cryptozoo-oscity

new cryptozoological thriller

2013-05-20T01:47:00.000-07:00

The Weird Shield by Tabitca Cope

The Knights of the Talisman and Henry are back and this time their modern day quest pits them up against a dangerous new adversary. Did Laura Loomis survive to join this new quest? An old house once the place of great depravity is again in use near the city of York. What is the strange creature attacking people and what key does the York Minster hold to finding the Weird Shield? You will need to read the book to find out.

“There was a sound behind him, a curious sound. He turned slowly but there was nothing there. Terry shook himself, imagining things now. A few steps along the pavement later he was stopped in his tracks by the snarling winged creature that stood in his way. Terry just stood there in shock and then as it came towards him he felt the warm trickle of urine down his leg. He was too scared to notice as the creature slashed at him with its clawed hands cutting his face. Terry let out a scream and started to run , suddenly finding the strength to move breaking through the fear that had rooted him to the spot. The blood dripped as he ran but it was a wasted expended burst of energy as he felt himself being lifted in to the sky. The creature was fast.”

Find it on Amazon Uk Kindle and on Smashwords.Will be available on Amazon USA soon.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Weird-Shield-Knights-Talisman-ebook/dp/B00CVUYGZM/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1369039347&sr=8-7&keywords=tabitca+cope

Ice Age giant creatures in the news

2013-05-18T01:40:00.002-07:00

Uncovering the secrets of North America's Ice Age giants

By Alex Campbell BBC News

Eighty thousand years ago the Earth began to cool, marking the start of the last Ice Age. Experts are still discovering how the big freeze affected the giant mammals which prowled its dramatically changing landscape. Scientists are helping to uncover the secrets of giant Ice Age beasts like the sabretooth cat - by foraging in crates of dirt which were collected during the building of a car park. Wooden boxes were built around deposits of earth in 2006 after construction workers discovered the near-complete skeleton of a woolly mammoth while digging underground parking spaces at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. The 23 crates, which each have a resident palaeontologist, and 327 buckets of fossil material are yielding vital discoveries and are expected to take several years to examine in full

Read rest here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-22508888

ancient water found and a lake creature sighting from last summer

2013-05-16T01:44:00.002-07:00

Deep Canadian mine yields ancient water

By Jonathan Amos Science correspondent, BBC News

Water drilled from rock in a North American mine is among the oldest yet found on Earth, say scientists. Novel dating techniques used by the Canadian and UK team suggest the fluid is at least 1.5 billion years old. The water was probably once on the surface and then percolated through the ground where it became trapped at a depth of 2.4km.The discovery, made under Timmins, Ontario, is reported in this week's edition of the journal Nature.Although far from any light source, particular types of micro-organism could survive in the water - it has the right chemistry; it is rich in dissolved gases like hydrogen and methane.

Read rest here :http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-22544761

I found this from last summer. I wonder if there will be more sightings this summer.

Monster at Lake Hornindal in Norway

August 3, 2012 By snoma

Guys claim to see lake monster.

“We’ve seen it, there’s no doubt about that” says Andreas Solvik to NRK.no.Together with his friends Finn Nyhammer and Arvid Otterdal he was out on Lake Hornindal in Sogn & Fjordane on a short trip Wednesday this week.All of a sudden they became aware of some ripples in the water, Fjordingen newspaper writes.For decades there has been talk about the existence of a lake monster in Lake Hornindal, which is the deepest lake in Europe. At the deepest it’s 514 meter to the bottom and many people have wondered over the years what can be hiding in its depths.

Read rest here : http://doubtfulnews.com/2012/08/monster-at-lake-hornindal-in-norway/

marine predator fossil confounds experts

2013-05-15T01:43:00.001-07:00

Dolphin-like fossil confounds dinosaur experts

By JOHN VON RADOWITZ

A FOSSIL from Iraq has deepened the mystery surrounding the fate of ichthyosaurs, dolphin-like reptiles that swam in the oceans millions of years ago. The partial skeleton belongs to a creature that lived alongside the dinosaurs in the Cretaceous Period. Scientists previously thought that this type of ichthyosaur vanished more than 66 million years earlier during the Jurassic Period.The “living fossil” had hardly evolved in all that time, a study published today in the Royal Society journal Biology Letters shows. Until recently, experts believed ichthyosaurs declined gradually during a number of Jurassic extinction events. The new research, together with the discovery of another ichthyosaur last year, indicates the creatures still thrived during the early part of the Cretaceous Period.

Read rest here :http://www.scotsman.com/news/odd/dolphin-like-fossil-confounds-dinosaur-experts-1-2929868

controversy over dinosaur stampede

2013-05-12T02:35:00.004-07:00

The great dinosaur stampede that never was?

By Ari Daniel Shapiro PRI's The World, Lark Quarry, Australia

It's billed as the world's only known example of a dinosaur stampede - but new research is challenging the established version of events at Lark Quarry, in the Australian outback, almost 100 million years ago. Rewind the clocks 95 million years, and imagine the scene. You're at the edge of a watering hole in what today is north-eastern Australia. And you're not alone. More than 100 little dinosaurs are here, ranging from the size of chickens to ostriches. They're drinking peacefully, when - all of a sudden - a giant meat-eating dinosaur tears out of the brush. Its teeth and claws flash as it races in for a meal.

Read rest here :http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-22382503

strange fish caught

2013-05-11T01:47:00.000-07:00

Bizarre-looking catch off Cabo San Lucas is a Pacific stargazer

The great thing about fishing is that you never know what you might catch.The problem is, there are types of fish you probably would be better off not catching.The Pacific stargazer is one of them.On Thursday off Cabo San Lucas, one of the bizzarre-looking specimens was reeled in aboard the panga Gloria.

Read rest and see pic here: http://www.petethomasoutdoors.com/2013/05/bizarre-looking-catch-off-cabo-san-lucas-is-a-pacific-stargazer.html

Sea monster carcass? and oldest dinosaur remains found

2013-05-08T00:56:00.003-07:00

Sea monster’ mystery spawned after bizarre-looking carcass washes ashore in New Zealand

After speculation, expert suggests animal corpse is that of a killer whale

May 07, 2013 by Pete Thomas

A bizarre-looking carcass washed ashore recently on a New Zealand beach, fueling speculation that it was some sort of sea monster.

Read rest,See pics and video here :http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/nature/post/sea-monster-mystery-spawned-after-bizarre-looking-carcass-washes-ashore-in-new-zealand/

NB most of these carcasses turn out to be basking sharks, sharks or whales.

Further to this yes it is a Whale:
http://www.odt.co.nz/news/national/256253/kiwi-sea-monster-sparks-global-media-frenzy

Oldest dinosaur of its kind unearthed in Canada

By Helen Briggs BBC News

Scientists have unveiled a new species of bone-headed dinosaur, which they say is the oldest in North America, and possibly the world.The dog-sized plant-eater had a dome-shaped skull that may have been used to head-butt other dinosaurs.University of Toronto researchers say the new species, revealed in the journal Nature Communications, fills in gaps in the dinosaur family tree.They believe more small dinosaurs like Acrotholus audeti await discovery.Bone-headed dinosaurs, or thick-headed lizards, are known scientifically as pachycephalosaurs.

Read rest here : http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-22436942

crocodiles and lake monsters

2013-05-07T01:45:00.002-07:00

Kenya: Lake Victoria Crocodile Kills Form One Student in Siaya

By Eric Oloo, 3 May 2013

A Form One student was yesterday killed by a crocodile at Rabolo Beach in Lake Victoria. The 14-year-old student of Kokise Secondary School had gone to take a bath along the shores of the lake when the reptile struck.Bramuel Otieno tried in vain to save himself but the crocodile overwhelmed him, dragging him into the deep water.
Read rest here : http://allafrica.com/stories/201305061171.html

It got me wondering how many Lake Monster stories in Africa could be crocodile sightings. See some of the stories here:
http://cryptozoo-oscity.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/some-other-african-lake-creatures.html

strange creature caugth on video at Lake Foyle

2013-05-03T01:17:00.002-07:00

Video: Loch Ness monster's cousin? Is the huge sea creature spotted by students on Lake Foyle real?

1st May 2013 9:12am | By Editor

Loch Ness has taunted myth hunters and monster spotters for years, but footage has emerged of what could be a similar sea creature in northern Ireland’s Lough Foyle. The footage was taken by student Conall Melarkey when he was out on the water shooting a short film called ‘Fishing With David Lynch’ for college when the ‘beast’ broke through the surface of the water and swam past.
Read more see video : Video: Loch Ness monster's cousin? Is the huge sea creature spotted by students on Lake Foyle real? - TNT Magazine

Human cannibals in the news

2013-05-02T02:06:00.001-07:00

'Proof' Jamestown settlers turned to cannibalism

By Jane O'Brien BBC News, Jamestown, Virginia

Newly discovered human bones prove the first permanent English settlers in North America turned to cannibalism over the cruel winter of 1609-10, US researchers have said.

Scientists found unusual cuts consistent with butchering for meat on human bones dumped in a rubbish pit.
The four-century-old skull and tibia of a teenage girl in James Fort, Virginia, were excavated from the dump last year.James Fort, founded in 1607, was the earliest part of the Jamestown colony.
Read rest here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-22362831

overcrowding the cause of cannibalism?

2013-05-01T01:51:00.004-07:00

Cannibal fruit flies: Lab maggots hunt one another

By Victoria Gill Science reporter, BBC News

Researchers studying the innocuous-seeming fruit fly have found that the insects have cannibalistic tendencies.In "crowded laboratory conditions", the larvae, or maggots, will often pursue, attack and eat one another, footage reveals. Scientists investigating the effects of malnourishment on the flies found that they were able to rear keener, more capable cannibals. The findings are reported in the journal Nature Communications. The team, from the University of Lausanne, Switzerland, says that because the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster is so well-studied, the observations pave the way to discovering the biological secrets of cannibalism.

Read rest here :http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-22345811

out of places creatures in the news

2013-04-30T01:14:00.002-07:00

Lancashire kangaroo or wallaby sighting investigated

Police in Lancashire have been looking for a mystery marsupial after people reported seeing one near Garstang.Officers heard about a kangaroo crossing a carriageway in Winmarleigh while they were running a rural crime operation in the area at the weekend.Lancashire Police's Dave Kerfoot said he had been sceptical but added that seeing a photo of the animal showed he may have been "overly suspicious".He said police were investigating where the animal was from and who owned it.

Read rest see pics here : http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lancashire-22337447

Rare sighting of sperm whales in Firth of Forth

The largest group of whales thought to have been seen travelling together in or near the Firth of Forth has been recorded from the air. The pod of 14 sperm whales was seen on Thursday heading from the island of Fidra to the Lamb, just a mile offshore at North Berwick in East Lothian.The whales then changed direction, heading towards Crail in Fife.They were reported to the Scottish Seabird Centre by microlight pilots who saw them from a height of 500ft.The whales were also spotted by Scottish Natural Heritage staff and other researchers on the Isle of May who were able to identify the whales' tail flukes, dorsal fins and plumes of spray.

Read rest see pics here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-22342041

Loch Ness Monster footage to be shown

2013-04-27T02:38:00.001-07:00

Shipley man to show Loch Ness Monster footage

Chris Tate, T&A Reporter

Loch Ness Monster hunter Gordon Holmes is holding an exhibition on his astonishing efforts to find the mythical beast in celebration of Nessie’s 80th birthday existence.And it will include his world-famous footage of a mysterious aquatic shape which he filmed moving through the loch in 2007.Cryptozoologist Mr Holmes, of Shipley, has put together film and sonar studies from more than 14 research trips to create a two-week exhibition at Shipley Library from next week.

Read rest here :

http://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/news/local/airelocal/10381123.Shipley_man_to_show_Loch_Ness_Monster_footage/

Essex monster caugth

2013-04-26T02:15:00.001-07:00

Fisherman snares Billericay's own Loch Ness monster

By Jodie Nesling

IT'S never been caught and some even doubted its existence.Yet on April 16, a 50lb catfish known locally as the "Billericay Loch Ness monster" was finally snared by angler Peter Hudd.

Big Cats and Bears in the uk

2013-04-25T01:55:00.001-07:00

'Big cat' Canadian lynx was on the loose in UK in 1903

By Rebecca Morelle Science reporter, BBC World Service

A "big cat" was on the loose in the English countryside at the turn of the last century, scientists say.They believe a Canadian lynx was prowling around the fields of the South West in 1903 before being shot after attacking two dogs in Devon.Tests on the animal revealed it had probably spent some time in captivity before escaping or being set free.The animal had been donated to Bristol Museum at the time of its death and kept in its stores for decades.

Read rest see pics here :http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-22263874

Enthusiasm' for bringing bears and lynx back to Scotland

An author of a new book about a fictional attempt to reintroduce bears to Scotland says there is interest in bringing the animals back for real. Environmental campaigner Mandy Haggith was involved in a debate on bears, lynx and wolves. She said the discussions revealed an enthusiasm among those involved for the predators to be a feature of the Scottish landscape.The debate was held in Lochinver in Sutherland on Monday to mark Earth Day.The event included a visit to Inchnadamph Bone Caves where brown and polar bear remains have been found.

Read rest here :http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-22280586

Bigfoot's Foot? One giant fish rediscovered and another caught

2013-04-24T15:21:00.000-07:00

Bigfoot’s Giant, Decomposed Paw May Have Been Uncovered in Massachusetts’ Woods (PHOTO)

by Lindsay Mannering

read rest see pic here :http://thestir.cafemom.com/in_the_news/154633/bigfoots_giant_decomposed_paw_may

ESF Scientist Rediscovers Long-lost Giant Fish from Amazon

First described in 1829, species was discounted and forgotten after 1868

Read rest here :http://www.esf.edu/communications/view.asp?newsID=2245

Giant skate: Powys angler David Griffiths' 107kg fish

Read rest see pic here :http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-22249724

breaking the law

2013-04-24T15:11:00.002-07:00

Can I just remind people once again that all my comments/ ideas/ blog posts are copyrighted and to use them without acknowledging where they have come from is against the law and it is also immoral and lazy to take credit for someone else's ideas.I always credit everything from news items to extracts from books to their source as far as I can .There is no excuse for stealing other people's comments and ideas especially when it is blatantly obvious and readers of the blog contact me to tell me they have seen my ideas used by another blogger after I have posted them. You know who you are and if you don't feel suitably ashamed for stealing intellectual property from a very ill woman , remember karma will get you, if a lawyer doesn't.

marine ice age survivors

2013-04-23T01:24:00.002-07:00

Genetic study finds Ice Age salmon refuge

By Mark Kinver Environment reporter, BBC News

An area of coastal waters around North-West France has been identified as a site for a previously unknown ice-free refuge for salmon during the Ice Age. Researchers said the isolated marine haven would help explain the "genetic mosaic" of British and Irish salmon. They added that fish from this refuge bred with fish from the Iberian peninsula as they migrated into UK waters as the ice receded.

Read rest here :http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-22151865

Which begs the question what else could have had a refuge in the ice age that is still around? Those who think prehistoric marine creatures are the answer to lake monsters take note.

new dinosaur species discovered

2013-04-19T01:45:00.004-07:00

Dinosaur 'fills fossil record gap'

By Helen Briggs BBC News

Dinosaur fossils unearthed in Madagascar are of a new species that roamed the Earth about 90 million years ago, say US researchers. The remains date back to a time when India and Madagascar were one landmass cut off from the rest of the world. Revealing the discovery in the journal PLOS ONE, scientists say the dinosaur was a bi-pedal meat-eater about the size of a large cow. It has been named Dahalokely tokana, which means "lonely small bandit". Madagascar is a treasure trove for palaeontologists, yielding thousands of well-preserved fossils.

Read rest here :http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-22210435

The Dover Demon Story and Mothman story in the news

2013-04-18T02:09:00.001-07:00

Unsolved mysteries of Boston

After Whitey and the Gardner, what’s left? Meet the vanished socialite, the million-dollar postal heist, the Dover Demon—and more from a city that knows how to bury its evidence.

By Leon Neyfakh

Extract: THE DOVER DEMON "William Bartlett was 17 when he saw it, just sitting there, on a spring night in 1977. Bartlett was driving at the time along Farm Street in Dover, and though it was dark, he could clearly make it out, staring at him with its shining orange eyes. Its head was like an egg, Bartlett said later, and from what he could tell, it was hairless, and had no nose or mouth. Not knowing what to do, the teenager kept moving."

Read rest here :http://bostonglobe.com/ideas/2013/03/30/unsolved-mysteries-boston/3F0hZDplpXMUI5TQht85XO/story.html

I hope no one thinks this is in bad taste in view of the bombings. It is perhaps a tribute to the diversity of Boston. My prayers and thoughts to all those who have lost some one or who were injured in Boston.

Monster Hunt: Legend of the Mothman

In 1966, a group of gravediggers in West Virginia reported seeing a flying humanoid figure with glowing red eyes. A year later, a nearby bridge collapsed, killing 46 people. Coincidence? Probably, but who knows.

By: Katie Heaney

Read rest here :http://www.outsideonline.com/adventure-travel/north-america/united-states/west-virginia/Monster-Hunt-Legend-of-the-Mothman.html?202163991&utm_campaign=googlenews&utm_source=googlenews&utm_medium=xmlfeed

latest on Flores hobbit species

2013-04-17T02:33:00.002-07:00

Study backs 'hobbit' island dwarfism theory

A diminutive species of human whose remains were found on the Indonesian island of Flores could have shrunk as a result of island dwarfism as it adapted to its environment. A study of the remains of the creature, nicknamed the "hobbit", shows that it is possible for it to have been a dwarf version of an early human species.

Read rest here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-22166736

Giant snail invasion

2013-04-16T02:05:00.004-07:00

Giant snails on advance in Florida

South Florida is battling a growing infestation of the giant African land snail.The snail is considered one of the most destructive invasive species, feeding voraciously on more than 500 plant species.They can also eat through plaster walls, which provides the calcium content they need for their shells. Experts recently gathered at a science meeting in Gainesville to seek the best way of eradicating the snails.

Nessie in the BBC news

2013-04-14T02:24:00.000-07:00

Loch Ness Monster: Is "Nessie" just a tourist conspiracy?

By Emma Ailes BBC Scotland

It is 80 years since hotel manageress Mrs Aldie Mackay first reported seeing a "whale-like fish" in the waters of Loch Ness. Now an academic at St Andrew's University is trawling through 1,000 eye-witness accounts since to see what they can tell us.He wryly notes more than a few hotel proprietors among typical spotters. So is "Nessie" just a conspiracy to boost tourism?It was 14 April 1933 and Mrs Mackay, manageress of the Drumnadrochit Hotel, was driving with her husband along the road to Inverness.

Read rest here :http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-22125981

human ancestor was part ape

2013-04-13T01:58:00.000-07:00

Team reconstructs 'human ancestor'

The most complete view yet of a possible human ancestor uncovered in South Africa has revealed an intriguing mix of human and ape traits.The two-million-year-old remains of several partial skeletons belonging to a previously unknown humanlike species were found in 2008 near Johannesburg.The new analysis shows this species - Australopithecus sediba - had a human-like pelvis, hands and teeth, and a chimpanzee-like foot.

The findings appear in Science journal.

Read rest here :http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-22108784

new sighting of Bala Lake creature

2013-04-12T02:03:00.003-07:00

Please see comments for latest sighting

Bala Lake, in Wales, is a protected wildlife site. It is 4 miles long and is said to be 125 feet (42 metres)deep. The Welsh name is Llyn Tegid. One of it’s residents is the unique gwyniad fish, believed to have been restricted to Lake Bala from the end of the last Ice Age. The fish spends most of its life in the deep cold parts of the lake and only comes up to shallower water at night to spawn. It is not found anywhere else in the UK. The lake is also home to a creature nicknamed Teggie, said to be a dinosaur or crocodilian type aquatic animal.

It has been reported since the 1920’s but the first documented report I found was in 1975.

Dowie Bowen, the former lake warden, saw something strange. "I was looking out at the lake and saw this thing coming towards the shore," he says. "It was at least 8ft long, similar to a crocodile, with its front and rear ends about 4ins above the water." He rushed to the shore but found nothing.

Then in 1979 I found two reports. One in the The Sunday Express. Anne Jones was gazing out on peaceful water when the surface began to foam and bubble. For a few seconds she saw what looked like a huge hump-backed beast. "I shall never forget it," said Mrs Jones. "All I saw was its huge back, and froth boiling around it."

Then in the same year John Melville Rowlands, a local businessman, was fishing in the lake with his cousin. The pair saw something they described as having a large head like a football, big eyes, nearly 8 feet(2.2metres) long. It swam towards them and then disappeared within a few yards of the boat. Mr Rowlands said he wouldn’t describe it as a monster, just something very large unlike the large pike normally seen.

Then I found this on the internet :

My encounter with the monster took place when I was 14 in the summer of 1992. It was twilight and I was on the shingle beach of the lake, in front of the Catamaran Club, looking for flat stones to skim on the lake's calm surface. Without thinking, I suddenly turned a full 180 degrees and looked straight at the monster. The reason for my sudden turnaround was because it was looking right at me. It was about twenty metres away, it's black head and neck clear above the surface of the water. The instant I saw it, it ducked under. My first thought was that a diver was playing a hoax, swimming under the surface with a Loch ness monster head. I immediately disregarded this for two reasons. The head had ducked under the water extremely quickly - only an animal with fins or paddles could have ducked under the surface that fast. Furthermore, there were no tell-tale bubbles indicating the presence of an artificial underwater breathing system. It looked to me like a plesiosaur and I would estimate its length to be approximately twelve feet (3.66 metres). B Vickers BSc (Hons),

In March 1995 Paul and Andrew Delaney, were fishing from a small boat on the lake They were visiting from London and unaware of Teggie reports. They were surprised to see a small head that appeared at the lake's surface only 80 yards( 26 metes) or so away, which then proceeded to raise itself on a long slender neck until it was about 10 feet ( 3.1 metres) above the surface before disappearing under the water. The same year by Japanese TV crew, investigated the lake and obtained a sonar trace of a very large, unidentified object moving swiftly under the water, but failed to film anything.

. One windsurfer recently reported being strangely "lifted out of the water". And many boating accidents have been attributed to the beast.

Some of the explanations put forward include one from the First World War. Secret military experiments were said to have been carried out with seals, which were trained to place limpet mines on their targets. Some escaped and Teggie was born. Others believe that Teggie is actually the 'Pontrhydfendigaid witch, Mari Berllan Biter' who can transform herself into all kinds of shapes and forms. Could it be some sort of seal? It certainly is the size for one and a seal can have the look of a long neck if it stretches itself to see something. The crocodilian type creature described could not be a seal though. I also would have thought a seal would have been seen more often and on the shore, they don’t live permanently in the water. Maybe there is more than one creature from the Ice Age still living in the lake, only further investigation can tell.

Sea Serpents and Lake Monsters of the British Isles

3 comments:

paul.rushton57@googlemail.com said...: On the 10/04/2013 my son and i were fishing for pike at the top end of the lake using very large surface lures. When attempting to cast out again we saw a large black shiny head surface where we had been casting our lures. We watched this thing glide along to surface about 20 yards out making its way to the shore. We watched it for about 20 seconds until it disappeared under the surface. The head was about 2,5 feet long with about 2,0 feet sticking above the surface. It was about 2 meters in length. I believe that our contstant casting in and out must have brought this thing up to see what was going on. We have been pike fishing Bala lake for over 25years and have never witnessed anything like this. We have seen all types of birds and mammals so what we
saw was not any of those.

I will never wade out in Bala lake again we have reported this incident to Bala police. It has given us a greater respect for Bala lake and we know what we saw was not natural, now its sunk in its left us quite scared to go near the water again as this thing was hunting for a meal.

Paul Rushton
Richard Rushton.; 11 April 2013 11:26
Richard Rushton said...: I and my dad were fishing there yesterday and we saw it! We have fished Bala for years and used to be told by a farmer who has sadly passed away now, who we used to camp in his field about 15 years ago. He used to ask us if we saw the Bala monster as we would camp on the edge of the lake but we never did, until yesterday. Yesterday we travelled up there to catch pike and there was a lot going on in the day time, I think it was a training day for the fire rescue team as there was the rescue helicopter doing a rescue attempt with people on the roof of a sunken caravan. Also there were numerous rescue power boats surging up and down the lake. The waters were being parted from the blades from the helicopter as it hovered over the caravan whilst winching the people from off the caravan. With all this commotion going on we decided to fish another lake further out from Bala. Anyway we decided that around 5pm we would head back to Bala presuming that all the noise would have calmed down, we fished various points around the lake with no joy and we ended up towards the nature reserve end where there are 3-4 rocks that go out in the lake looking slightly towards your left you would see a fence going into the water where the cormorants perch themselves where the river dee flows in, in the background. We fished and had no joy the water was flat calm and there was a cold chill. It just felt very eerie. The gate behind us went and a farmer was watching us from up the top of a very large bank we walked down and as I turned around to look, my dad said to me "what’s that" We looked and we saw a large head and it was black and it was though it had two parts where its head was above the water and its back was also above too. It was swimming toward the shore and it’s as though it appeared from out the lake. Our first natural reaction was that it was a dog but the more we stared it resembled something very unusual. It wasn't a dog. The farmer was asking us if we had caught anything and that’s when he told us about the sad loss of the farmer we knew. We didn't mention what we just saw because it hadn't quite sunk in and after he had gone we decided to walk down in that direction along the railway track. Whilst on the way down in that direction toward the nature reserve end we talked about what it could have been; 11 April 2013 17:52
Richard Rushton said...: . As it's a nature reserve area there is a bird watching hut where this unexplained creature was swimming toward the shore so we kept thinking despite our doubts maybe it was a dog. We got near to where this hut should have been but it wasn't there anymore??? We don't know how long ago it has been gone but if it was still there then it could have been a bird watcher with his dog but there was nothing. Nobody could have thrown a stick in the water for the dog because you couldn't throw a stick from the railway because of all the trees and you would have to climb over a wired fence which would be awkward to say the least. We didn't hear a stick thrown in the water nor any noise which would resemble a dog swimming out to swim back in to the shore again. As I explained it was quiet and it appeared from the lake. When I looked around to see the farmer making his way toward us it was my dad that first spotted it as it was so quiet the way it swam in; only sight could verify it being there. It was so subtle and we weren’t far away from it at all not to hear it. The evening was very quiet as it was around 19:30pm. Our theory as to why we saw it was because of all the noise at the other end of the lake during the day from all the power boats and the helicopter, where the deep contours are (only electric outboards can only usually be used for boats normally)... must have driven it up the other end of the lake where it could find peace and to back it up we were using heavy lures which we were using for pike with the noise of the splashes must have intrigued it to surface. When we thought about it though it was too big to be a dog, seal or anything else I could relate it too. It could have been at least 8 ft or more. What’s really reassuring to know is it tallies up with what other people have witnessed that its black, at least 8 ft long swimming toward the shore. My dad has notified the police at Bala today and that the Warden for Bala Lake will keep on the lookout for anything unusual in the water. My summary is that I shall not call it a monster but rather it must be a large rare creature of some kind because the more I watched it swimming toward the shore the more puzzled I was trying to verify what it was. Being a fisherman all my life we get to see it all whether a dog, seal, ducks, otters swimming in the water but nothing like this. It's a large natural lake over 100 ft deep and has so much history. Even the Gwyniad fish only seems to be native in this lake, and I've seen one of these in there too.; 11 April 2013 17:53