Delving into the Globe's Spookiest Forest: Twisted Trees, UFOs and Chilling Accounts in Transylvania.

"They call this place a mysterious vortex of Transylvania," explains a tour guide, his exhalation forming wisps of mist in the chilly evening air. "So many individuals have gone missing here, some say it's a portal to a parallel world." The guide is leading a guest on a nocturnal tour through what is often described as the globe's spookiest grove: Hoia-Baciu, a square mile of old-growth indigenous forest on the edges of the Romanian city of Cluj-Napoca.

Hundreds of Years of Enigma

Accounts of bizarre occurrences here go back hundreds of years – the forest is called after a area shepherd who is reportedly went missing in the long ago, together with 200 of his sheep. But Hoia-Baciu came to global recognition in 1968, when an army specialist named Emil Barnea captured on film what he described as a unidentified flying object hovering above a round opening in the middle of the forest.

Countless ventured inside and vanished without trace. But rest assured," he states, turning to the traveler with a smirk. "Our tours have a perfect safety record."

In the decades since, Hoia-Baciu has drawn meditation experts, traditional medicine people, ufologists and supernatural researchers from across the world, eager to feel the unusual forces reported to reverberate through the forest.

Current Risks

It may be one of the world's premier pilgrimage sites for supernatural fans, the grove is at risk. The outlying areas of Cluj-Napoca – an innovative digital cluster of a population exceeding 400,000, known as the innovation center of the region – are advancing, and developers are pushing for authorization to cut down the woods to erect housing complexes.

Except for a limited section home to area-specific oak varieties, this woodland is not officially protected, but Marius hopes that the company he co-founded – a dedicated preservation group – will contribute to improving the situation, motivating the government officials to recognise the forest's importance as a visitor destination.

Spooky Experiences

When small sticks and fall foliage break and crackle beneath their footwear, Marius tells numerous local legends and reported supernatural events here.

• A popular tale recounts a young child disappearing during a family outing, then to reappear half a decade later with no recollection of what had happened, having not aged a single day, her garments without the slightest speck of dust.
• More common reports detail cellphones and photography gear unexpectedly failing on venturing inside.
• Emotional responses range from full-blown dread to moments of euphoria.
• Various visitors state noticing unusual marks on their arms, hearing unseen murmurs through the forest, or experience palms pushing them, even when certain nobody is nearby.

Scientific Investigations

While many of the accounts may be unverifiable, numerous elements clearly observable that is undeniably strange. All around are plants whose bases are bent and twisted into bizarre configurations.

Different theories have been suggested to account for the deformed trees: strong gales could have shaped the young trees, or inherently elevated radioactivity in the soil explain their crooked growth.

But scientific investigations have turned up inconclusive results.

The Legendary Opening

The guide's excursions allow participants to engage in a small-scale research of their own. When nearing the meadow in the woods where Barnea captured his renowned UFO pictures, he gives the traveler an ghost-hunting device which detects EMF readings.

"We're entering the most energetic section of the forest," he says. "Discover what's here."

The trees immediately cease as the group enters into a complete ring. The only greenery is the short grass beneath our feet; it's obvious that it's naturally occurring, and looks that this strange clearing is wild, not the result of human hands.

Fact Versus Fiction

Transylvania generally is a location which inspires creativity, where the division is blurred between reality and legend. In countryside villages belief persists in strigoi ("screamers") – undead, form-changing creatures, who rise from their graves to frighten nearby villages.

Bram Stoker's renowned vampire Count Dracula is permanently linked with Transylvania, and Bran Castle – a Saxon monolith situated on a stone formation in the mountain range – is heavily promoted as "the count's residence".

But even folklore-rich Transylvania – literally, "the territory after the grove" – seems real and understandable compared to these eerie woods, which appear to be, for reasons radioactive, atmospheric or simply folkloric, a hub for human imaginative power.

"Within this forest," Marius says, "the line between truth and fantasy is very thin."