it is formed by burning off the top layers of bark to reveal the spirit of the tree underneath.The cat face tree does exist on the property of the La Foret Conference & Retreat Center, which also hosts several other prayer trees. Larry McCulloch, executive director, said they also have identified burial, marker and medicine trees on the property. John Wesley Anderson, author of ìUte Indian Prayer Trees of the Pikes Peak Region,î identified one of the medicine trees, he said. One of the burial trees on the property fell during the bomb cyclone storm in March, McCulloch said.Ginzkey has spent many hours researching the trees, the Ute nation and their practices. The Sisters of Benet Hill Monastery is also one of the charter members for NASTP, the Association for Native American Sacred Tree and Places. ìThe idea is for people to recognize and appreciate the culture of the Utes and what we still have, because the trees are living artifacts of the Ute nation,î Ginzkey said.
