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"Locals dub this spot an enigmatic zone of Transylvania," explains an experienced guide, the air from his lungs forming puffs of vapor in the chilly evening air. "Numerous individuals have gone missing here, some say it's an entrance to a parallel world." Marius is leading a traveler on a night walk through what is often described as the planet's most ghostly forest: Hoia-Baciu, a section spanning 640 acres of old-growth indigenous forest on the edges of the metropolis of Cluj-Napoca.

A Long History of the Unexplained

Stories of bizarre occurrences here go back a long time – the forest is titled for a area shepherd who is reportedly went missing in the long ago, along with 200 of his sheep. But Hoia-Baciu came to global recognition in 1968, when an army specialist named Emil Barnea captured on film what he described as a UFO suspended above a round opening in the centre of the forest.

Many came in here and failed to return. But no need to fear," he states, facing his guest with a grin. "Our guided walks have a 100% return rate."

In the years that followed, Hoia-Baciu has attracted yoga practitioners, shamans, ufologists and supernatural researchers from around the globe, interested in encountering the mysterious powers said to echo through the forest.

Contemporary Dangers

It may be one of the world's premier hotspots for paranormal enthusiasts, the grove is at risk. The western districts of Cluj-Napoca – a modern tech hub of a population exceeding 400,000, described as the innovation center of Eastern Europe – are expanding, and real estate firms are pushing for authorization to remove the forest to build apartment blocks.

Aside from a limited section housing regionally uncommon specific tree species, the grove is not officially protected, but the guide hopes that the initiative he co-founded – a local conservation effort – will contribute to improving the situation, persuading the authorities to acknowledge the forest's significance as a travel hotspot.

Eerie Encounters

As twigs and autumn leaves break and crackle beneath their boots, the guide tells various traditional stories and claimed supernatural events here.

• One famous story recounts a five-year-old girl disappearing during a family picnic, then to reappear half a decade later with complete amnesia of her experience, without aging a single day, her clothes shy of the slightest speck of soil.
• Regular stories detail cellphones and photography gear mysteriously turning off on venturing inside.
• Reactions range from absolute fear to states of ecstasy.
• Certain individuals claim noticing unusual marks on their skin, perceiving unseen murmurs through the forest, or experience palms pushing them, despite being convinced they're by themselves.

Research Efforts

Although numerous of the stories may be hard to prove, there are many things visibly present that is undeniably strange. Everywhere you look are plants whose trunks are curved and contorted into bizarre configurations.

Multiple explanations have been proposed to explain the abnormal growth: strong gales could have bent the saplings, or inherently elevated radiation levels in the earth account for their crooked growth.

But scientific investigations have found inconclusive results.

The Notorious Meadow

The expert's walks permit participants to participate in a modest investigation of their own. Upon reaching the clearing in the trees where Barnea took his famous UFO images, he hands the visitor an ghost-hunting device which measures electromagnetic fields.

"We're stepping into the most energetic part of the forest," he says. "Discover what's here."

The trees immediately cease as we emerge into a complete ring. The single plant life is the short grass beneath our feet; it's obvious that it's not maintained, and appears that this unusual opening is wild, not the work of people.

Fact Versus Fiction

Transylvania generally is a area which inspires creativity, where the line is blurred between truth and myth. In countryside villages superstition remains in strigoi ("screamers") – otherworldly, shapeshifting creatures, who rise from their graves to terrorise nearby villages.

The famous author's renowned fictional vampire is permanently linked with Transylvania, and Bran Castle – a Saxon monolith situated on a stone formation in the Transylvanian Alps – is heavily promoted as "the count's residence".

But despite folklore-rich Transylvania – actually, "the territory after the grove" – feels tangible and comprehensible compared to these eerie woods, which appear to be, for factors radioactive, environmental or entirely legendary, a nexus for creative energy.

"Inside these woods," Marius comments, "the boundary between reality and imagination is extremely fine."