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"Locals dub this place a mysterious vortex of Transylvania," states a local guide, his breath producing puffs of mist in the crisp dusk atmosphere. "Countless individuals have gone missing here, some say there's a gateway to another dimension." This expert is leading a visitor on a evening stroll through commonly known as the globe's spookiest grove: Hoia-Baciu, a square mile of primeval local woods on the fringes of the metropolis of Cluj-Napoca.

Hundreds of Years of Enigma

Accounts of unusual events here extend back centuries – this woodland is named after a area shepherd who is reportedly went missing in the distant past, together with his entire flock. But Hoia-Baciu came to international attention in 1968, when a defense worker called Emil Barnea captured on film what he reported as a UFO hovering above a circular clearing in the centre of the forest.

Many came in here and failed to return. But don't worry," he adds, facing the traveler with a smirk. "Our excursions have a flawless completion rate."

In the years that followed, Hoia-Baciu has attracted yogis, traditional medicine people, extraterrestrial investigators and ghost hunters from worldwide, curious to experience the strange energies said to echo through the forest.

Current Risks

It may be among the planet's leading hotspots for paranormal enthusiasts, the forest is at risk. The western districts of Cluj-Napoca – an innovative digital cluster of more than 400,000 people, called the innovation center of the region – are encroaching, and real estate firms are pushing for approval to cut down the woods to construct residential buildings.

Except for a few hectares housing regionally uncommon oak varieties, the grove is not officially protected, but Marius is confident that the organization he helped establish – a local conservation effort – will contribute to improving the situation, persuading the government officials to appreciate the forest's value as a travel hotspot.

Eerie Encounters

As twigs and seasonal debris snap and crunch beneath their shoes, the guide recounts various folk tales and alleged paranormal happenings here.

• A well-known account recounts a young child vanishing during a family outing, then to rematerialise half a decade later with no recollection of what had happened, without aging a single day, her garments without the tiniest bit of soil.
• Regular stories detail smartphones and camera equipment mysteriously turning off on entering the woods.
• Feelings include full-blown dread to states of ecstasy.
• Certain individuals state observing bizarre skin irritations on their skin, detecting unseen murmurs through the woodland, or feel palms pushing them, even when certain nobody is nearby.

Scientific Investigations

Although numerous of the tales may be impossible to confirm, there are many things visibly present that is undeniably strange. Throughout the area are plants whose stems are bent and twisted into unusual forms.

Different theories have been suggested to account for the misshapen plants: powerful storms could have bent the saplings, or typically increased radioactivity in the earth cause their crooked growth.

But formal examinations have discovered insufficient proof.

The Legendary Opening

Marius's tours allow participants to engage in a small-scale research of their own. Upon reaching the opening in the woods where Barnea photographed his well-known UFO photographs, he hands the visitor an EMF meter which registers energy patterns.

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

The vegetation immediately cease as they step into a flawless round. The sole vegetation is the trimmed turf beneath our feet; it's apparent that it's naturally occurring, and looks that this strange clearing is natural, not the work of landscaping.

The Blurred Line

The broader region is a location which fuels fantasy, where the division is indistinct between truth and myth. In rural Romanian communities belief persists in strigoi ("screamers") – otherworldly, appearance-altering vampires, who return from burial sites to terrorise local communities.

Bram Stoker's famous character Dracula is forever associated with Transylvania, and the historic stronghold – a medieval building situated on a cliff edge in the Transylvanian Alps – is heavily promoted as "the count's residence".

But despite folklore-rich Transylvania – actually, "the land past the woods" – appears tangible and comprehensible compared to the haunted grove, which seem to be, for reasons radioactive, atmospheric or purely mythical, a hub for fantasy projection.

"Inside these woods," Marius says, "the division between reality and imagination is extremely fine."