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"They call this place an enigmatic zone of Transylvania," remarks a tour guide, his breath producing wisps of vapor in the chilly dusk atmosphere. "Numerous visitors have vanished here, some say it's an entrance to another dimension." This expert is leading a traveler on a night walk through commonly known as the globe's spookiest forest: Hoia-Baciu, an area covering one square mile of old-growth local woods on the edges of the metropolis of Cluj-Napoca.

Centuries of Mystery

Reports of unusual events here extend back hundreds of years – this woodland is titled for a area shepherd who is said to have vanished in the long ago, along with two hundred animals. But Hoia-Baciu gained global recognition in 1968, when an army specialist named Emil Barnea took a picture of what he claimed was a UFO floating above a oval meadow in the middle of the forest.

Many came in here and failed to return. But don't worry," he continues, addressing the traveler with a smirk. "Our excursions have a perfect safety record."

In the time after, Hoia-Baciu has attracted yogis, shamans, extraterrestrial investigators and ghost hunters from worldwide, curious to experience the mysterious powers said to echo through the forest.

Modern Threats

Despite being one of the world's premier destinations for paranormal enthusiasts, this woodland is facing danger. The western districts of Cluj-Napoca – a contemporary technology center of more than 400,000 people, known as the innovation center of Eastern Europe – are expanding, and real estate firms are pushing for approval to remove the forest to build apartment blocks.

Barring a few hectares containing locally rare Mediterranean oak trees, the forest is not officially protected, but the guide is confident that the company he co-founded – a dedicated preservation group – will help to change that, encouraging the local administrators to recognise the forest's significance as a visitor destination.

Chilling Events

As twigs and autumn leaves snap and crunch beneath their footwear, Marius recounts numerous traditional stories and alleged paranormal happenings here.

• One famous story describes a five-year-old girl going missing during a group gathering, only to return half a decade later with complete amnesia of her experience, having not aged a day, her garments without the tiniest bit of dirt.
• Regular stories describe cellphones and imaging devices mysteriously turning off on entering the woods.
• Feelings include absolute fear to moments of euphoria.
• Various visitors report noticing unusual marks on their bodies, perceiving unseen murmurs through the forest, or experience palms pushing them, although sure they are alone.

Study Attempts

While many of the stories may be hard to prove, there is much before my eyes that is certainly unusual. All around are trees whose trunks are warped and gnarled into fantastical shapes.

Different theories have been suggested to explain the abnormal growth: that hurricane winds could have bent the saplings, or typically increased radiation levels in the ground explain their crooked growth.

But research studies have found inconclusive results.

The Legendary Opening

The expert's walks permit visitors to engage in a small-scale research of their own. As we approach the opening in the trees where Barnea captured his famous UFO photographs, he hands the traveler an electromagnetic field detector which registers electromagnetic fields.

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

The plants immediately cease as they step into a perfect circle. The only greenery is the low vegetation beneath our feet; it's obvious that it hasn't been mown, and seems that this unusual opening is organic, not the work of human hands.

Fact Versus Fiction

The broader region is a area which inspires creativity, where the division is blurred between reality and legend. In traditional settlements superstition remains in strigoi ("screamers") – supernatural, shapeshifting creatures, who emerge from tombs to terrorise regional populations.

The novelist's well-known vampire Count Dracula is permanently linked with Transylvania, and the legendary fortress – an ancient structure perched on a rocky outcrop in the Transylvanian Alps – is keenly marketed as "the vampire's home".

But including legend-filled Transylvania – truly, "the land past the woods" – seems tangible and comprehensible compared to these eerie woods, which appear to be, for causes related to radiation, atmospheric or simply folkloric, a center for creative energy.

"In Hoia-Baciu," the guide comments, "the division between reality and imagination is remarkably blurred."