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"People refer to this spot an enigmatic zone of Transylvania," explains an experienced guide, his exhalation creating puffs of vapor in the crisp evening air. "Numerous people have gone missing here, many believe it's a portal to a parallel world." This expert is leading a traveler on a evening stroll through frequently labeled as the planet's most ghostly grove: Hoia-Baciu, a square mile of primeval native woodland on the edges of the Transylvanian city of Cluj-Napoca.

Centuries of Mystery

Reports of bizarre occurrences here date back hundreds of years – this woodland is called after a area shepherd who is believed to have disappeared in the long ago, accompanied by his entire flock. But Hoia-Baciu achieved international attention in 1968, when a defense worker known as Emil Barnea photographed what he reported as a unidentified flying object hovering above a oval meadow in the heart of the forest.

Countless ventured inside and failed to return. But don't worry," he adds, turning to the traveler with a grin. "Our tours have a flawless completion rate."

In the time after, Hoia-Baciu has drawn meditation experts, shamans, UFO researchers and ghost hunters from around the globe, interested in encountering the unusual forces reported to reverberate through the forest.

Modern Threats

Although it is among the planet's leading pilgrimage sites for paranormal enthusiasts, the grove is at risk. The western suburbs of Cluj-Napoca – an innovative digital cluster of more than 400,000 people, described as the tech capital of eastern Europe – are expanding, and developers are advocating for authorization to remove the forest to construct residential buildings.

Barring a small area containing locally rare specific tree species, the forest is lacking legal protection, but Marius is confident that the initiative he helped establish – a dedicated preservation group – will help to change that, motivating the government officials to appreciate the forest's significance as a tourist attraction.

Spooky Experiences

While branches and fall foliage break and crackle beneath their shoes, the guide describes numerous folk tales and alleged ghostly incidents here.

• A popular tale describes a little girl vanishing during a group gathering, later to return half a decade later with complete amnesia of the events, without aging a single day, her garments lacking the tiniest bit of dirt.
• Regular stories describe cellphones and imaging devices mysteriously turning off on venturing inside.
• Reactions range from complete terror to feelings of joy.
• Some people claim seeing unusual marks on their skin, hearing ghostly voices through the trees, or sense fingers clutching them, despite being sure they are alone.

Study Attempts

Although numerous of the tales may be impossible to confirm, there is much clearly observable that is definitely bizarre. Everywhere you look are plants whose stems are warped and gnarled into bizarre configurations.

Different theories have been suggested to explain the misshapen plants: powerful storms could have shaped the young trees, or typically increased radioactivity in the earth cause their strange formation.

But scientific investigations have found inconclusive results.

The Notorious Meadow

The guide's excursions enable visitors to engage in a little scientific inquiry of their own. As we approach the clearing in the woods where Barnea took his famous UFO images, he hands the visitor an electromagnetic field detector which measures energy patterns.

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

The plants suddenly stop dead as we emerge into a complete ring. The sole vegetation is the short grass beneath their shoes; it's obvious that it's naturally occurring, and appears that this bizarre meadow is organic, not the result of human hands.

Fact Versus Fiction

This part of Romania is a area which fuels fantasy, where the line is indistinct between reality and legend. In traditional settlements belief persists in strigoi ("screamers") – otherworldly, appearance-altering vampires, who rise from their graves to haunt local communities.

Bram Stoker's well-known vampire Count Dracula is always connected with Transylvania, and the legendary fortress – a Saxon monolith situated on a rocky outcrop in the Transylvanian Alps – is heavily promoted as "the count's residence".

But even myth-shrouded Transylvania – truly, "the territory after the grove" – seems solid and predictable in contrast to this spooky forest, which give the impression of being, for causes radioactive, atmospheric or entirely legendary, a nexus for human imaginative power.

"Inside these woods," Marius says, "the boundary between fact and fiction is remarkably blurred."