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"People refer to this spot the Bermuda Triangle of Transylvania," states a tour guide, his breath forming clouds of vapor in the chilly night air. "Numerous individuals have disappeared here, it's thought it's an entrance to a parallel world." This expert is leading a visitor on a evening stroll through what is often described as the world's most haunted grove: Hoia-Baciu, a square mile of primeval indigenous forest on the outskirts of the Romanian city of Cluj-Napoca.

A Long History of the Unexplained

Accounts of strange happenings here go back hundreds of years – the forest is titled for a area shepherd who is believed to have disappeared in the distant past, together with 200 of his sheep. But Hoia-Baciu achieved international attention in 1968, when a military technician named Emil Barnea captured on film what he reported as a flying saucer suspended above a circular clearing in the heart of the forest.

Many came in here and failed to return. But no need to fear," he adds, turning to the visitor with a grin. "Our tours have a 100% return rate."

In the time after, Hoia-Baciu has attracted yoga practitioners, traditional medicine people, UFO researchers and ghost hunters from around the globe, interested in encountering the unusual forces said to echo through the forest.

Modern Threats

Although it is one of the world's premier pilgrimage sites for supernatural fans, the forest is facing danger. The western suburbs of Cluj-Napoca – a modern tech hub of over 400,000 residents, described as the innovation center of Eastern Europe – are advancing, and construction companies are advocating for authorization to clear the trees to erect housing complexes.

Aside from a limited section containing locally rare Mediterranean oak trees, the grove is not officially protected, but Marius believes that the company he was instrumental in creating – the Hoia-Baciu Project – will contribute to improving the situation, persuading the local administrators to appreciate the forest's value as a visitor destination.

Eerie Encounters

As twigs and seasonal debris split and rustle beneath their boots, the guide describes various folk tales and alleged paranormal happenings here.

• A well-known account describes a young child going missing during a family outing, then to reappear five years later with complete amnesia of her experience, having not aged a day, her garments lacking the slightest speck of dust.
• More common reports detail smartphones and imaging devices unexpectedly failing on venturing inside.
• Feelings include full-blown dread to moments of euphoria.
• Certain individuals state noticing unusual marks on their skin, perceiving unseen murmurs through the trees, or experience fingers clutching them, although certain nobody is nearby.

Research Efforts

While many of the stories may be hard to prove, there are many things visibly present that is undeniably strange. All around are plants whose trunks are bent and twisted into unusual forms.

Multiple explanations have been given to explain the deformed trees: that hurricane winds could have shaped the young trees, or inherently elevated electromagnetic fields in the soil explain their strange formation.

But research studies have found insufficient proof.

The Notorious Meadow

The guide's walks allow visitors to participate in a small-scale research of their own. As we approach the clearing in the trees where Barnea captured his famous UFO pictures, he hands his guest an ghost-hunting device which registers electromagnetic fields.

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

The vegetation suddenly stop dead as the group enters into a perfect circle. The sole vegetation is the trimmed turf beneath our feet; it's clear that it hasn't been mown, and looks that this strange clearing is natural, not the creation of landscaping.

Between Reality and Imagination

The broader region is a location which stirs the imagination, where the division is blurred between truth and myth. In rural Romanian communities belief persists in strigoi ("screamers") – supernatural, form-changing creatures, who emerge from tombs to haunt local communities.

Bram Stoker's well-known character Dracula is always connected with Transylvania, and the historic stronghold – an ancient structure located on a rocky outcrop in the Carpathian Mountains – is heavily promoted as "Dracula's Castle".

But even folklore-rich Transylvania – literally, "the territory after the grove" – feels real and understandable in contrast to the haunted grove, which appear to be, for causes related to radiation, environmental or purely mythical, a nexus for fantasy projection.

"Inside these woods," the guide states, "the division between truth and fantasy is extremely fine."