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"People refer to this spot an enigmatic zone of Transylvania," explains a tour guide, his breath producing puffs of mist in the chilly evening air. "So many individuals have disappeared here, it's thought there's a gateway to a different realm." Marius is leading a guest on a nocturnal tour through what is often described as the world's most haunted woodland: Hoia-Baciu, an area covering one square mile of ancient local woods on the fringes of the Transylvanian city of Cluj-Napoca.

A Long History of the Unexplained

Accounts of unusual events here go back a long time – this woodland 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 a defense worker known as Emil Barnea captured on film what he claimed was a unidentified flying object suspended above a circular clearing in the heart of the forest.

Countless ventured inside and never came out. But no need to fear," he continues, addressing his guest with a smile. "Our excursions have a perfect safety record."

In the decades since, Hoia-Baciu has brought in meditation experts, spiritual healers, UFO researchers and supernatural researchers from worldwide, eager to feel the unusual forces said to echo through the forest.

Modern Threats

Despite being a top global hotspots for supernatural fans, the grove is at risk. The western districts of Cluj-Napoca – an innovative digital cluster of over 400,000 residents, known as the tech capital of the region – are advancing, and developers are pushing for permission to remove the forest to construct residential buildings.

Barring a small area housing regionally uncommon oak varieties, this woodland is not officially protected, but the guide is confident that the organization he co-founded – a local conservation effort – will help to change that, encouraging the authorities to acknowledge the forest's value as a travel hotspot.

Spooky Experiences

As twigs and autumn leaves break and crackle beneath their boots, the guide recounts some of the traditional stories and alleged supernatural events here.

• A popular tale tells of a five-year-old girl disappearing during a family picnic, only to reappear after five years with no recollection of what had happened, showing no signs of aging a single day, her clothes lacking the tiniest bit of soil.
• More common reports describe cellphones and photography gear mysteriously turning off on stepping into the forest.
• Feelings vary from full-blown dread to feelings of joy.
• Some people claim seeing unusual marks on their bodies, detecting unseen murmurs through the trees, or experience palms pushing them, even when sure they are alone.

Scientific Investigations

Despite several of the stories may be hard to prove, numerous elements visibly present that is definitely bizarre. Everywhere you look are trees whose bases are bent and twisted into fantastical shapes.

Various suggestions have been proposed to account for the deformed trees: that hurricane winds could have shaped the young trees, or inherently elevated radioactivity in the earth explain their unusual development.

But formal examinations have discovered insufficient proof.

The Legendary Opening

The expert's tours permit participants to engage in a little scientific inquiry of their own. Upon reaching the clearing in the trees where Barnea captured his renowned UFO images, he passes his guest an electromagnetic field detector which measures EMF readings.

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

The trees abruptly end as the group enters into a flawless round. The sole vegetation is the short grass beneath the ground; it's apparent that it's naturally occurring, and seems that this bizarre meadow is natural, not the result of landscaping.

Between Reality and Imagination

This part of Romania is a location which fuels fantasy, where the border is blurred between fact and folklore. In countryside villages superstition remains in strigoi ("screamers") – otherworldly, shapeshifting vampires, who return from burial sites to haunt regional populations.

The famous author's renowned character Dracula is forever associated with Transylvania, and the historic stronghold – an ancient structure situated on a rocky outcrop in the mountain range – is actively advertised as "Dracula's Castle".

But even legend-filled Transylvania – actually, "the territory after the grove" – seems solid and predictable in contrast to the haunted grove, which seem to be, for causes nuclear, climatic or purely mythical, a center for human imaginative power.

"Inside these woods," Marius says, "the line between truth and fantasy is remarkably blurred."