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"They call this location the Bermuda Triangle of Transylvania," remarks a tour guide, his exhalation producing clouds of vapor in the chilly evening air. "Countless visitors have disappeared here, it's thought it's a portal to a parallel world." This expert is escorting a traveler on a nocturnal tour through frequently labeled as the globe's spookiest forest: Hoia-Baciu, a square mile of ancient native woodland on the edges of the metropolis of Cluj-Napoca.

Hundreds of Years of Enigma

Reports of unusual events here date back centuries – the forest is named after a local shepherd who is reportedly went missing in the distant past, together with 200 of his sheep. But Hoia-Baciu gained international attention in 1968, when a defense worker named Emil Barnea captured on film what he described as a unidentified flying object suspended above a round opening in the middle of the forest.

Many came in here and vanished without trace. But don't worry," he adds, facing the traveler with a grin. "Our tours have a flawless completion rate."

In the time after, Hoia-Baciu has drawn yogis, shamans, UFO researchers and ghost hunters from worldwide, curious to experience the unusual forces said to echo through the forest.

Contemporary Dangers

Despite being among the planet's leading hotspots for paranormal enthusiasts, this woodland is under threat. The outlying areas of Cluj-Napoca – a modern tech hub of over 400,000 residents, known as the innovation center of the region – are encroaching, and developers are pushing for approval to clear the trees to build apartment blocks.

Aside from a small area containing locally rare oak varieties, the forest is not officially protected, but the guide is confident that the company he was instrumental in creating – a local conservation effort – will help to change that, persuading the local administrators to acknowledge the forest's importance as a travel hotspot.

Eerie Encounters

As twigs and seasonal debris split and rustle beneath their footwear, Marius recounts some of the local legends and reported paranormal happenings here.

• A popular tale describes a young child disappearing during a group gathering, only to return half a decade later with complete amnesia of what had happened, without aging a day, her clothes without the tiniest bit of soil.
• Frequent accounts explain mobile phones and imaging devices mysteriously turning off on venturing inside.
• Emotional responses range from complete terror to feelings of joy.
• Various visitors claim observing bizarre skin irritations on their skin, hearing ghostly voices through the forest, or sense fingers clutching them, although convinced they're by themselves.

Study Attempts

Although numerous of the tales may be hard to prove, there is much visibly present that is definitely bizarre. Throughout the area are vegetation whose stems are bent and twisted into unusual forms.

Different theories have been proposed to account for the deformed trees: that hurricane winds could have altered the growth, or naturally high radiation levels in the soil account for their strange formation.

But formal examinations have turned up insufficient proof.

The Legendary Opening

Marius's tours enable guests to participate in a little scientific inquiry of their own. As we approach the meadow in the forest where Barnea captured his well-known UFO pictures, he passes the traveler an ghost-hunting device which measures energy patterns.

"We're venturing into the most powerful 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 our feet; it's clear that it's naturally occurring, and appears that this unusual opening is wild, not the creation of landscaping.

Between Reality and Imagination

Transylvania generally is a area which fuels fantasy, where the division is indistinct between reality and legend. In countryside villages belief persists in strigoi ("screamers") – otherworldly, form-changing vampires, who return from burial sites to terrorise nearby villages.

The famous author's renowned fictional vampire is forever associated with Transylvania, and the historic stronghold – an ancient structure perched on a rocky outcrop in the Carpathian Mountains – is actively advertised as "the count's residence".

But despite myth-shrouded Transylvania – literally, "the land past the woods" – appears solid and predictable in contrast to these eerie woods, which give the impression of being, for causes nuclear, climatic or simply folkloric, a hub for fantasy projection.

"Within this forest," the guide comments, "the line between fact and fiction is very thin."