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 The
Loch Ness Monster The
Great Glen in the Scottish highlands is a rift valley 60 miles long
and contains three famous lochs, Lochy, Oich and Ness. The most
famous of these is Loch Ness because of the monster said to 'lurk'
in its deep waters. It is deeper than the North Sea and is
very long and very, very narrow and has never been known to freeze. Sightings
of the monster, affectionately known as 'Nessie' are legion. The
first recorded account is of an eyeball to eyeball confrontation
with the Irish saint, St. Columba in the 6th century. St.
Columba, so the story goes, ordered one of his monks to swim across
the loch and fetch a boat., Halfway across the monster
appeared and rushed at the swimmer, roaring in a most frightening
way! Columba cried out at the monster," Go no further, nor touch
the man! Go back! ". The monster it is said, fled! Since
then, Nessie has been seen many times but has never harmed
anyone. Sightings have been sporadic over the centuries, but
in the 20th century Nessie has been more active, which has had a
profound affect on local business!
 1933
was the year when the first photograph was taken of the monster, or
what could be the monster. It showed something with a long
neck arched over a thick body. This photograph, taken by a
London surgeon caused a sensation when first published in the Daily
Mail. In
1951, Lachlan Stuart, a forestry worker who lived beside the loch,
also managed to photograph the monster, if that is indeed what it
was. He saw three humps in the water appear in line and
ran back to his house to get his camera. After taking one
photograph his camera shutter jammed, but his photograph got wide
publicity as further proof of the existence of Nessie. Interest
in Nessie became intense and over the years several scientific
investigations have taken place. In 1961 the Loch Ness
Phenomena Investigation Bureau was formed and even two submarines
have been brought into the search with sonar experts on board!
When the submarine Pisces was diving off Castle Urquhart, where the
water is 950 feet deep, a vast underwater cavern was found.
Was this Nessie's home? The
circus owner Bertram Mills offered a £20,000 reward to anyone who
could capture the monster for his circus, but so far no one has
claimed the reward. In
1975 four firemen from Hemel Hempstead decided that the monster must
be a male, as all monsters usually are, so they built a 309 foot
long papier-mâché 'lady monster' to attract 'Mr. Nessie'. It
had false eyelashes, full make-up and gave out a pre-recorded mating
call. Unfortunately the mating call turned out to be that of a
male walrus, so not unsurprisingly it didn't tempt Nessie! It
didn't help either when the lady monster got damaged when being put
into the water. Her 'behind' was flattened by the jetty when a
sudden wind blew her sideways. The attempt was abandoned. The
Loch Ness monster is not unique it seems - reports of similar
creatures have come from other lochs in the West
Highlands. Nessie
provides us with an enduring mystery and in the 21st century where
there is an explanation for everything, it is pleasing to think that
there are still mysteries like the Loch Ness Monster. Long may
he, or she, continue to live in the loch, popping up every now and
then to startle and amaze us all!
©
E.P.C Useful
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