The mysterious Nessie in the Lochness

By Amal HEWAVISSENTHI

After a dinner, Donovan Spissair, together with his wife, was driving home on the lonely road which ran parallel to the shores of the lake Lochness for miles. This was in Scotland in 1933. This road which had been built in 1930s, ran along the bank of lake Lochness situated in a rural, depopulated region in Scotland. The colossal lake Lochness naturally nestling in the lee of hills and rocks, appears to be chiefly mysterious to the visitor because of the vast stretch of silent jungle and hills.

Mysterious lake

The lake which is roughly 23 miles in length and a mile in width, appears almost bottomless with its deepest parts and trenches of more than eight-hundred feet of cold water. Most of the region surrounding the lake is covered with thick jungle with an utterly threatening appearance. The lake is a combination of lakes and came into prominence after the caladonius tunnel was constructed in the 19th century. It was along this bleakly unattractive and lonely road that Donovan Spaissair was driving his motorcar. By this time, they were midway between the hamlets of Dorus and Harrigage. Donovan saw that there was a massive marshy land on the other side of the road which was still snaking parallel to the lake Lochness.

Surprisingly large!

Donovan froze with fright when he noticed an extremely and surprisingly large neck of a monster emerging from the turbulent water of the lake. Donovan and his wife let out a piercing scream as the monster was crossing the road and disappearing slowly into the thick growths of the vast stretch of the marshy land. Donovan and his wife described the animal to have had four giant legs like those of an elephant and a tail that was somewhat suggestive of an elongated fin of a fish. Though the monster clearly got the signal of a moving vehicle speeding towards him, he was completely negligent of it and continued to travel towards the thick jungle.

This was the first recorded evidence of the sighting of strange monster subsequently called "Nessie, living in the cold depths of the lake Lochness. This incident created a wide spread curiosity among public about the presence of a mysterious giant in the lake and it simply made Lake Lochness and Nessie world famous. After this strange incident many people have reported sightings of the strange inhabitant of Lochness while they were strolling along the road in close proximity to the lake. Each description of the sightings represented the monster as a prehistoric dinosaur and the physical features of the animal as described by people who chanced to see Nessie, matched perfectly well. This corroborates the claim that more than a hundred people have seen the same monster in different places in the lake.

The sighting of Nessie was soon a highly publicized story throughout the world and this earned a worldwide attention to the lake Lochness of Scotland. The interesting news that an animal akin to prehistoric dinosaur was hiding in the deep trenches of lake Lochness took wings and the international media anticipated more and more exciting reports of any sighting of the mysterious monster.

Neck of forty-five feet

A British laboratory technologist, Goudan Hollamus who was transfixed with terror at the sight of the monster showing his long neck above water says "It was really frightening! I could not believe my eyes. A shadowy shape of a black creature with a neck of around 45 feet came up from the surface of the lake. In no time, it disappeared into the lake leaving large ripples on the surface".

Several persons have been successful in capturing the strange animal on film during 1934, 1972 and 1977. The photographs show that "Nessie" kept its long neck above the surface of the water and much of his real appearance was hidden under water. Generally "Nessie" is considered a type of giant dinosaur with certain resemblance to brontosaurus. It has been the centre of attraction of the native people of Scotland and scientists who are involved in the study of mysterious creatures. For the past hundred years, strange reports of this creature intermittently hit the media and public and people have been highly enthusiastic to find out more about this freak of nature.

The ancient carving

A 1500-year-old stone carving which is interpreted to represent a monster similar to Nessie, is the first hint of information about Nessie. The carving has been created by the tribal people living on the northern hills of Scotland. A book titled "Life in St. Columba" written by Adaminus claim that monsters (Nessie) had been sighted in different regions of Scotland. The native people of Scotland firmly believe that Nessie is found only in the Lake Lochness though no explorer or scientist is armed with proof of its existence.

Later Roger Karton Wilson, a surgeon, claims to have caught sight of Nessie half plunged in water of Lochness Lake. "The water was up to his neck. He had an unusually long neck. His mouth seemed to be 30 to 45cm.in length and the mouth was openable about 15cm. When he moved his long neck the ripples became extremely large and he slowly drew back the head into the water". However, these reports and photographs provide ample evidence that a monster - an enormous animal has been seen rolling and plunging on the surface of lake Lochness.

When reports of the unusual presence of Nessie came to be public, Burtrem Mills, a notable circus performer said that he would offer 20,000 pounds to whoever caught Nessie alive. Hundreds of researchers moved heaven and earth in their bid to capture the monster. They explored the vast expanse of water in Lochness, the marshy land nearby and the jungle covered mountains to catch a trace of Nessie but to no avail.

A researcher, Dan Taylor employed Viper Fish, a type of smaller submarine, to explore the far reaches of the bottom of the lake Lochness in 1969 but he concluded that the lake was by no means fit for a reptile to live because the cold water reached 5 degrees celcius.

Meanwhile, George Edwards, who was involved in an intensive research at the bottom of the Lake Lochness, in 2001, found that the lake had strange caves and cavities at the depth of about 812 feet. The researchers said that such caves and grottos are ideal places for animals like Nessie to stay undiscovered.

The first man to have captured "Nessie" on film was Hugh Grey, an aluminium factory worker who was on his way home when the massive monster raised its long neck above water (of Lochness Lake). He succeeded in capturing the unusually long neck of "Nessie" raised above the vast expanse of water of the Lake Lochness and he expressed his marvel at the size of ripples of the lake because of the enormity of the animal.

Researchers have been able to establish the appearance of Nessie from the basic elements of the descriptions made by those who are said to have seen it live on water.

According to them Nessie is a monster with a body of about forty feet in length, long neck and a tail - an animal which is similar to the dinosaur who had been shot to extinction millions of years ago. Sonar equipment and other equipment of high technology have been employed to observe the 800 feet deep lake but no trace has ever been caught about the presence of a "Nessie".

The explorers conclude that except for a simple bio-diversity (a few fish and algae), no chance exists for a giant reptile to live in the bottom of the Lake Lochness. They also claim that no fossil is resemblance to a similar animal, has been found at the bottom or around the lake. Therefore the reality of the enormous "Lochness monster" has been not yet been scientifically corroborated though the native people of Scotland believe that Nessie still lives in the dark trenches and caves of Lochness.

Source: Internet