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"They call this place an enigmatic zone of Transylvania," states a tour guide, his exhalation creating puffs of mist in the cold night air. "Numerous individuals have disappeared here, some say it's an entrance to another dimension." Marius is guiding a traveler on a nocturnal tour through frequently labeled as the globe's spookiest woodland: Hoia-Baciu, an area covering one square mile of primeval native woodland on the outskirts of the Transylvanian city of Cluj-Napoca.

Hundreds of Years of Enigma

Reports of bizarre occurrences here go back a long time – the forest is titled for a regional herder who is said to have vanished in the distant past, accompanied by 200 of his sheep. But Hoia-Baciu achieved global recognition in 1968, when a military technician named Emil Barnea captured on film what he reported as a unidentified flying object floating above a circular clearing in the heart of the forest.

Countless ventured inside and failed to return. But don't worry," he adds, addressing his guest with a smirk. "Our tours have a flawless completion rate."

In the years that followed, Hoia-Baciu has drawn yogis, traditional medicine people, extraterrestrial investigators and paranormal investigators from across the world, curious to experience the unusual forces believed to resonate through the forest.

Modern Threats

Despite being among the planet's leading pilgrimage sites for supernatural fans, this woodland is facing danger. The outlying areas of Cluj-Napoca – a modern tech hub of more than 400,000 people, known as the innovation center of the region – are expanding, and construction companies are pushing for authorization to remove the forest to construct residential buildings.

Barring a few hectares housing area-specific oak varieties, this woodland is without conservation status, but the guide hopes that the company he was instrumental in creating – the Hoia-Baciu Project – will assist in altering this, motivating the local administrators to recognise the forest's value as a tourist attraction.

Spooky Experiences

As twigs and fall foliage break and crackle beneath their shoes, Marius tells some of the local legends and alleged supernatural events here.

• A popular tale recounts a five-year-old girl disappearing during a family outing, then to reappear half a decade later with no memory of what had happened, having not aged a day, her attire shy of the tiniest bit of soil.
• Frequent accounts detail smartphones and camera equipment mysteriously turning off on entering the woods.
• Feelings include absolute fear to states of ecstasy.
• Various visitors report noticing unusual marks on their skin, perceiving disembodied whispers through the trees, or experience palms pushing them, despite being convinced they're by themselves.

Study Attempts

Although numerous of the stories may be hard to prove, numerous elements clearly observable that is definitely bizarre. Everywhere you look are plants whose stems are bent and twisted into bizarre configurations.

Various suggestions have been given to clarify the misshapen plants: that hurricane winds could have shaped the young trees, or inherently elevated electromagnetic fields in the earth account for their strange formation.

But research studies have discovered inconclusive results.

The Legendary Opening

The expert's walks allow participants to engage in a modest investigation of their own. Upon reaching the meadow in the trees where Barnea captured his renowned UFO pictures, he hands the visitor an ghost-hunting device which registers EMF readings.

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

The trees abruptly end as they step into a flawless round. The only greenery is the short grass beneath the ground; it's apparent that it's not maintained, and appears that this unusual opening is natural, not the work of people.

Between Reality and Imagination

The broader region is a location which fuels fantasy, where the border is indistinct between fact and folklore. In traditional settlements belief persists in strigoi ("screamers") – supernatural, form-changing creatures, who return from burial sites to frighten local communities.

The famous author's famous fictional vampire is forever associated with Transylvania, and the legendary fortress – an ancient structure situated on a stone formation in the mountain range – is heavily promoted as "the count's residence".

But even myth-shrouded Transylvania – actually, "the territory after the grove" – seems tangible and comprehensible compared to these eerie woods, which seem to be, for causes nuclear, environmental or entirely legendary, a hub for fantasy projection.

"Inside these woods," the guide states, "the boundary between reality and imagination is very thin."