Brought to the world’s attention in 1933, interest and belief in the creature has fluctuated. Actual evidence of the creature’s existence is largely subjective and somewhat undependable. With actual documented evidence of the creature minimal and much dubious photographic material, the scientific community regards the Loch Ness Monster as a modern-day myth, and explains sightings as a mix of hoaxes and wishful thinking.

The Surgeon’s Photograph – Most Famous Hoax

In April of 1934, Robert Kenneth Wilson who at the time was a British surgeon claimed that he took the above photo while driving along the northern shore of Loch Ness. When asked, he said that while driving he noticed something moving in the water and stopped his car to take a photograph.

As you can see, the resulting image showed the slender neck of what appeared to be a serpent-like creature rising out of the water. For many decades, this photo was considered the best confirmation of the actual existence of a sea monster in the Loch. However, interestingly enough, when Wilson submitted the photo he refused to have his name associated with it. Therefore, it came to be known simply as “The Surgeon’s Photo”.

It was not until sixty years later in 1994 that the image was revealed as a hoax when a man named Christian Spurling, who shortly before his demise at the age of ninety, made a confession. He stated that big-game hunter Marmaduke Wethere put together a plot that involved himself and Wilson. According to Spurling, Marmaduke was seeking revenge for having been publically embarrassed when he had earlier claimed to have found Loch Ness Monster tracks along the side of the Loch but unfortunately for Marmaduke the tracks turned out to have been made with a desiccated hippo’s foot.

The plot involved having Spurling make a model of a monster-like serpent. Spurling did this by attaching a fake serpent’s head and neck to a toy submarine. The model was then placed in Loch Ness and photographed. Wilson’s sole purpose in the hoax was to serve as a credible front-man.

Various (claimed) Photographs of Loch Ness

References: Martin, D. & Boyd, A. (1999). Nessie: The Surgeon’s Photograph Exposed. Thorne Printing.

Tales of this animal have been found throughout native cultures in North America. Since 1900 alone, there have been well over 400 accounts of people having seen this animal or that have found evidence of its presence. One of the most famous sightings of this creature occurred in 1967. Robert Gimlin and Roger Patterson captured on film a large ape like animal walking through the woods. This film is still said to be some of the most credible pieces of evidence of the creature’s existence in the world today.

There are many theories as to what this creature actually is. One theory suggests that it is a gigantopithecus that has managed to adapt and survive. Gigantopithecus, the largest species of ape, lived more than a million years ago. Fossils of this large ape have been found all over the Asian continent. The belief is that the gigantopithecus migrated across the Bering Strait along with many other animals of the period.

This video investigates the Native American Legend of “Bigfoot” or “Sasquatch” as the Native Americans call it. A large, hairy beast, resembling a man.

Scientists and Cryptozoologists discuss the possibility that this creature may inhabit the thousands of square miles of uninhabited timberland in the American Northwest. The legend of Bigfoot dates back may centuries and sightings have been reported continuously since before the white man came to this region of America and they continue today.

Archival footage of a suspected Bigfoot is shown and discussed with both witnesses and scientists evaluating the film.

The recorded sightings of this strange lake creature date back to the mid 1800’s. One tale claims that a man who was crossing the lake with a group of horses got too close to the island. The horses were pulled under and disappeared.

In 1926 the creature was sighted by people in not less than thirty cars. It was a staggering amount and the papers noted that anything seen by this many people at one time should definitely be investigated.

In the summer of 1947 the creature once again appeared to large group of people. Reports came in from a number of different boaters on the lake that day. All of them having seen the same strange animal at the same time. It doesn’t need to be said that it is unusual for so many people to see one of these creatures at the same time. Many of the witnesses were extremely credible and it is hard to doubt their accounts.

Sightings have continued throughout the years and scientists have yet to come up with an answer.

In Search Of… The Ogopogo Monster

The monster was brought to the attention of the world by a university student in 1995 who caught the creature on video. CNN bought the rights to this video. Since that time certain sources have stated that there have been well over 100 sightings of this strange creature.

The GUST ( Global Underwater Search Team) crew has been trying to get permission to investigate the lake but the area has been deemed unsafe for travel. At one point there was even talk that the famous Jacques Cousteau would travel to the area to locate this mysterious creature.

Video Footage of Lake Van Monster

An amateur lake monster-hunter has recorded the video below of a possible sea monster swimming across Lake Van, a small lake in eastern Turkey. The mediocre-quality footage, snippets of which clearly show something in the water.

Documentry About Lake Van Monster

The first recorded sighting of this monster came in 1883 when Sherriff Nathan Mooney sighted a strange animal in the lake about fifty yards off shore. He said that this creature was at least 25 to 30 feet in length and he could see round white spots in its mouth.

One of the strangest things to occur in this lake happened in 2003. The Fauna Research Team was using echolocation as part of a Discovery Channel program. They recorded sounds, which are similar to that of a Killer Whale or a Beluga Whale, and there is no known animal in the lake that would be capable of making these strange sounds.

In the early part of the 19th century P.T. Barnum interested in the claims of Champ posted a $50 000 reward for the body of the creature.

The most famous picture of Champ was taken by Sandra Mani and is very similar to that of the “Surgeon’s Photo” which has now known to be a fake.

Unsolved Mysteries – Champ

Hundreds claim to have seen this serpent, similar to the Loch Ness monster, in Lake Champlain.

While working outside, this was spotted out in the lake. Unfortunately all the author had was a little digital camera with limited video ability. Is it Champ?

This creature has attracted worldwide attention including that of such organizations as GUST (Global Underwater Search Team). The team set out in 2000 on a research expedition with the hopes of capturing the creature alive since the Norwegian government has said that creatures like Selma are protected.

For the expedition they brought along a specially designed trap which they named a “Comet”. It was a professionally built monster/eel trap. Although they were not successful in capturing the monster they did get many strange sonar readings.

Therefore, the search for the elusive Selma goes on.

Pictures From The GUST Team

The Global Underwater Search Team (GUST) at lake Seljordsvannet (Photo: Arild Enger)

Selma Lake – Norway (Photo: Arild Enger)

Enlargement of what Sundberg claims to be the Seljord monster. (Photo: Jan-Ove Sundberg)

One sighting of the monster claims that it was seen coming right out of the lake whereby it attacked three people before it was shot and driven back into the lake. Others claim that they have seen cattle and sheep dragged out into the depths of the lake by some unknown creature.

Some have stated that the monsters have reached lengths of over 10 meters and there are now so many that they have been sighted even swimming in groups.

There have been numerous pictures and videos taken of these strange creatures a couple of which are below.

Six Monsters Taped At Lake Tianchi

Six monsters videotaped by a Chinese journalist at Lake Tianchi (close to Korean borders) September 2007

One of the most famous accounts of Morag occurred in 1969 and involves two men (Duncan McDonnel and William Simpson) who were out on the lake in a speed boat. The two men claimed that as they crossed the lake they actually hit the creature. Duncan began hitting it with a paddle while William grabbed a gun. William began to shoot at the creature and it sank out of sight.

Legends and tales about this creature go back for hundreds of years. But unlike Loch Ness, Loch Morar is still fairly inaccessible. There are very few roads in the area and far fewer people have had the chance to visit Morag’s home.