All language subtitles for Expedition.X.S07E01.Transylvanian.Terror.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DDP2.0.H.264-SLAG_track3_[eng]

Jess, behind you
on the right.

On the right. On the right.

I'm seeing on camera.

I'm seeing on camera.

Did you... Oh, my God,
it just [bleep] moved.

It's moving.

[Josh] On this episode
of Expedition X...

-Woo!
-Watch your head. Oh!

[Josh] My team ventures
to Transylvania's

Hoia-Baciu Forest.

[Stefan] And we saw a shadow,

like a small human figure.

[Josh] A place many believe

is the most haunted
in the world.

[Jessica] Oh, my Gosh, Phil,
there's somebody out here
with me.

[Josh] As Phil and Jess return

to the single most terrifying
destination

I have ever investigated.

[Phil] I just got goosebumps.

You seriously just heard
your name.

[Jessica] Yeah, I just heard
somebody say "Jess."

[Josh] They uncover
frightening new evidence

that might unlock the answers

to this ancient
Romanian mystery.

[Jessica]
I saw something walking along

in forest line.

Phil! Phil! Phil, come here.

Come here now.

[screams]

[suspenseful music playing]

Okay. So, I wanna start today
by showing you a clip.

-Are you ready?
-Okay.

Take a look.

Nothing's in my left shoulder.

-What are you talking about?
-I see a light.

I see somebody walking.

[Jessica] Oh, who's that
handsome young man?

Yes, it is a much younger
version of me.

[woman] Basically, yeah, yeah.

And I am out in the woods here

and we are doing
an EVP session.

This is part of the paranormal
investigation.

[man] There's a light.
What did you see?

-[woman speaking]
-And I'm doing
an isolation session here

and I'm about to trade out
with someone who I think

-will be familiar to you.
-[Evan] Thirty minutes.

[Josh] It is...

-[Jessica] Oh, yeah, Evan.
-[Phil] Hey, Evan.

Evan B. Stone, our longtime
director of photography here.

Yeah.
Evan, go for Josh [indistinct]

This maybe...
This may sound really weird,

but I'm hearing some...

Copy that. Just stay with it.

Things are about to get very,
very strange. Watch this.

-Oh.
-Whoa.

So, what happened right then?

He gets blown back by some
unseen unknown force.

-So, what--
-Was he okay?

Yes and no. I mean, he got
out of there in one piece,

but he was legitimately
shaken up.

I mean, crying.

-He was a mess.
-Really?

-[Josh] Yes.
-Wow.

So, then where exactly

were you guys
when this happened?

Transylvania.

Ooh, okay.

This is in Romania.

This is a place called
the Hoia-Baciu Forest.

It is a notorious
paranormal hotspot.

It is the next place
I want you to investigate.

And it is a place that
I will never, ever forget.

[Josh] Nestled
in the Carpathian Mountains,

Transylvania is known
for its mysterious castles

and dark folklore.

Most notably, of course,
the legend of Count Dracula,

believed to be based
on the real life

of Vlad the Impaler,

a sadistic 15th
century prince.

But Vlad is just the tip

of a very bloody
paranormal lineage.

While pop culture vampires
are most commonly associated

with Romanian moroi,

local lore also swirls
around the undead zombie-like

terrors of the strigoi.

Choose your horror and it has
origins in Romania.

Tales of these
frightening creatures

have evolved over
Transylvania's very long

and sometimes
violent history.

Fought over by the Romans,
Mongols,

Ottomans, Germans,

and Hungarians,
it is said the land

of Transylvania is soaked
in the blood of conflict.

Many believe all this
hostility has led

to strange
and dark phenomena.

Legends of witches,
monsters, and spirits

all said to stalk
Transylvania's sprawling
wilderness.

And the Hoia-Baciu Forest

is said to be the most
horrific of them all.

The forest's gnarled trees

twist into other
worldly shapes

unlike anywhere else
in the country.

Legend has it, that's because
the entire forest is cursed.

For generations,
there had been reports

of disturbing sounds and even
sightings of shadow people.

Many believe the secret
to solving these mysteries

resides in an area
of the forest called
the Rotunda,

where trees are reportedly
unable to grow.

It's here at the Rotunda

where our disturbing
experiences

happened 15 years ago.

The horrors of Hoia
have been stuck in my mind,

leaving me obsessed
with a single question.

Is this forest truly haunted?

That place seems intense.

Yes, it is intense.

And to show you
just how intense,

I've invited the man
who was there lurking

in the back, Evan B. Stone.

-Hey.
-What's up, buddy?

-Good to see you, man.
-Good to see you, man.

-Good to see you.
-Yes.

-Thanks for coming in.
I appreciate it.
-Oh, no worries.

Evan, safe to say
you remember your trip

to the Hoia-Baciu Forest?

Oh, yeah.

It changed my life really.

Fourteen years ago,
it feels like just yesterday.

This is really the event
that made me

believe in paranormal
activity.

This wasn't just a feeling.
It was physical.

What do you mean by physical?

Like, can you walk us
through it, what happened?

I was in an isolation session

where you just stay silent

-and try to experience it.
Okay?
-Got it.

And at the time,
I was skeptic.

25 minutes into the half hour,
I felt this wind.

It's almost like a tunnel
of wind

coming to shoot at me.

And the last thing I knew,

I was being dragged
and my feet
were just straight,

and then I just went black.

-[Phil] Whoa.
-Yeah.

And then, I woke up.

That's pretty hardcore.

That wasn't even
the strangest part.

I felt this itching on my arm.

I pulled back my sleeve

and it was these deep scratch
marks in my arm.

Like, deep, like,
actual wounds on his arms.

-You were bleeding?
-[Josh] Yes.

Yeah. And I still have

the scars today to prove it.

-[Phil] Oh, my God.
-And if you guys

are thinking of going there,
I'd be prepared.

People always ask me
what's the most compelling

paranormal evidence
I've ever seen?

-This is it.
-Yeah.

You know, I mean,
this is a guy

who was not out there
looking for ghosts.

Evan is rational.

He's out there to do a job.

And when we came running over
and found you

laying on the ground,
you were in a terrible state.

We stopped filming.

We brought the cameras up
initially,

and then pretty quickly
just turned them off

because it was...

It was too much.
It was like too real.

And this is the place
you wanna send us?

That's right.

A Transylvanian local,

a guy named Alex Surducan
reached out to us.

He heard
about Evan's experience

and our investigations there.

He says that there is a slew

of new paranormal encounters,
new evidence, new witnesses.

So, whatever happened to Evan,

it sounds like
it's still happening there.

Yeah. Well, I mean, I think
that's the point, right?

Like, Evan's experience,

the fact that you had strange
vibes there,

and the history,
the lore that's in that area,

I mean,
it's all very compelling.

This is, I have to say,

even for someone
who's skeptically minded,

this is a place that defies
an easy explanation.

-Mmm-hmm.
-So, head over to Romania,

link up with Alex

and see if you can find
some answers.

-Will do.
-Okay. We're on it.

[Josh] It's an 11-hour
flight from New York City

to Cluj-Napoca,

the unofficial capital
of Transylvania.

Today, it's a thriving
and diverse city,

but over the centuries,

it's seen more
than its share of war,

bloodshed,
and violent persecution.

-All right, Jess.
-Yeah.

How stoked are you
to be here right now?

I'm super stoked.

Seven-year-old goth Jess,

this is definitely dream
come true level bucket list

of places to visit.

I mean, it's Transylvania,
Count Dracula.

I mean,
right where we're walking

is where they would hold
witch trials.

Right here, right here?

[Jessica]
Right here, right here.

And then,
even underneath that,

there's a bunch
of ancient ruins

that they've uncovered.

-So, I mean, this place...
-Wow.

is just littered with history.

[Josh] Just beyond
the limits of this historic

yet cosmopolitan city

sits the darkness
of the Hoia-Baciu Forest.

Judging by the bumpiness
of the road,

I think we're getting closer
to the forest.

I think you're right.

That's what I think
is really interesting

is that you go
from relatively modern city

to immediate country.

Like, you're having
an espresso in a cafe
one second,

and then you cross over

and you are hiking
through the woods.

You know what I also found
really interesting is that

we've investigated
some massive,

-massive wilderness areas.
-[Jessica] Mmm-hmm.

Everything
from the Big Thicket

to the Pine Barrens to Peru.

-Yeah.
-Hoia-Baciu is only 60 acres.

So, it makes it
one of the smaller

forests that we've ever
taken on.

If we think of hauntings
in lore per area,

this is probably
the most concentrated

haunted forest in the world.

[Jessica] What's here?

-Why here?
-I don't know,

but I think we're about to get
some answers.

I think this is our guy,
Alex, right here.

[Jessica] Josh's expert, Alex,
asked to meet us

at a remote trail on
the outskirts of Hoia-Baciu.

A trained physicist,

Alex has spent the last
15 years of his life

trying to understand
the forest.

Welcome Romania.
Welcome to Hoia-Baciu Forest.

[Jessica] That is cool.

[Alexandru] The most famous
forest in Transylvania.

[Phil] What got you interested
in this forest
in the first place?

[Alexandru]
The stories, of course.

I was in a university,

then I was just curious
what's going on here?

Why so many stories?
So, I just came here

and in the end,
I learned a lot.

I found some weird
growing trees.

I found lots
of unexplained stuff.

You name it.
Paranormal in general.

You name it, it's there.

Why is it getting so many
sightings and experiences?

I don't really know
exactly why this one,

but it starts with a circle
in the forest

where the trees
refuse to grow.

[Phil] So, that's the Rotunda
we've heard about.

[Alexandru]Yes, the point of Rotunda.

And it still remains a mystery

as far as why the trees
don't grow there.

It is a big mystery.

But it is better to ask

the people that actually live
near the forest.

We have shepherds even today
that are all around the forest

and they do have
recent experience

because they spend
all their life.

So, there is one right
after this hill.

Can you take us over
to meet him?

-[Alexandru] Yeah, sure.
-Okay. Great.

-Yeah, we'll follow you.
-[Phil] Great.

-[Jessica] Let's check out
what he has to say.
-[Phil] Yeah.

[narrator] Alex takes us
to meet Stefan,

a local farmer who had
a recent encounter

that left him paralyzed
by fear

of what could be hiding
in the nearby woods.

[Alexandru speaking
foreign language]

-[Stefan speaking
foreign language]
-Stefan. Stefan.

-Jessica. Nice to meet you.
-Phil.

So, can you tell us
about your experience

out in the forest over there?

So, one night,
we went into the forest

to get some wood.

[indistinct chatter]

[Stefan] For some reason,
the chainsaw was not working

and we heard something

and we thought
it was somebody

playing tricks on us.

And then, I saw some movement

and we saw a shadow,

like a small human figure.

And the shadowy figure
was jumping

from one tree to another,

like hiding and spying.

And we couldn't move from
that position until00 a.m.

We were blocked there.

I felt like that
thing was stopping us,

like an invisible force.

Oh, well, that behavior
of something circling them

and hiding
and basically stalking them

does kind of sound like
a predatory wolf behavior.

Could it have been
a wolf at that time?

No, it definitely
was not a wolf.

There were no wolf prints
on the ground.

[Jessica] If that's the case
with what you experienced,

what is you think
you ran into?

I think there are witches
that go there by night

to make rituals
that might unleash

some kind of demons
or something.

Because we heard these screams

very similar
to a female screaming.

Did you get the chainsaw
to work ever?

After00 a.m., it started
without any problems.

[Jessica] I mean,
that is really weird

because some people
do believe that witching hour

is- 00 or- 00.

-The literal witching hour.
-Yeah.

The fact that they put
everything on lockdown,

basically, if they were doing
something out there,

and then after00, he was
able to go through his work.

-So, like--
-It matches up perfectly.

Exactly.

So, this location
in the forest,

how far away is it?

It's on the other side

of the forest to the west.

On this GPS map, could you
point out where it happened?

[Stefan] Uh-huh.

So, we are here,

so you said to the west?

-It's there.
-[Phil] Okay.

[narrator] The location
of Stefan's sighting

is too far to reach on foot,

and he's not willing to
return to the spot himself.

But he offered us his ATV

to see if we can replicate
his encounter

and investigate the area.

-Okay. Perfect.
-Perfect.

Thank you so much.

Yeah.

[Stefan speaking
foreign language]

-[Jessica] You got the GPS?
-[Phil] Got it.

All right, Jess.

-All right.
-That way.

Stefan's story too,
I cannot believe that

that exact time slot
that he had his encounter,

and then kind of was released
from his encounter,

matches up
with the witching hour

that you were researching.

I know. That was really weird.

I was not expecting
to hear that at all.

Oh, you know what,
there's a road right there.

Right into the forest.

-Let's take that.
-All right. Good.

[Jessica]
It's like all over the place.

-Whoa.
-[Phil] Whoa.

Watch your head. Oh, [bleep].

[Phil] Oh!

Holy... That was sketchy.

And I see what they're saying
about the trees,

so many of them have warps.

[Jessica] Yeah.

-[Phil] Hey, Jess.
-[Jessica] Yeah.

We are officially
in the forest.

Whoa. This place is crazy.

[Phil] It's waiting for us.

[tense music playing]

[Jessica] All right.

[exhales] Do you mind grabbing
the chainsaw?

[Phil] Yeah, I got it.

So, yeah.

I think if we go
over that ridge line,

we should be right there.

-[Jessica] So, this way?
-[Phil] Yeah.

[Jessica] Okay.

[Phil exhales]

[Phil] It's a lot more down
trees over here.

This might be where Stefan
and the other people come

to harvest wood. Look at this.

-That's pretty fresh.
-[Jessica] Yeah, like a log.

[Phil] These are really fresh.

[Jessica] Oh, big time.

There's still sawdust here.

-See that?
-Oh, yeah.

So, then this was
where he was, huh?

I think this is it.

[Jessica]
Whew, this place is creepy.

[Phil] Yeah.

[narrator]After finding the location

where Stefan reported
the shadow figure,

we set up for our night's
investigation.

[Phil]
It's getting dark quick.

[Jessica] Ooh, yeah.

-Get your flashlight out.
-[Phil] Yeah.

All right, Jess.
So, why do we carry this
chainsaw all the way out here?

[Jessica] So, hear me out.
I kind of wanna use it
as a trigger item.

Stefan said that when he was
trying to cut down the tree,

that it shut down,

and that's when that shadow
figure appeared

as if a guardian of the forest
was watching him.

I wanna try
and take this chainsaw,

act as if I'm gonna cut
a tree,

and see if we can't bring
any shadow figures

to come check us out.

So, you're telling me

you wanna threaten

one of the most haunted
forests

in the entire world?

I want a reaction.

I wanna see if anything comes

to check us out
and see what we're doing.

Well, I mean,
I'll tell you what,

if we're looking
for shadow figures,

and I'll take out
the low-light cam,

and scan our surroundings,

I guess the only downside
that I can see

is the noise of the chainsaw
is gonna scare away

probably 90% of the wildlife
around here.

But that works
in our favor then.

-Why?
-Because if a shadow figure
shows up,

then we know
it's not an animal.

So, it's filtering
our results.

[Jessica] Exactly.

-Okay.
-So, should we pick a tree?

You're the one who wants
to play tricks on the forest,

so I'll let you choose
that tree.

-All right.
-I'll get the cameras ready.

Okay.

[Phil] Okay, Jess,
what are you thinking?

[Jessica] Let's find another
one of those twisty trees.

[Phil]
What about this one here?

-[Jessica] That's pretty good.
-[Phil] It's got some bends.

-[Jessica] Yeah.
-[Phil] It's definitely
leaning from the bottom.

[Jessica] Yeah.

Cut away.

[chainsaw whirring]

Oh, it just shut off.

-What?
-I didn't turn it off.

-[Phil] Are you kidding me?
-I didn't...

No, I'm serious.
I didn't do that.

[Phil]
Is there gas in that thing?

Yeah.

Let's just try it again.

I just think
it's super weird that it did

exactly what happened
to Stefan.

Like, exactly.

Like, a gun did.

It shouldn't have turned off.

Have you been seeing
anything yet,

looking at us
through the trees?

-I haven't seen anything.
-Yeah. Let me try.

Let me see.
I'll flip it with you.

[Phil] Okay.

You know what,

I'm gonna get
the FLIR out too.

If there's anything
alive out here,

it should have
a heat signature.

It's30 right now.

[Jessica]
And let's stay out here

till we at least cross
over to the witching hour.

[Phil] Okay.

[Jessica] We haven't gone
down this way yet.

Let's go down here.

[Phil] Oh, Stefan.

You know what's weird, Jess?

I just turned and thought
you were crouched right here.

I did a double take.

I saw you, jacket,
hair, everything.

-No, you did not.
-100%.

-And then, I turned
and you weren't in there.
-Like, I was just

-sitting here?
-Yeah, sitting right there.

Let's see if there's any heat
coming from there.

[Jessica] What?

What?

[Phil] What are you saying?

[Jessica] I just heard
somebody say, "Jess."

[Phil] No one said, "Jess."

[man speaking]

-[Jessica]
You guys heard that?
-[Phil] You heard it?

[man] Oh, yeah.

[man speaking]

-[man] Yeah.
-[Phil] You got it on audio?

Yeah.

[Phil] Let's see if there's
any heat coming from there.

[man speaking]

[Jessica] What?

[man speaking]

-[Jessica] Yeah.
-[Phil] I just got goosebumps.

You seriously just
heard your name.

[Jessica] Yeah.
I just heard, "Jess."

-[Phil] From where?
-[Jessica] Like, "Jess?"

[Phil] From over here?

[Jessica] From over here.

[Phil] I'm checking
for anything down there.

[Jessica] Mmm-hmm.

-I'm not kidding.
-[Phil] Zero heat signatures.

[Jessica]
I heard, like, "Jess?"

[Phil] That's great.

I did not hear,
but if you heard it

and they heard it through
the audio, then...

kind of crazy.

So, either we're not alone
in this forest

or we're not alone
in this forest.

[Jessica] I mean,
I think we're not alone
in this forest.

There's something over there.

[Phil] I just heard
some movement.

-[Jessica] Did you hear it?
-[Phil] Yeah.

-Some crashing.
-[Jessica] Yup.

[Phil]
Well... So, we head that way.

Okay.

I feel wretched right now.

Like, I feel sick.

[Phil] Could be jet lag
and lack of sleep,

or it could be the woods.

[eerie music playing]

[Phil] Whoa, whoa, whoa.
Jess, I got some stuff.

Come here.

What? What am I looking at?

[Phil] I don't know.
Do you see that big banding
right there?

It's like there's a huge
thermal wall.

[Jessica] Oh, weird.

Why is it like that?

It's like there's
a border there.

[Phil] It's like there's
a big wall.

[Jessica] That's...
What the [bleep].

-Never seen that before.
-I've never seen that before.

I'm gonna walk over there.

Tell me if you see me
go through it.

[Phil]
Careful out there, Jess.

[eerie music playing]

[Phil] Looks like it should be
just ahead of you.

[Jessica] Okay.

[Phil] So weird.

[Jessica] Am I through it?

Keep going.

Looks like you're just
about there.

Can you still see me though?

I can see you.

I think you're in it.

[Jessica] I'm in it?

You don't feel any
temperature difference?

No.

What the hell is that border?

[bell ringing]

-I hear a bell ringing.
-[Phil] What?

There's a... Shh.

Okay. Stand here.

Be super quiet.

It sounds like there's
like a ringing

coming off the left-hand side.

[Jessica] [bleep]. It's gone.

Like, the temperature feels
the same over here.

-Yeah, it does.
-Turn around and see

if it shows up behind us now.

No.

[Jessica] That's weird.

It's almost like

there was like a barrier.

[Phil] Like,
some gradient right here.

And I'm also not feeling good.

-[Phil] Really?
-I have a big, big headache.

My chest is on fire.

I just don't feel good.

It just started getting really
bad like the last half hour.

I mean, I'm the one
that threatened the tree,

so maybe it's focusing on me.

I saw you,
you heard your name,

and you're feeling like this?

Yeah.

What time it is?

What time is it?

[Phil] It's25.

[Jessica] Like,
it's the witching hour.

And it was right at this time
that everything

kind of started to go off.

I mean, I feel wretched
right now.

[coughs]

[Phil] Yeah, I think
we should try to make sure

we can make a way
out of this forest tonight.

-[Phil] Okay.
-[Jessica] Yeah.

[tense music playing]

[narrator] The next morning,
we connect with Josh

to bring him up to speed
on our investigation so far.

-[Jessica] Hey, Josh.
-[Phil] Hey, Josh.

Hey.

What's going on?

Is Hoia living up to the hype?

Oh, we've actually had
a fair amount

of activity this first night.

I get it. I see why this place

made such an impact
on you, Josh.

At one point, I thought I saw

Jess next to me sitting down,
facing away.

I saw her hair,
saw the same jacket,

only Jess was way over
that way

and I saw her over this way.

Wow.

Totally different
spot in the woods.

I was nowhere near Phil.

And then, it even picked up
a notch from there

where I was walking along

and we were kind of headed
into this direction that was,

like, really cluttered
with trees.

And I distinctly heard
somebody say, "Jess."

And not only did I hear it,

but the crew heard it
and we caught it on audio.

[Phil] Let's see if there's
any heat coming from there.

[man speaking]

[Jessica] What?

That is incredible.

It sounds like
what you're describing

is like the forest
playing tricks on you.

That totally lines up
to my experiences there.

-[Jessica] Absolutely.
-[Phil] Yeah.

And bottom line,
it seems like a lot of people

get lost out in the forest.

We felt like we were kind of
getting drawn

deeper and deeper
into the forest

and got disoriented ourselves.

We also saw this
strange wall of heat

on the FLIR
right in our path.

The other kind of weird thing

is I checked our GPS route
of the direction

that the forest
was kind of leading us

and it was basically
in a straight line

towards the Rotunda.

Mmm-hmm.

I literally have goosebumps
just listening to this

because it's exactly
how I felt there.

You know, this unseen...

Almost magnetic force

drawing you toward that big
open circle in the forest.

It's like there's something
about that place.

And it's obviously
what Evan experienced there,

a powerful unseen force.

Look, I think it's obvious
you have to go investigate

where that's leading you,

into that Rotunda,
that circle, right?

And I think you should do
an isolation experiment there.

That's what worked for us
all those years ago.

That's where Evan had
that insane experience, right?

And you will see,

there is just something
about this place.

Now, I've outfitted you guys
with more advanced

monitoring equipment
than we had back then.

So, hopefully, that will help
you get more answers.

And I have a few theories
I wanna look into.

One of which is to use
ground-penetrating radar

to actually see
how deep the bedrock is.

Because if it's
shallow bedrock,

then maybe the trees
just can't grow there.

That's a great call.

I don't think they'd invented
GPR back when I was there,

so definitely check that out.

[Jessica] Yeah.
And while Phil is doing that,

I wanna head back
into town and see

who I can reach out
to that can tell me more

about, like, the folklore
and the history of the area,

specifically just
'cause I wanna figure out

kind of
on a supernatural angle,

what are we actually
dealing with here?

Are we dealing with strigoi?
Are we dealing with iele?

Are we dealing
with maybe the forest itself

trying to protect itself?

Like, I just wanna try
and narrow this down

so I know
who to potentially talk to.

[Josh]That sounds great, Jess.

And hey, listen
on a... On a serious note,

when you guys do get
to that circle in the forest,

be careful, you know? I...

That place is no joke.

I'm wishing you more answers

and less trauma
than we experienced, really.

We'll let you know
how it goes.

Good luck you guys. Stay safe.

-[Phil] See you, Josh.
-[Jessica] Bye, Josh.

[suspenseful music playing]

[Phil] All right.
So, somewhere up here

is the Rotunda.

This is where Josh's cameraman
had his experience

of getting thrown
by something.

And this is where I'm really
curious about what's going on

inside the Earth that makes
this area where the trees grow

so different than the Rotunda
where they do not.

And there it is

right up ahead.

Wow.

I mean, look at this ground
right here.

Covered in leaves.

This is the forest

and I take three steps
this way.

And all of a sudden,
there's just grass everywhere.

I've never seen an environment

where it's so drastic

and it's wild.

What is going on

underneath my feet here?

[narrator] To crack the code

on the secrets
of the Rotunda,

I'm meeting two experts
in ground-penetrating radar.

Hi.

[narrator]George and Silviu together

have over 3,000 hours
of experience

at sites all over Romania.

What I'm really interested in

is what's under
the ground here

and what is so different
about this spot right here

versus that spot
20 meters away.

[Silviu speaking]

[narrator]This ground-penetrating radar

will scan 16 feet
below the Earth

calculating the density
of the soil layers.

If it measures
any anomalies, voids,

or unusual objects,

we should get
an accurate reading

of their shape and size.

[George speaking]

[Phil] All right.
Let's hit the center.

-See what we find.
-[George] Okay.

[Jessica] I reached out
to some of my contacts

in the area
and they connected me

with Mihaela Minca,

who is one of Romania's
most highly regarded witches.

I'm meeting Mihaela and her
coven at a local tea house

where I hope to gain insight
into what paranormal forces

might be at play
in the Hoia-Baciu forest.

Hello, Mihaela.

-Hello.
-[Jessica] Hi.

Witchcraft is common
in Romanian culture

with many ordinary Romanians

turning to witches
to find love,

acquire money,
or to punish their enemies.

[in Portuguese]

In Hoia-Baciu forest,
it's known from all times

that it's the most bad spirits

and if you want
to hurt someone,

then it's necessary
to invoke the bad spirits.

[George speaking
foreign language]

[Silviu speaking]

-[Phil] Already?
-[Silviu] Already. Yeah.

-Took two steps.
-[Silviu] Yeah.

[Phil] And what does he think
this anomaly could be?

It could be a cavity,

it could be
some different rocks.

So, there could be a cavity...

-[Silviu] Yeah. Yeah.
-underground right here?

That's amazing.

And we've only taken
about four steps

in the entire Rotunda.

[George speaking
foreign language]

Right here?

[George speaking
foreign language]

[Silviu] Yeah. He thinks
'cause it's the same

as the area over there,

it could probably be
a small cavity

or maybe a small tunnel
or something else.

[Phil] Wow.

I mean, to be honest,

these are remarkable
results already.

That there could be chambers
underneath here.

I think we found something.

Would there be such a thing

as a guardian spirit
of the forest

that would try to protect
the forest

from the people
that are coming in?

[Mihaela]
It's possible this thing

because in this situation

started the forest
to be like cursed.

Many years ago,
there was a beautiful woman

who fell in love
with a local shepherd.

But she was
from a very wealthy family

who forbid her
to be with this man.

One night, the shepherd
went searching

for a missing sheep
in the Hoia-Baciu forest.

He was lured deeper
into the woods

by what he thought
was his distressed sheep.

He was never seen again.

The lover was so distraught,

she went to the forest

and hung herself
from a crooked tree.

Any person
that kills themselves

could become strigoi,

spirits that rise
from the grave

and terrorize the village.

In order to break their curse,

you must find
the missing bodies

from a long lost cemetery

and destroy them

setting their souls free.

[George] Okay.

[George speaking
foreign language]

[Silviu] Another one here.

-[Phil] Okay. Right here.
-[Silviu] Yeah, right there.

[George speaking
foreign language]

[Phil] Another one right here.

[Silviu] Another one
right here. Okay.

So, what's remarkable is that
ground-penetrating radar

has never been done here
at the Rotunda.

And it seems like
we're picking up

a lot of anomalies
every five, ten steps,

and it almost looks like it's
starting to put up a pattern.

[Silviu]
There is another one here.

-[Phil] Another one here?
-[Silviu] Yeah.

Same depth, 1.5 meters.

[Phil] It is unusual

how they all seem
very evenly spaced apart.

I mean, based on the way
this is laid out

and the depth
and the distance apart,

do you think this could be
a graveyard that we're on?

[tense music playing]

Do you think this could be
a graveyard that we're on?

[George speaking
foreign language]

[Silviu speaking]

He thinks he needs like a week

to really get into detail

and do everything in detail.

This is not the results
I was expecting,

but I think
they're even more fascinating

than I could have anticipated.

[woman] So, she will open now
the tarot cards for you.

And she will tell you how
you will have to be prepared

in your journey when you will
go to Hoia-Baciu.

-[Jessica] Okay.
-[woman] Your right hand,

-put on the globe, please.
-[Jessica] My right hand?

Yeah.

[Mihaela] Jessica...

now with your left hand,

you have to take three cards
from the middle of the deck.

[Jessica] Okay.

[Mihaela] Hmm.

By entering Hoia-Baciu
on the Rotunda,

you will face the most
powerful evil magic.

It is important
for you to be prepared.

You must bring a sickle
or scythe with you

as it provides protection
from dark forces

that wish you harm.

Here is a magical talisman
that we prepared for you.

We have done rituals
with this amulet.

It will protect you
in your journey

and it will bring you luck.

[suspenseful music playing]

[Phil]
Get ready for this, Jess.

[Jessica] Okay.

[Phil] We found something.

Underneath the Rotunda?

Multiple some things
started popping up.

They look like chambers
or stones underground

and in a pattern that went all
the way around the perimeter.

-Oh, my God.
-[Phil] Yes.

[Jessica] That's huge.

So, then what do you guys
think it is?

What did the GPR
technician say?

The way those stones
were arranged,

it could even be
a cemetery up there.

Oh, my God.

-What if it's a cemetery?
-Can you believe it?

So, when I met
with the witches yesterday...

Yeah.

that actually kind of tracks
with what they were telling me

as far as strigoi
being in the area.

There very well could be

a strigoi burial

out at the Rotunda.

-That's so frigging cool.
-[Phil] Yeah.

So, you think that's why
there's no trees

growing in that area

blocked by whatever it was

that was built there?

Possibly or maybe something's
leaching out of them.

I still am not quite sure

why nothing is growing there.

[Jessica] That's true,
'cause, like,

there's plenty of graveyards
with trees and plants...

-[Phil] Yeah. Yeah.
-growing all the time.

So, why wouldn't it grow there

in between the spaces
if it was a graveyard?

-I don't know.
-That's still...

-That's so weird. What?
-It is.

-Why?
-I don't know.

Now, I feel like we're just
getting more mysteries.

What's underneath the Rotunda?

Why is it keeping plants
from growing

or is it even keeping plants
from growing?

[Phil] I know.
We came here for answers

and we so far just have
a lot more questions.

[narrator] We know
that paranormal reports

in Hoia-Baciu
are most common at night.

So, we head to the Rotunda

to conduct the same
isolation experiment,

which forever changed Josh
and his cameraman, Evan,

a decade and a half ago.

Welcome to the Rotunda.

[Jessica] Oh, my God.

This is strange.

Like Josh said,
why don't we replicate

what he and his team did

when they were
just sitting here

self-isolating
30 minutes each?

I've got the bag of equipment
he sent us

so we can set everything up.

[narrator]This time, we're equipped

with more advanced tools
to monitor the clearing.

We know that Evan says
he was sent backwards

by an invisible force

and suffered multiple
scratches on his arm

that left him
physically scarred.

So, we're rigging
an EMF trip wire perimeter

composed of a string of LEDs

connected to individual
EMF sensors.

If there's a disturbance
in the electromagnetic field,

the lights will turn
from purple to red.

We also set up four
infrared surveillance cameras

pointing in
towards the circle.

[Jessica]
It's a pretty good circle.

[narrator] Jess and I will
each take our 30-minute turn

at the center of the Rotunda,

armed with
a night vision camera

and a walkie to communicate.

-Okay.
-What do you think?

What are these bright lights?

Those are actually
the IR lights from the cameras

-pointing at each other.
-Okay.

So, ignore that
and just pay attention

-to the person in the middle?
-Yeah.

-Why don't you go up first?
-Okay.

Thirty minutes?

-Thirty minutes.
-[Phil] Okay.

Heading out.

[dramatic music playing]

Crisscross applesauce, Phil.

For a minute there,
I forgot you were watching me.

[Jessica laughs]

Starting timer on my phone.

All right. Going.

Thirty minutes.

Jess, are you moving around
over there?

No, I am not.

I'm hearing some movement
rustling around me.

I just saw a little light
flicker in the forest.

What? Where? Which direction?

You see where I'm pointing?
It's right behind that camera.

[Jessica] Yup.

Oh, man.

That IR light's blowing
it out. I can't see.

Kill it.

Something just made
a little grunt.

I'm watching. I don't see
anything moving in the forest.

I think the isolation's
starting to get to me.

Every little noise
is making me jump.

I think like being alone

out here in the middle
of the Rotunda

is not my favorite place
to be.

I keep hearing little cracks,

little bits of movement
in the forest all around me.

Knowing where we are,
the legends about it

and what could be buried
underneath me right now,

it's kind of terrifying.

How much time you got left?

Less than one minute now.

[Jessica] Is this us?

Who's this right here?

I saw a little light pop up.

Do you see anything?

[Phil] I see nothing.

All right. My time is up.

My time is up.

Let me grab my bag.
I'll come out.

I'm gonna have the recorder
going the whole time

just in case something
decides to talk to me

through the recorder.

So, right now,
Jess is getting set

for her isolation experiment.

Okay. Protection amulet on.

She has a recorder.

She got her scythe.

Scythe is here next to me
in the ground.

She's kind of prepared
across the board

for anything out there.

And hopefully,
if anything does happen,

we will have it on the camera.

All right.
I'm about to hit the timer.

Good luck out there.

Thirty minutes starts now.

Is there any spirits here,
spirits of the forest?

[Phil] Oh.

Look at the camera.
It's showing up.

[Jessica]Spiritual people going by?

Any iele?

That is weird.

Any strigoi?

All these cameras are
in IR mode except this one,

just stopped working.

Oh, camera just went down.

Just completely,
completely down.

Jess, we just lost the camera.

It's not even that
I can't see in the dark.

It's just not connected
at all.

Which one?

I guess it's the one
with no red lights.

Can you...
Can you figure that out?

And we just lost another.

What the [bleep].
They all are still on.

Signal's not reaching here
for some reason.

I'm gonna move the antenna,
see if that helps.

Are you feeling okay?

I'm scared [bleep] this,

but yeah, I don't feel sick
or anything,

if that's what you mean.

How are the EMF lights
looking?

Anything changing color?

No, nothing.
They're all the same.

This is crazy.

Half of our surveillance
system is down right now.

I just heard something
walk next to me

on... In the circle.

[Phil] Okay.
That, I did not hear.

How close?

Like, woo, right next to me.

Camera's flashing big time.

[Phil] I'm seeing that,

a lot of in and out light
right now.

[Jessica] Oh, my [bleep] God.

Are you out here
by the camera
right in front of me?

[Phil] No. What's happening?

It just moved,

the camera
that I'm staring at.

Oh, my God. It [bleep] moved.
It's moving.

[Phil] What? What?

Phil, it's moving.

[Phil]
What do you mean it's...

Oh, my God.
It's [bleep] moving.

I'm not seeing any movement
on the screen.

Can you point again
to the one that is moving?

[Phil] That is so weird.

Jess, as far as I can tell,

it is not moving at all.

So, what you are seeing
is not showing up on video.

Three glowing red lights

that indicate
that the camera is on

start to float around.

Jess, since you have
two IR cameras,

maybe you should take the one

and aim it towards the camera
that you're seeing moving.

That's an excellent idea.
Hold on.

Were any of the strigoi
moving the camera?

Oh, my God.

Is there anything out here
with me right now?

Are you strigoi?

Oh.

Jess, behind you on the right.

On the right. On the right.

I'm seeing on camera.
I'm seeing on camera.

[Jessica] Oh, my God.

Phil, there's somebody
out here with me.

[screams]

[suspenseful music playing]

The forests of Romania

are filled with stories
of mythical creatures.

The most infamous
is Muma Padurii.

Her name, literally meaning
mother of the forest.

She appears sometimes
as a beautiful young woman

and sometimes is an old crone

with tree bark for skin.

This shapeshifter cares for
the forest and its creatures

and protects it violently
from any trespassers.

This is said to be
particularly true for kids.

If Muma Padurii
catches errant children

wandering her forest,

she won't hesitate
to boil them in her soup.

Muma was the inspiration

for the tale
of Hansel and Gretel.

There's no gingerbread house
in the original,

but its ultimate lesson
is the same.

Children should never stray
where they don't belong.

Sleep well, kids.

[suspenseful music playing]

[Phil] Jess.

[Jessica] Dude. Dude. Dude.

I saw somebody walking
along the forest line.

Is there anything
over there right now?

[Phil] It is complete
dead zone back there.

I'm not seeing anything
on the FLIR.

I don't... Oh.

All of our crew
was over by me.

No one was over here.

Nobody was over here.

So...

I think we need
to go into the forest

and figure out what the heck
was over there.

[Jessica] I mean, let's go
look for footprints, I guess.

I'm bringing the scythe.

So, it would be
right over here, this area.

[Phil] This area.

This is so weird.

I'm trying to see if there's
any hotspots at all.

[Jessica]
Are you getting anything?

Getting nothing.

I distinctly saw

a dark figure
walk through the trees.

I almost wouldn't believe you

and just say
that it was your eyes

playing tricks on you,
but I saw it on the video,

whatever that was.

Jess, behind you
on the right.

On the right. On the right.

[Jessica] Okay.

I think there's something
out here.

What time is it?

It is04.

I think we should
just keep our gear out

and just wait it out,
see what happens.

Let's get our stuff back up
and running if we can.

-Let's keep it going.
-Okay.

[Josh]My team scoured the woods

with thermal imaging cameras
until morning.

But whatever they saw

lurking at the edge
of the Rotunda

did not emit any detectable
heat signature,

considering
the uncanny similarity

to recent eyewitness
testimony.

And we saw a shadow,

like a small human figure.

[Josh] It appears that this
shadow figure phenomenon

could be deeply connected
to the Hoia-Baciu Forest.

But that's not all we found.

[Phil] The camera behind you

to your left is blinking.

It just keeps blinking
on and off.

Yeah. I see it too.

[Josh] It wasn't the first
time we received

what seemed like visual
feedback from the forest,

the thermal wall
my team encountered

on the first night
of the investigation.

Can you still see me though?

[Phil] I think you're in it.

[Josh]Served as an inexplicable
visual marker

of the Rotunda's perimeter.

Some might say it seemed
to be guiding them

directly toward the Rotunda

or from another
point of view,

warding off
those who dare enter it.

[Jessica] My chest is on fire.

I just don't feel good.

It's just started
getting really bad

like the last half hour.

[Josh] And as they approached
the Rotunda,

both Phil and Jess
experienced unexplained
sounds.

See if there's any heat
coming from there.

[Jessica] What?

[Josh] Hallucinations.

You know what's weird, Jess?

I just turned and thought
you were crouched right here,

did a double take.

[Josh] And bizarre
equipment failures.

[chainsaw buzzing]

It just shut off.

[Josh] Phil returned
to the circle

to collect a soil sample,

hoping it would reveal
some clues.

The analysis
yielded normal results,

which only corroborates what
my team found 15 years ago.

[George speaking
foreign language]

-[Silviu] One here.
-Here. Yeah.

[Josh] But things
got interesting

when our ground-penetrating
radar specialists

sent us their final report.

They unveiled
a mystifying grid pattern

that appeared to be unseen
voids beneath the earth.

These mysterious anomalies

were uniformly spaced

and at an identical depth.

Although we couldn't
excavate the Earth

to definitively prove
Phil's theory

of an ancient graveyard...

[Jessica] I think there's
something out here.

[Josh] We came across
a centuries old map
of the region,

which clearly shows
the existence

of the exact same circle,

suggesting
that whatever force

is stopping the trees
from growing there

has been doing so for ages.

[Phil] I just got goosebumps.

[Josh] My team's journey
through the forest

and their subterranean
research at the Rotunda

has only cemented
Hoia-Baciu's legacy

as an epicenter
for unseen forces

and one of the strangest
places we've ever set foot.

[Jessica] Phil. Phil.
Phil, come here.

Come here now.

[screams]