Cluj-Napoca - Hoia-Baciu Forest, Romania
46° 46′ 0″ N, 23° 35′ 0″ E
The city is surrounded by forests and grasslands. Rare species of plants, such as Venus's slipper and iris, are found in the two botanical reservations of Cluj-Napoca, Fânaţele Clujului and Rezervaţia Valea Morii .
Animals such as boars, badgers, foxes, rabbits and squirrels live in nearby forest areas such as Făget and Hoia. The latter forest hosts the Romulus Vuia ethnographical park, with exhibits dating back to 1678. Various people report alien encounters in the Hoia-Baciu forest, large networks of catacombs that connect the old churches of the city, or the presence of a monster in the nearby lake of Tarniţa,
This forest, sometimes called the "Bermuda Triangle of Romania," is located in the middle of Transylvania. It was called Baciu Forest after a shepherd (the chief of a given shepherd camp is called "baci" in Romanian) disappeared inside the forest with his 200 or more sheep. He was searched for everywhere, including in nearby counties, but nobody knew where he was or saw him after he entered the forest. In addition, further disappearances, as well strange sensations of sudden illness, headaches, dread, or other odd sensations has been reported by some visitors. Sometimes mysterious lights and orbs have been observed amongst the trees as well.
Supporting the lights/UFO observations, one of the most famous photographs of a prototypical saucer-like object was captured in 1968 over the forest. Researchers from different institutes, as well all kind of amateurs, visit the forest regularly, including a recent investigation by the American television program, Destination Truth, which captured strange activity. Even if the events do not appear all the time, the forest is considered one of the most active spot in the world regarding apparitions and various unexplained phenomena.
Several theories have been promoted to explain the strange things that appear at times: from unusual electromagnetic readings produced by something inside the earth, to a so-called portal to another world from where beings from the other side sometimes cross over (or vice versa), as well as a theorized crossing point where extraterrestrial beings from alternative universes pass into our dimension.