We have our own lake monster around these parts. I swear I might have seen it once, but I was too far from the water to know for sure...
Ogopogo
Ogopogo by CheckerCherries
Ogopogo is a monster said to inhabit Okanagan Lake, British Columbia. Ogopogo is often depicted as having a serpentine shape and a bearded goat like head. Legends about Ogopogo were passed down by local natives long before the first European settlers. The Shushwap and Okanekaneis called it n'ha-a-itk which means "lake demon". One native legend explains that Ogopogo was once a demon possessed man who murdered a respected local resident. In punishment the murderer was transformed into a serpent and cursed to remain where he committed his crime for eternity. For safe passage across the lake, small animals were sacrificed.
Folktales:
- Ogopogo the Lake Monster
- Stories of Ogopogo (anecdotes/sightings)
- Ogopogo the Bashful Monster (CBC Video)
- Ogopogo the Monster of Lake Okanagan
Related Creatures: Loch Ness Monster, sea serpent
Region of Origin: North America, Canada, British Columbia, Okanagan Valley
I watched that show Destination Truth where they investigated the lake where there had been a high concentration of sightings. Unfortunately, they didn't find anything conclusive. Which keeps the mystery alive!
Yes indeed! I think the world needs some mysteries. What a boring place it would be if we knew everything for certain ;)
The lake/sea monster legend seems to be a pretty ubiquitous one. Virtually every culture across the world - where they have access to lakes or were sea-faring, at least - seem to have these sorts of creatures.
Makes you think there might be something to all those legends...
I think moreso because they're so consistently described despite continental differences.
Also true!
Lakes are also places that are fairly untouched by…oh, say, housing developments moving in and tearing down all the trees, or hunters coming and killing everthing in sight. Who knows, some dinosaurs may be locked up in lakes, untouched for centuries.
Just sayin'.
I'm loving this project, Theresa! I've never heard of any of these before. I feel like I should be gathered around a campfire at night listening to stories about these creatures...
Funny side note: one of my email addresses starts with yoyopogo (my old online alias), so at first glance I almost thought the creature was called that, lol.
LOL and you'd have been mistakenly sending emails on behalf of a lake monster! You know it would be fun to go camping with a bunch of writers, and make up stories on the spot by the fire... try to out scare one another... :D
Hey, that happened once. (Or something near-enough like it.) And then Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein as a result.
Now how come more murderers don't get turned into serpents? Surely we could have put a nice hex on some political assassins.
Hmm, sadly it seems it is a forgotten art form, like making 'greek fire' or how the pyramids were built.
Oh.
Dear.
Remind me not to go swimming in Okanagan if I ever chance to be in B.C.
If I do, I always make sure to stick to shallow water ;)
Fun. I'm intrigued by the universality of lake monsters and their ability to cross cultures.
They do cross cultures. Perhaps most humans find water mysterious to some degree.