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"Locals dub this spot an enigmatic zone of Transylvania," remarks a local guide, his breath creating puffs of condensation in the cold night air. "Countless visitors have disappeared here, many believe it's an entrance to a different realm." The guide is leading a visitor on a evening stroll through frequently labeled as the planet's most ghostly forest: Hoia-Baciu, a section spanning 640 acres of old-growth native woodland on the edges of the Transylvanian city of Cluj-Napoca.

Hundreds of Years of Enigma

Accounts of unusual events here date back centuries – the grove is titled for a area shepherd who is said to have vanished in the distant past, together with his entire flock. But Hoia-Baciu achieved worldwide fame in 1968, when an army specialist known as Emil Barnea photographed what he reported as a flying saucer hovering above a oval meadow in the middle of the forest.

Many came in here and vanished without trace. But rest assured," he continues, facing the visitor with a smirk. "Our tours have a perfect safety record."

In the time after, Hoia-Baciu has brought in yoga practitioners, shamans, ufologists and supernatural researchers from around the globe, interested in encountering the unusual forces said to echo through the forest.

Current Risks

Despite being among the planet's leading hotspots for supernatural fans, this woodland is at risk. The western suburbs of Cluj-Napoca – a modern tech hub of more than 400,000 people, described as the tech capital of Eastern Europe – are encroaching, and construction companies are pushing for approval to remove the forest to construct residential buildings.

Except for a small area housing area-specific Mediterranean oak trees, the grove is not officially protected, but the guide believes that the organization he helped establish – the Hoia-Baciu Project – will assist in altering this, motivating the government officials to acknowledge the forest's value as a visitor destination.

Spooky Experiences

While branches and seasonal debris break and crackle beneath their boots, Marius describes numerous folk tales and reported supernatural events here.

• A popular tale tells of a young child vanishing during a group gathering, then to return after five years with no memory of the events, without aging a moment, her garments lacking the slightest speck of dirt.
• Frequent accounts explain smartphones and photography gear unexpectedly failing on venturing inside.
• Reactions range from absolute fear to moments of euphoria.
• Various visitors state observing strange rashes on their bodies, perceiving unseen murmurs through the trees, or feel hands grabbing them, although certain nobody is nearby.

Scientific Investigations

Although numerous of the stories may be impossible to confirm, numerous elements before my eyes that is definitely bizarre. Everywhere you look are trees whose stems are bent and twisted into unusual forms.

Various suggestions have been given to account for the deformed trees: that hurricane winds could have bent the saplings, or naturally high radioactivity in the earth cause their unusual development.

But formal examinations have found inconclusive results.

The Legendary Opening

Marius's walks allow participants to engage in a little scientific inquiry of their own. As we approach the meadow in the woods where Barnea captured his famous UFO photographs, he passes the visitor an electromagnetic field detector which measures EMF readings.

"We're entering the most powerful area of the forest," he comments. "Try to detect something."

The plants immediately cease as we emerge into a perfect circle. The only greenery is the low vegetation beneath the ground; it's clear that it's naturally occurring, and seems that this bizarre meadow is wild, not the creation of landscaping.

Between Reality and Imagination

This part of Romania is a place which inspires creativity, where the line is indistinct between reality and legend. In countryside villages faith continues in strigoi ("screamers") – otherworldly, form-changing bloodsuckers, who rise from their graves to frighten regional populations.

Bram Stoker's well-known fictional vampire is forever associated with Transylvania, and the historic stronghold – a medieval building situated on a rocky outcrop in the mountain range – is heavily promoted as "Dracula's Castle".

But including legend-filled Transylvania – truly, "the land past the woods" – appears solid and predictable compared to the haunted grove, which appear to be, for causes radioactive, climatic or simply folkloric, a center for human imaginative power.

"Within this forest," Marius states, "the line between fact and fiction is extremely fine."