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"People refer to this location a mysterious vortex of Transylvania," explains a local guide, his exhalation creating puffs of mist in the cold evening air. "Numerous visitors have disappeared here, it's thought it's a portal to another dimension." This expert is guiding a visitor on a nocturnal tour through what is often described as the planet's most ghostly forest: Hoia-Baciu, a section spanning 640 acres of primeval native woodland on the outskirts of the metropolis of Cluj-Napoca.

A Long History of the Unexplained

Reports of unusual events here extend back centuries – this woodland is titled for a area shepherd who is reportedly went missing in the long ago, together with his entire flock. But Hoia-Baciu achieved international attention in 1968, when a military technician named Emil Barnea took a picture of what he reported as a unidentified flying object floating above a round opening in the middle of the forest.

Many came in here and vanished without trace. But rest assured," he continues, facing the visitor with a smile. "Our tours have a flawless completion rate."

In the decades since, Hoia-Baciu has attracted yoga practitioners, traditional medicine people, ufologists and ghost hunters from around the globe, eager to feel the mysterious powers reported to reverberate through the forest.

Modern Threats

It may be a top global destinations for lovers of the paranormal, the grove is facing danger. The western suburbs of Cluj-Napoca – a modern tech hub of more than 400,000 people, described as the Silicon Valley of the region – are expanding, and developers are pushing for authorization to remove the forest to build apartment blocks.

Except for a few hectares home to area-specific specific tree species, this woodland is not officially protected, but the guide believes that the organization he helped establish – the Hoia-Baciu Project – will help to change that, persuading the authorities to appreciate the forest's importance as a visitor destination.

Eerie Encounters

While branches and seasonal debris split and rustle beneath their footwear, Marius describes numerous traditional stories and reported paranormal happenings here.

• One famous story tells of a young child going missing during a family outing, then to return five years later with no recollection of what had happened, without aging a moment, her garments shy of the smallest trace of soil.
• Frequent accounts detail smartphones and camera equipment inexplicably shutting down on venturing inside.
• Emotional responses range from full-blown dread to moments of euphoria.
• Some people state observing strange rashes on their bodies, hearing ghostly voices through the trees, or feel palms pushing them, although sure they are alone.

Study Attempts

Despite several of the tales may be impossible to confirm, there is much clearly observable that is undeniably strange. Throughout the area are plants whose trunks are bent and twisted into fantastical shapes.

Various suggestions have been suggested to account for the deformed trees: powerful storms could have altered the growth, or inherently elevated radiation levels in the earth cause their crooked growth.

But scientific investigations have turned up insufficient proof.

The Legendary Opening

Marius's tours permit visitors to engage in a little scientific inquiry of their own. When nearing the clearing in the forest where Barnea captured his renowned UFO pictures, he hands the visitor an ghost-hunting device which registers EMF readings.

"We're stepping into the most active part of the forest," he says. "See what you can find."

The trees abruptly end as the group enters into a flawless round. The single plant life is the trimmed turf beneath their shoes; it's clear that it's not maintained, and looks that this bizarre meadow is natural, not the work of human hands.

Between Reality and Imagination

Transylvania generally is a location which inspires creativity, where the border is blurred between truth and myth. In countryside villages superstition remains in strigoi ("screamers") – supernatural, form-changing bloodsuckers, who emerge from tombs to frighten regional populations.

Bram Stoker's renowned vampire Count Dracula is always connected with Transylvania, and the legendary fortress – a Saxon monolith perched on a rocky outcrop in the Carpathian Mountains – is actively advertised as "Dracula's Castle".

But even legend-filled Transylvania – literally, "the land past the woods" – feels tangible and comprehensible in contrast to these eerie woods, which give the impression of being, for factors nuclear, atmospheric or entirely legendary, a center for human imaginative power.

"Inside these woods," Marius states, "the line between truth and fantasy is very thin."