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"They call this location a mysterious vortex of Transylvania," remarks a tour guide, his exhalation producing clouds of condensation in the chilly evening air. "Numerous individuals have gone missing here, it's thought it's an entrance to a parallel world." This expert is leading a visitor on a evening stroll through commonly known as the globe's spookiest forest: Hoia-Baciu, a section spanning 640 acres of old-growth local woods on the outskirts of the Transylvanian city of Cluj-Napoca.

A Long History of the Unexplained

Accounts of strange happenings here extend back centuries – the grove is named after a regional herder who is believed to have disappeared in the distant past, along with 200 of his sheep. But Hoia-Baciu gained international attention in 1968, when a military technician named Emil Barnea captured on film what he claimed was a UFO suspended above a round opening in the centre of the forest.

Countless ventured inside and never came out. But rest assured," he states, facing the traveler with a smirk. "Our excursions have a 100% return rate."

In the years that followed, Hoia-Baciu has attracted yogis, spiritual healers, ufologists and ghost hunters from around the globe, interested in encountering the strange energies reported to reverberate through the forest.

Contemporary Dangers

It may be among the planet's leading hotspots for paranormal enthusiasts, the grove is under threat. The western districts of Cluj-Napoca – a contemporary technology center of more than 400,000 people, described as the Silicon Valley of the region – are encroaching, and developers are advocating for authorization to remove the forest to build apartment blocks.

Barring a limited section containing regionally uncommon oak varieties, the forest is not officially protected, but Marius believes that the initiative he co-founded – the Hoia-Baciu Project – will help to change that, persuading the local administrators to recognise the forest's importance as a visitor destination.

Chilling Events

While branches and seasonal debris break and crackle beneath their boots, the guide tells some of the traditional stories and alleged paranormal happenings here.

• One famous story describes a young child going missing during a family picnic, later to reappear half a decade later with no recollection of what had happened, without aging a single day, her garments without the slightest speck of dust.
• Frequent accounts detail smartphones and camera equipment inexplicably shutting down on venturing inside.
• Reactions include absolute fear to feelings of joy.
• Certain individuals state seeing unusual marks on their skin, perceiving disembodied whispers through the trees, or experience palms pushing them, despite being sure they are alone.

Study Attempts

Although numerous of the accounts may be impossible to confirm, numerous elements before my eyes that is undeniably strange. Throughout the area are plants whose stems are bent and twisted into unusual forms.

Different theories have been proposed to account for the misshapen plants: strong gales could have shaped the young trees, or typically increased radiation levels in the earth cause their unusual development.

But formal examinations have discovered no satisfactory evidence.

The Famous Clearing

Marius's excursions allow guests to take part in a modest investigation of their own. When nearing the opening in the woods where Barnea took his renowned UFO pictures, he passes the traveler an electromagnetic field detector which measures energy patterns.

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

The vegetation suddenly stop dead as they step into a flawless round. The only greenery is the short grass beneath their shoes; it's apparent that it's naturally occurring, and appears that this strange clearing is natural, not the creation of people.

Fact Versus Fiction

The broader region is a location which fuels fantasy, where the division is indistinct between reality and legend. In rural Romanian communities faith continues in strigoi ("screamers") – otherworldly, form-changing bloodsuckers, who emerge from tombs to terrorise local communities.

The novelist's famous fictional vampire is forever associated with Transylvania, and the legendary fortress – a medieval building located on a rocky outcrop in the Carpathian Mountains – is keenly marketed as "the count's residence".

But including myth-shrouded Transylvania – actually, "the place beyond the forest" – feels real and understandable versus the haunted grove, which appear to be, for causes nuclear, climatic or entirely legendary, a center for human imaginative power.

"Inside these woods," Marius comments, "the line between truth and fantasy is extremely fine."