The Loch Ness Monster - Myth Or Reality? (Urban Legends Explored)

When we think of monsters in urban legends, there are quite a few that come to mind. From the Sasquatch and the Abominable Snowman to El Chupacabre, each region has their own monster that they claim to have seen. Today we travel to the Scottish Highlands as we examine one of their most notorious unsolved mysteries, the legend of the Loch Ness Monster. As its name would suggest, the Loch Ness Monster is believed to inhabit a freshwater loch located in the Scottish Highlands, southwest of the city known as Inverness, hence the name, Loch Ness. The Loch Ness Monster is often described as a prehistoric aquatic dinosaur-like creature, unlike any animal we see today. The creature was often compared to the species known as the Plesiosaur, and although the two creatures do resemble each other quite closely, the theory has been disproved multiple times throughout the years. The Plesiosaur was a cold-blooded reptile, it would need a warm tropical environment to survive, one that is not native to Scotland. If we couple this with the fact that Loch Ness is around 10,000 years old, dating back to the end of the last ice age, it's most likely that the loch has frozen over, making it quite easy for us to rule out the Plesiosaur as a possible explanation. The first ever recorded sighting of the monster was in 565 AD by an Irish monk named Saint Columba. Columba and his companions came across a group of local residents who were burying a man by the river Ness. When asked what had happened, they explained the man was swimming in the river when he was attacked by a beast in the water. Columba and his men then travelled across the river, and when the creature approached them, he made the sign of a cross, telling the creature to go no further and go back at once. Appearing to heed his warning, the beast turned and fled. Columba's men and the local people could only thank the monk for what they perceived as a miracle. Over the years to come, rumours did spread of the strange events that took place that day, and there are even stories of locals believing that Loch Ness was home to mythical creatures such as Kelpies, shapeshifting water spirits that were known to take the form of a horse. This did contribute to the notion that in the depths of Loch Ness lived a creature, a creature that quickly became a favourite of the locals and earned the nickname Nessie. Despite its first sighting being almost 1500 years ago, it wasn't until alleged photos of the creature began to surface that people began to question whether the Loch Ness monster was more than just a legend. In 1934, the first photograph of the creature's neck and head was published in the Daily Mail newspaper. The photo itself was believed to have been taken by Robert Kenneth Wilson, a gynaecologist from London. At the time, Wilson refused to have his name associated with the picture, which led to it being known as the Surgeon's Photograph. Wilson claimed that he was enjoying the view of the Loch when he saw the monster. He grabbed his camera and began to take photos. He took numerous photos, but the majority were discarded because of how grainy and unclear they were. The image that was eventually used shows what appears to be the head and neck of the creature just above water. For those who believed in the legend, the photo was considered evidence of the monster's existence, and for those who were a little bit more sceptical, the creature in the photo was dismissed as driftwood or a small animal, similar to a bird or an otter. By the early 90s, it was mostly agreed that the photo was part of an elaborate hoax. In 1999, a book by the name of Nessie, The Surgeon's Photograph Exposed was published, and as its title suggested, the book featured details regarding the original photo. The creature in the photo was actually a toy submarine built by Christian Sperling, the son-in-law of Marmaduke Wetherill. Wetherill was employed at the time by the newspaper that published the photo, the Daily Mail. Wetherill had previously had an article written, on footprints that he had found and believed to have belonged to the Loch Ness Monster. A cast of the footprints was made, and they were sent to local scientists to examine. The footprints had turned out to be nothing more than someone playing a prank, and as a result, Wetherill was ridiculed by his employer and the public. To get revenge, Wetherill and a number of others hatched a plan that would involve building the Loch Ness Monster of their own. The model was built from a toy submarine, with its head and neck being made from wood putty. After a short period of testing in a local pond, the model was placed in the Loch Ness where the photos were taken. They were then handed to Robert Kenneth Wilson, who sold them to the Daily Mail, who then announced the monster had finally been photographed. So I guess you could say that Wetherill and co had the final laugh, constructing what is considered to be one of the biggest hoaxes in the history of the Loch Ness Monster, and convincing a national newspaper to publish their story. Following the events of 1934, the number of people claiming to have seen Nessie greatly increased, with a host of fake sightings and hoaxes. Some of them appeared to be no more than practical jokes, and other people may have seen the Loch Ness Monster as an opportunity to make some money, selling their stories to local newspapers and anyone who would believe them. The interest in Nessie peaked so much, that a circus owner by the name of Bertram Mills offered a £20,000 reward, equivalent to around £2 million today to anyone who could capture the beast for his circus, but no one was able to ever claim the reward. Just as the number of sightings continue to be reported, there have been a number of studies done using sonar to examine Loch Ness for any unusual activity. There have been several objects detected, but due to how murky the water of Loch Ness is, cameras have been unable to capture any definitive images, resulting in any findings being dismissed as rocks, air bubbles and scores of fish. In 2014 and 2015, there were attempts to map Loch Ness using Google Street View and Apple Maps, but similar to all the other studies done, any images found were debunked as ripples caused by boats or driftwood. There were a host of TV shows and documentaries that attempted to solve the mystery of the Loch Ness Monster, but once again, without any definitive evidence, it appears the mystery will continue to go unsolved. It appears that the true winners of this situation are the people of Inverness themselves. The legend of the Loch Ness Monster appears to have helped put their small town on the map, with tourists from all around the world flocking to Inverness to see if the legend is true and possibly get a glance of Nessie. Whether you believe in the legend of the Loch Ness Monster or not, the alleged sightings of Nessie continue, even to this day, and the mystery of what lies in the depths of Loch Ness remains unsolved.