It has been 80 years since the first sighting of the Loch Ness Monster. Here are some facts that you might not know about the elusive beast (Nessie isn't afterall known for giving many interviews):
1. THE LOCH NESS MONSTER IS THE WORLD'S MOST FAMOUS "CRYPTID": The Loch Ness Monster is the most famous cryptid. A cryptid is a creature whose existence has been attested to by various "eyewitnesses" and yet is not recognized by established science.
2. THE FIRST EVER SIGHTING OF NESSIE: The Loch Ness Monster, or otherwise known as Nessie, was said to be first seen in 565 AD when followers of the missionary St. Columba reportedly saw a monster in the Loch.
3. NESSIE'S CRIB: Loch Ness is located in the Highlands of Scotland, a few miles southwest of Inverness. It is the second largest loch (lake) in Scotland with depths reaching over 750 feet.
4. GEORGE SPICER MEETS THE LOCH NESS MONSTER: Fast forward to 1933, George Spicer claimed to see a gigantic, long-necked animal slowly crossing the road in fron of his car. The extraordinary creature was apparently on its way back to Loch Ness. A month later, a motorcyclist named Arthur Grant claimed that he too saw the same creature and avoided striking it while out on a midnight drive.
5. NESSIE'S MOST FAMOUS PHTOGRAPH WAS A HOAX: The most famous photo of the Loch Ness Monster was taken by Dr. Robert Kenneth Wilson. The photo was a black and white image of a long-necked , small-headed sea monster. It was proved to be a fake in 1975 and once again in 1993. The size of the ripples revealed that it was a hoax as it did not match Nessie's presumed anatomy.
6. INSURANCE AGAINST THE LOCH NESS MONSTER: In 2005, 100 athletes taking part in Scotland's biggest triathlon were reportedly each insured for £1 million against bites from the Loch Ness Monster.
7. FAKE FOOTPRINTS: In 1933, the Daily Mail reported that Madmaduke Wetherall found footprints on the shore of the loch after they sent him to look for Nessie. The British Museum of Natural History later discovered the prints had been made with a stuffed hippopotamus foot.
8. REWARD POSTED: Since 1987, bookmaker William Hill has paid the Natural History Museum in London an annual fee of £1,000 to ensure that its experts would confirm Nessie's identity, should the monster ever be found.
9. NESSIE'S NOT ALONE: Besides the Loch Ness, other very deep bodies of water in Scotland and Scandinavia are said to be inhabited by an aquatic monster.
10. LOCH NESS FAME-MONSTER: A 2006 survey named the Loch Ness Monster as the most famous Scot-surpassing both poet Robert Burns and actor Sir Sean Connery.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
