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"People refer to this spot the Bermuda Triangle of Transylvania," states a local guide, his exhalation forming puffs of vapor in the chilly night air. "So many visitors have gone missing here, many believe it's a portal to a parallel world." Marius is leading a guest on a evening stroll through commonly known as the world's most haunted forest: Hoia-Baciu, a square mile of ancient indigenous forest on the outskirts of the Transylvanian city of Cluj-Napoca.

Centuries of Mystery

Accounts of unusual events here date back hundreds of years – the forest is named after a local shepherd who is believed to have disappeared in the long ago, accompanied by his entire flock. But Hoia-Baciu achieved worldwide fame in 1968, when an army specialist known as Emil Barnea captured on film what he described as a UFO floating above a circular clearing in the heart of the forest.

Many came in here and failed to return. But rest assured," he states, facing the traveler with a smirk. "Our excursions have a 100% return rate."

In the years that followed, Hoia-Baciu has attracted yogis, traditional medicine people, ufologists and ghost hunters from worldwide, eager to feel the mysterious powers said to echo through the forest.

Modern Threats

Despite being a top global hotspots for lovers of the paranormal, the grove is under threat. The western districts of Cluj-Napoca – a modern tech hub of more than 400,000 people, known as the innovation center of the region – are encroaching, and developers are advocating for approval to remove the forest to erect housing complexes.

Aside from a small area containing area-specific Mediterranean oak trees, the grove is lacking legal protection, but the guide hopes that the organization he co-founded – the Hoia-Baciu Project – will assist in altering this, encouraging the authorities to recognise the forest's value as a travel hotspot.

Chilling Events

While branches and autumn leaves break and crackle beneath their shoes, the guide tells some of the local legends and claimed supernatural events here.

• One famous story describes a young child vanishing during a group gathering, only to return five years later with no recollection of what had happened, having not aged a single day, her garments shy of the smallest trace of dirt.
• Regular stories describe mobile phones and photography gear mysteriously turning off on stepping into the forest.
• Reactions range from complete terror to moments of euphoria.
• Certain individuals report observing unusual marks on their skin, hearing disembodied whispers through the trees, or feel fingers clutching them, even when sure they are alone.

Study Attempts

While many of the stories may be unverifiable, there is much visibly present that is definitely bizarre. All around are trees whose trunks are curved and contorted into bizarre configurations.

Multiple explanations have been given to clarify the abnormal growth: strong gales could have bent the saplings, or typically increased radiation levels in the ground account for their crooked growth.

But scientific investigations have found no satisfactory evidence.

The Notorious Meadow

The guide's walks allow guests to take part in a small-scale research of their own. When nearing the clearing in the trees where Barnea photographed his famous UFO pictures, he passes the visitor an EMF meter which detects energy patterns.

"We're stepping into the most powerful section of the forest," he comments. "Discover what's here."

The vegetation abruptly end as they step into a perfect circle. The single plant life is the short grass beneath our feet; it's apparent that it's naturally occurring, and appears that this bizarre meadow is organic, not the creation of landscaping.

The Blurred Line

The broader region is a area which stirs the imagination, where the division is unclear between fact and folklore. In countryside villages faith continues in strigoi ("screamers") – supernatural, form-changing vampires, who rise from their graves to terrorise regional populations.

The novelist's renowned vampire Count Dracula is permanently linked with Transylvania, and the historic stronghold – a medieval building located on a stone formation in the Transylvanian Alps – is heavily promoted as "the count's residence".

But even legend-filled Transylvania – truly, "the territory after the grove" – feels solid and predictable versus the haunted grove, which seem to be, for reasons radioactive, environmental or entirely legendary, a nexus for human imaginative power.

"In Hoia-Baciu," Marius states, "the boundary between truth and fantasy is very thin."