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Proponents
of the Ogopogo's existence claim that the first
documented sightings of the monster date back to around
1872, and occurred as the area was being colonized by
European settlers. Perhaps the earliest mention of the
Ogopogo was the story of a man in 1860 leading horses
that were swimming across the lake near Rattlesnake
Island. They were pulled under by some unseen and
unknown force later attributed to the then common native
myth of the Ogopogo
Ogopogo, Real or
Myth?
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Over the
years, many large unidentified sea creatures have washed
up on ocean shores throughout the world. Certain fresh
water bodies have also gained a reputation for
containing sizable creatures often described as more
prehistoric than anything else! The Lake Champlain
monster is one example and of course "Nessie" of
Scotland's Loch Ness is affectionately known around the
world.
Canada's most famous water monster is Ogopogo of Lake
Okanagan in the south central interior of British
Columbia. Although Indian legends support a monster
living in Okanagan Lake long before white men arrived in
this country, Ogopogo is very much a present day
phenomenon. Each year, sightings are reported of a
creature some 20 to 50 feet long, with a horse shaped
head and an undulating serpent like body! Okanagan Lake
is about 80 miles long extending from Vernon at the
north end to Penticton in the south with the fast
growing city of Kelowna in the center. Sightings have
been reported throughout the length of the lake but the
monster appears to favour an area just south of Kelowna
in waters near Peachland.
Indian
legend has it that the large lake creature, Ogopogo, was
originally a demon possessed man who had murdered a well
known and respected local man named "Old Kan-He-Kan." In
memory of this man, his people named Our beautiful lake
"Okanagan." To pay for his sins, the Indian gods changed
the murderer into a lake serpent so he would forever be
at the scene of his crime and suffer eternal remorse.
The creature's name became "N'ha-A-Itk" which roughly
translates into sacred creature of the water, water god
or lake demon.
Years later Ogopopo got his name from the following
ditty: His mother was an earwig, his father was a whale,
a little bit of head and hardly any tail...and Ogopogo
was his name.
The legend
of "Ogopogo" predates "Nessie", the Loch Ness, Monster
by more than 80 years.
Here you'll find interesting and informative material on
Canada's most infamous and elusive water creature, the
Ogopogo Monster. The Ogopogo can be found in Lake
Okanagan in the south-central interior of British
Columbia.
Our site is new but ultimately the goal at
www. Ogopogo Monster .com
is to create a comprehensive database to include true
stories, authentic video, photos and genuine documented
encounters of the mysterious Lake Okanagan Ogopogo
Monster. If you have experienced a genuine sighting of
the Ogopogo Monster or have published or unpublished
articles, stories or general information on the subject
that you'd like to share, please contact us. We would
love to hear from you!
Ogopogo Lake Monster believers and enthusiasts unite and
help build this site together!
The legend
of Ogopogo tells us that he has been seen by Lake
Okanagan area residents and visitors alike in British
Columbia, Canada, for hundreds of years. In more modern
times, several photos have been taken of an
unexplainable phenomenon on very calm days when there
was not a ripple to be seen.
http://www. ogopogo quest.com/
Ogopogo is
not an Indian name for the world-famous, friendliest
inland sea monster. The name is derived from a music
hall song that was popular in the 1920's. Indians
referred to Ogopogo as N'HA-A-ITK which when translated
means "Lake Demon". Legend explains that the creature
was actually a demon-possessed man who had murdered a
local known as Old Kan-He-K. (Lake Okanagan was named in
his honor). As punishment, the native gods turned the
murderer into the giant sea serpent so he would remain
at the scene of the crime for all eternity. Hence
Ogopogo's longevity. To appease the monster N'HA-A-ITK (Ogopogo),
the Indians offered small animals at it's legendary
lair/submarine caves off Squally Point near Rattlesnake
Island. Ogopogo frequents the waters between his
favorite island and Mission Valley and has made journeys
to both ends of the lake. Recorded sightings date as far
back as the early 1800's. In 1860, John McDougal lost
his team of horses when they were pulled under as he was
swimming them across the lake in a canoe....never to be
seen again.
http://www.ufobc.ca/Supernatural/Cryptozoology/ ogopogo
.htm
ABOUT
OGOPOGO
What is that Creature in the Lake?
He lives in an underwater cave in the deep water off
Squally Point, where Okanagan Lake takes its sharp turn
south to its outlet at Penticton. A shy creature, he
offers only glimpses of himself, breaking the surface
for a few moments, then disappearing into the
depths..... He is...... "Ogopogo".
No skeletal remains identifying him have been uncovered.
No carcass offering conclusive proof has washed ashore.
Indeed, all the physical evidence supporting his
existence is ambiguous, at best. This consists of
photographs, film footage, and video images which merely
tantalize.
If you want to believe in him, your imagination tells
you that the dark ripples in the picture must be him. if
you are by nature skeptical, they are only a series of
freak waves, a log, or perhaps worse, a hoax.
And yet, the reality of him is well documented in the
verbal reports of those who say they have seen him. The
interior Salish aboriginal peoples knew him as
Nihaiaiitk - the lake demon - and they appear to have
depicted his snake-like image in several petroglyphs
etched in the rocks of the Powers Creek area. Their
livelihood depended in significant part on their
harvesting the bounty of the lake, but they had a
healthy respect for the creature who lived there. They
would carry small animals to feed to him whenever they
ventured forth onto the water in their canoes, and they
avoided that portion of the lake that was thought to be
his home.
Many of the Europeans who have come to the Okanagan
Valley to live, or to visit, have also learned of his
presence. What makes many of these incidents compelling
is that they are of the "multiple witness" variety, with
several people seeing the creature in the same place at
the same time. On September 16, 1926, for example, some
thirty carloads of people all watched Ogopogo in the
water off an Okanagan Mission beach. Later, on July 2,
1947, a number of boaters saw him simultaneously.
Other reputable individuals have also claimed they have
seen the creature. They include a priest, a sea captain,
a surgeon and police officers. Some of the witnesses
have described:
"Something that looked like a huge tree trunk or log
floating on the lake, (but) going against the current
and not with it." "A long sinuous body, 30 feet in
length, consisting of about five undulations, apparently
separated from each other by about a two-foot space, in
which that part of the undulations would have gone
underwater. There appeared to be a fork tail, of which
only one-half came above the water. From Time to time
the whole thing submerged and came up again."
Others have seen a blunt-nosed head, shaped like that of
a horse or a goat, with a dark blue, or black, body, and
flippers or fins. Many observers have remarked at the
creature's speed in the water, but there have been
several sightings in calm water where he appears to be
feeding on fish or aquatic plants.
Can all these people be mistaken? Is there a rational
explanation of this phenomenon? Apparently, there is.
What the scientific community has offered is that
Ogopogo may in fact be a form of aquatic fish-eating
animal known as basilosaurus cetoides - a primitive
whale. Indeed there may be more than one creature,
perhaps several, which would imply that there may be
males as well as females.
So keep your camera handy, and your eyes on the lake -
you may be the lucky one who solves this fascinating
mystery!
by Robert Groves
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