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"People refer to this location a mysterious vortex of Transylvania," explains an experienced guide, the air from his lungs producing puffs of condensation in the chilly dusk atmosphere. "So many individuals have disappeared here, some say it's a portal to a different realm." Marius is escorting a traveler on a nocturnal tour through frequently labeled as the world's most haunted woodland: Hoia-Baciu, a square mile of ancient local woods on the edges of the Romanian city of Cluj-Napoca.

Centuries of Mystery

Accounts of unusual events here go back hundreds of years – this woodland is called after a regional herder who is believed to have disappeared in the far-off times, together with his entire flock. But Hoia-Baciu achieved worldwide fame in 1968, when a military technician known as Emil Barnea took a picture of what he claimed was a UFO hovering above a circular clearing in the centre of the forest.

Numerous entered this place and failed to return. But don't worry," he adds, turning to his guest with a smirk. "Our guided walks have a 100% return rate."

In the time after, Hoia-Baciu has brought in yoga practitioners, shamans, UFO researchers and supernatural researchers from across the world, eager to feel the strange energies said to echo through the forest.

Current Risks

Although it is a top global pilgrimage sites for supernatural fans, this woodland is facing danger. The outlying areas of Cluj-Napoca – a modern tech hub of a population exceeding 400,000, known as the Silicon Valley of the region – are advancing, and construction companies are campaigning for approval to clear the trees to erect housing complexes.

Barring a limited section home to area-specific Mediterranean oak trees, the grove is not officially protected, but Marius is confident that the initiative he helped establish – a dedicated preservation group – will assist in altering this, encouraging the local administrators to appreciate the forest's value as a tourist attraction.

Chilling Events

When small sticks and fall foliage split and rustle beneath their footwear, Marius recounts some of the folk tales and alleged supernatural events here.

• A well-known account describes a little girl vanishing during a group gathering, later to return five years later with complete amnesia of the events, showing no signs of aging a day, her garments shy of the tiniest bit of dust.
• Frequent accounts detail smartphones and camera equipment unexpectedly failing on stepping into the forest.
• Reactions include full-blown dread to states of ecstasy.
• Some people state observing unusual marks on their skin, perceiving disembodied whispers through the trees, or experience fingers clutching them, even when convinced they're by themselves.

Scientific Investigations

Despite several of the tales may be hard to prove, numerous elements visibly present that is certainly unusual. Throughout the area are trees whose bases are warped and gnarled into unusual forms.

Various suggestions have been suggested to explain the abnormal growth: that hurricane winds could have altered the growth, or typically increased radiation levels in the ground explain their crooked growth.

But scientific investigations have found no satisfactory evidence.

The Notorious Meadow

The expert's tours enable guests to take part in a modest investigation of their own. When nearing the meadow in the forest where Barnea captured his famous UFO pictures, he passes the traveler an electromagnetic field detector which detects EMF readings.

"We're stepping into the most powerful section of the forest," he comments. "See what you can find."

The trees immediately cease as they step into a flawless round. The sole vegetation is the trimmed turf beneath our feet; it's obvious that it's naturally occurring, and seems that this bizarre meadow is natural, not the result of people.

Between Reality and Imagination

This part of Romania is a location which fuels fantasy, where the border is unclear between fact and folklore. In countryside villages belief persists in strigoi ("screamers") – otherworldly, appearance-altering creatures, who return from burial sites to haunt regional populations.

The famous author's well-known character Dracula is always connected with Transylvania, and the historic stronghold – a Saxon monolith situated on a stone formation in the Carpathian Mountains – is heavily promoted as "the vampire's home".

But even folklore-rich Transylvania – literally, "the place beyond the forest" – feels real and understandable compared to these eerie woods, which give the impression of being, for factors nuclear, climatic or entirely legendary, a nexus for human imaginative power.

"In Hoia-Baciu," the guide says, "the boundary between fact and fiction is extremely fine."