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Scotland's Loch Ness is over 700ft deep, measures
23 miles in length and is up to a mile wide at points. In
the last 70 years this lake has attracted millions of visitors
from all over the world, all travelling to its shores in the
hope that they might catch a glimpse of the most famous 'monster'
in the world - 'Nessie'.
The first sightings of The Loch Ness Monster were much earlier
than the 1930's, but it was during this decade that the world's
press and public became fascinated by the notion of the beast.
There have been numerous sightings of 'Nessie' over the years,
many of them backed up by photographic 'evidence'.
There are numerous theories as to Nessie's identity, including
a snake-like primitive whale known as a zeuglodon, a type
of long-necked aquatic seal, giant eels, walruses, floating
mats of plants, giant molluscs, otters, a "paraphysical"
entity, mirages, and diving birds, but many lake monster researchers
seem to favor the plesiosaur theory. Most scientists believe
that these marine reptiles have been extinct for 60-70 million
years, but others think it possible that after the last Ice
Age the Loch may have been connected to the sea, and some
of these dinosaurs may have been stranded.
Loch Ness is not the only lake where strange beasts have been
witnessed. A similar monster was seen in Lake Bala, Wales
in 1979, and also Loch Morar is reported to be home to another,
named 'Morag', which was photographed in 1977.
Want to know more about Nessie? Click
here and here.
Click
here for details about the Loch Ness Visitor Centre
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