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"People refer to this spot a mysterious vortex of Transylvania," states a local guide, his breath producing wisps of condensation in the crisp dusk atmosphere. "Countless visitors have gone missing here, some say it's a portal to a different realm." Marius is guiding a guest on a nocturnal tour through commonly known as the globe's spookiest grove: Hoia-Baciu, a square mile of old-growth native woodland on the outskirts of the Transylvanian city of Cluj-Napoca.

Hundreds of Years of Enigma

Reports of strange happenings here extend back centuries – the forest is called after a area shepherd who is believed to have disappeared in the long ago, together with two hundred animals. But Hoia-Baciu gained global recognition in 1968, when a defense worker known as Emil Barnea captured on film what he reported as a UFO hovering above a oval meadow in the middle of the forest.

Many came in here and never came out. But rest assured," he adds, addressing the traveler with a smirk. "Our guided walks have a 100% return rate."

In the decades since, Hoia-Baciu has drawn yogis, traditional medicine people, extraterrestrial investigators and supernatural researchers from worldwide, curious to experience the unusual forces reported to reverberate through the forest.

Current Risks

Although it is among the planet's leading hotspots for lovers of the paranormal, this woodland is at risk. The western districts of Cluj-Napoca – a contemporary technology center of more than 400,000 people, known as the tech capital of eastern Europe – are expanding, and developers are pushing for permission to remove the forest to construct residential buildings.

Barring a small area housing regionally uncommon specific tree species, this woodland is lacking legal protection, but the guide hopes that the initiative he helped establish – a local conservation effort – will help to change that, encouraging the government officials to recognise the forest's importance as a tourist attraction.

Spooky Experiences

While branches and autumn leaves break and crackle beneath their boots, the guide recounts various traditional stories and reported supernatural events here.

• A well-known account tells of a five-year-old girl disappearing during a family picnic, later to return after five years with no recollection of the events, having not aged a moment, her clothes lacking the slightest speck of soil.
• Regular stories describe smartphones and imaging devices inexplicably shutting down on venturing inside.
• Emotional responses vary from full-blown dread to states of ecstasy.
• Various visitors state noticing unusual marks on their bodies, perceiving ghostly voices through the woodland, or feel palms pushing them, despite being sure they are alone.

Scientific Investigations

While many of the stories may be unverifiable, there is much clearly observable that is certainly unusual. Everywhere you look are vegetation whose trunks are warped and gnarled into fantastical shapes.

Multiple explanations have been given to account for the misshapen plants: strong gales could have shaped the young trees, or inherently elevated electromagnetic fields in the ground account for their unusual development.

But formal examinations have turned up insufficient proof.

The Legendary Opening

Marius's walks permit participants to take part in a small-scale research of their own. As we approach the clearing in the trees where Barnea took his well-known UFO images, he hands his guest an EMF meter which measures electromagnetic fields.

"We're stepping into the most powerful area of the forest," he comments. "See what you can find."

The trees immediately cease as the group enters into a perfect circle. The only greenery is the short grass beneath their shoes; it's obvious that it hasn't been mown, and seems that this unusual opening is natural, not the result of people.

Fact Versus Fiction

This part of Romania is a area which fuels fantasy, where the division is indistinct between truth and myth. In rural Romanian communities belief persists in strigoi ("screamers") – supernatural, shapeshifting bloodsuckers, who return from burial sites to frighten regional populations.

Bram Stoker's renowned character Dracula is permanently linked with Transylvania, and the legendary fortress – an ancient structure perched on a cliff edge in the mountain range – is heavily promoted as "the vampire's home".

But even legend-filled Transylvania – literally, "the territory after the grove" – seems solid and predictable versus these eerie woods, which seem to be, for factors nuclear, climatic or simply folkloric, a nexus for human imaginative power.

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