- Loch Ness Monster Hunt Attracts Global Participants
- Unidentified “Gloops” Heard During Acoustic Investigation
- Enduring Mystery of the Loch Ness Monster
Despite a weekend of mass participation in Nessie hunting, the legend of the Loch Ness monster remains an enigma.
From the shoreline, about 200 volunteers kept an eye out for strange occurrences, but nothing out of the ordinary was observed.
Observers on a boat using acoustic equipment reported hearing four unidentified “gloops” before realizing that their recording device was unplugged.
Despite the inclement weather, according to the event’s organizers, participants came from around the globe.
Alan McKenna of the volunteer research organization Loch Ness Exploration was on a boat using a hydrophone system to record the noises of the loch’s underwater environment.
He stated that on Friday while evaluating the system, four distinct “gloops” were heard.
“We all got a little excited, and ran to make sure the recorder was on and unplugged,” he confessed sheepishly.
In the seventh century, a chronicler recorded that the Irish hermit St. Columba had expelled a water beast from the River Ness several centuries earlier.
In 1933, hotel manageress Aldie Mackay claimed to have spotted a whale-like creature in the loch, igniting the modern legend.
The following year, the famous “surgeon’s photo” captured what appeared to be a primordial animal in the water. However, 60 years later, it was revealed to be a hoax involving modeling clay and a clockwork submarine.
The old hotel building in Drumnadrochit where Aldie Mackay reported her famous sighting is now occupied by the remodeled Loch Ness Centre, which organized this weekend’s expedition in conjunction with Loch Ness Exploration.
In addition to the wet volunteers on the coast, hundreds of monster hunters monitored loch webcams from more comfortable areas.
Spain, France, Germany, and a Finnish couple have visited. It’s been terrific having Japanese, Australian, and American news crews “McKenna stated.
“We’ve formed a loose coalition. It’s been wonderful.”
Paul Nixon, manager of the Loch Ness Centre, was adamant that the event – billed as the largest Nessie hunt in fifty years – was more than a publicity stunt, and that it demonstrated that interest in Nessie was as robust as ever.
He stated, “I believe a large creature lurks in the depths of Loch Ness.”
“I don’t know if it’s a monster – I’m not sure what it is, but I believe something is down there.”
