The Mystery of the Ogopogo

The Mystery of the Ogopogo

Did you know the Loch Ness monster has a little brother? Apparently he lives in a lake in British Columbia.

Actually, I’m sure Nessie has many ‘siblings’ that inhabit many lakes across the world. These creatures are known as cryptids (part of the pseudoscience referred to as ‘cryptozoology’). That is, creatures which have been suggested, or sited, but whose existence has never been confirmed. “Cryptids must be big, weird, dangerous or significant to humans in some way.” Other cryptids include jackalopes, yetis and chupacabras.

The monster known as Ogopogo originated in native lore. The local tribe called him N’ha-a-itk (“lake demon”). He is said to be a serpentine monster, with the head of a horse or goat, between forty and fifty feet long. The name “Ogopogo” comes from a song entitled “The Ogo-Pogo: The Funny Fox-Trot”, by Cumberland Clark and Mark Strong.

As with most local legends, no photographic evidence of the monster exists. Those few images which have been taken have been attributed to either fresh-water sturgeons or floating logs. Even so, locals celebrate the legend of the Ogopogo. There are two statues dedicated to the sea monster; one in the center of the waterfront area and one located at the bottom of the lake. The one at the bottom of the lake is significantly creeper than the brightly-painted version children climb on at the waterfront.

While the tale of Ogopogo is probably quite obscure outside the local area (he hasn’t the great fame of cousin Nessie), he was referenced in 1996 in “Quagmire”, a third season episode of the X-Files.

Now that we live in beautiful British Columbia, plenty of people are eager to visit. If you haven’t guessed by now, I’ll be AFK this week enjoying the summer sun and sharing the local sites with our visitors. We’ll be sure to keep an eye out for Ogopogo while we’re at it ;) See you next week!

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