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"People refer to this location the Bermuda Triangle of Transylvania," remarks an experienced guide, his breath creating puffs of vapor in the cold evening air. "Countless people have vanished here, it's thought it's an entrance to another dimension." Marius is guiding a guest on a nocturnal tour through frequently labeled as the globe's spookiest forest: Hoia-Baciu, a section spanning 640 acres of old-growth local woods on the edges of the Romanian city of Cluj-Napoca.

A Long History of the Unexplained

Reports of bizarre occurrences here extend back hundreds of years – the grove is called after a regional herder who is reportedly went missing in the long ago, accompanied by two hundred animals. But Hoia-Baciu achieved global recognition in 1968, when an army specialist 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.

Numerous entered this place and failed to return. But don't worry," he adds, addressing the traveler with a smile. "Our excursions have a perfect safety record."

In the years that followed, Hoia-Baciu has attracted yogis, spiritual healers, ufologists and supernatural researchers from across the world, eager to feel the strange energies reported to reverberate through the forest.

Contemporary Dangers

It may be among the planet's leading destinations for lovers of the paranormal, the forest is at risk. The western districts of Cluj-Napoca – a modern tech hub of a population exceeding 400,000, called the Silicon Valley of the region – are encroaching, and real estate firms are pushing for permission to clear the trees to build apartment blocks.

Aside from a limited section home to locally rare specific tree species, the grove is not officially protected, but Marius is confident that the initiative he helped establish – a dedicated preservation group – will contribute to improving the situation, persuading the local administrators to acknowledge the forest's importance as a travel hotspot.

Eerie Encounters

When small sticks and fall foliage break and crackle beneath their shoes, Marius tells various local legends and reported supernatural events here.

• A well-known account describes a little girl vanishing during a family picnic, only to reappear five years later with no memory of her experience, having not aged a moment, her clothes shy of the tiniest bit of soil.
• Frequent accounts describe smartphones and photography gear mysteriously turning off on venturing inside.
• Feelings vary from absolute fear to moments of euphoria.
• Various visitors report observing bizarre skin irritations on their arms, hearing unseen murmurs through the trees, or experience hands grabbing them, despite being sure they are alone.

Study Attempts

Although numerous of the tales may be unverifiable, numerous elements visibly present that is certainly unusual. Everywhere you look are trees whose trunks are warped and gnarled into unusual forms.

Multiple explanations have been given to account for the deformed trees: powerful storms could have altered the growth, or inherently elevated radiation levels in the earth explain their crooked growth.

But research studies have turned up no satisfactory evidence.

The Notorious Meadow

Marius's excursions allow visitors to engage in a modest investigation of their own. Upon reaching the clearing in the trees where Barnea photographed his renowned UFO pictures, he passes his guest an EMF meter which registers EMF readings.

"We're venturing into the most energetic section of the forest," he states. "See what you can find."

The vegetation immediately cease as they step into a perfect circle. The sole vegetation is the trimmed turf beneath their shoes; it's apparent that it's naturally occurring, and looks that this bizarre meadow is natural, not the creation of people.

Fact Versus Fiction

Transylvania generally is a area which fuels fantasy, where the border is unclear between truth and myth. In traditional settlements belief persists in strigoi ("screamers") – supernatural, appearance-altering vampires, who rise from their graves to haunt local communities.

Bram Stoker's well-known fictional vampire is forever associated with Transylvania, and the historic stronghold – an ancient structure located on a rocky outcrop in the Transylvanian Alps – is keenly marketed as "the vampire's home".

But despite legend-filled Transylvania – truly, "the place beyond the forest" – feels solid and predictable compared to these eerie woods, which appear to be, for causes related to radiation, climatic or simply folkloric, a nexus for creative energy.

"In Hoia-Baciu," Marius states, "the division between truth and fantasy is extremely fine."