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"People refer to this place the Bermuda Triangle of Transylvania," remarks a local guide, his exhalation creating puffs of vapor in the cold dusk atmosphere. "Countless people have disappeared here, many believe it's an entrance to another dimension." The guide is guiding a guest on a evening stroll through commonly known as the world's most haunted woodland: Hoia-Baciu, a square mile of ancient local woods on the fringes of the Romanian city of Cluj-Napoca.

Centuries of Mystery

Accounts of bizarre occurrences here date back a long time – the forest is called after a area shepherd who is said to have vanished in the far-off times, along with his entire flock. But Hoia-Baciu came to global recognition in 1968, when a defense worker known as Emil Barnea took a picture of what he claimed was a UFO suspended above a round opening in the heart of the forest.

Countless ventured inside and failed to return. But no need to fear," he continues, turning to the visitor with a grin. "Our guided walks have a 100% return rate."

In the years that followed, Hoia-Baciu has brought in yoga practitioners, traditional medicine people, extraterrestrial investigators and ghost hunters from worldwide, curious to experience the unusual forces believed to resonate through the forest.

Current Risks

It may be among the planet's leading destinations for paranormal enthusiasts, the forest is under threat. The western districts of Cluj-Napoca – a contemporary technology center of more than 400,000 people, known as the tech capital of the region – are expanding, and developers are advocating for approval to remove the forest to construct residential buildings.

Barring a small area containing locally rare Mediterranean oak trees, this woodland is without conservation status, but Marius hopes that the company he was instrumental in creating – a local conservation effort – will help to change that, persuading the authorities to appreciate the forest's value as a travel hotspot.

Spooky Experiences

While branches and autumn leaves split and rustle beneath their footwear, Marius tells numerous local legends and alleged paranormal happenings here.

• One famous story tells of a five-year-old girl vanishing during a family outing, later to rematerialise five years later with complete amnesia of what had happened, having not aged a day, her clothes without the slightest speck of soil.
• Frequent accounts describe mobile phones and camera equipment unexpectedly failing on entering the woods.
• Feelings vary from absolute fear to feelings of joy.
• Some people state seeing unusual marks on their skin, detecting disembodied whispers through the woodland, or experience hands grabbing them, although convinced they're by themselves.

Research Efforts

Although numerous of the stories may be hard to prove, there is much visibly present that is certainly unusual. Everywhere you look are vegetation whose trunks are bent and twisted into fantastical shapes.

Multiple explanations have been given to account for the misshapen plants: strong gales could have bent the saplings, or inherently elevated radioactivity in the ground account for their crooked growth.

But formal examinations have turned up insufficient proof.

The Notorious Meadow

Marius's excursions allow participants to take part in a little scientific inquiry of their own. When nearing the opening in the trees where Barnea captured his renowned UFO images, he passes the visitor an electromagnetic field detector which registers electromagnetic fields.

"We're entering the most powerful part of the forest," he says. "See what you can find."

The plants abruptly end as we emerge into a flawless round. The single plant life is the low vegetation beneath our feet; it's clear that it's not maintained, and looks that this unusual opening is natural, not the work of human hands.

Between Reality and Imagination

The broader region is a place which stirs the imagination, where the division is blurred between fact and folklore. In countryside villages belief persists in strigoi ("screamers") – undead, shapeshifting bloodsuckers, who return from burial sites to terrorise local communities.

Bram Stoker's renowned vampire Count Dracula is forever associated with Transylvania, and the historic stronghold – an ancient structure situated on a stone formation in the Carpathian Mountains – is actively advertised as "Dracula's Castle".

But even legend-filled Transylvania – truly, "the land past the woods" – appears tangible and comprehensible compared to the haunted grove, which seem to be, for reasons related to radiation, climatic or simply folkloric, a nexus for human imaginative power.

"In Hoia-Baciu," Marius comments, "the division between fact and fiction is remarkably blurred."