Lake Monsters and Their Legends

I've posted a couple of times about the Loch Ness Monster, a legend that I find fascinating. But David Bennet of British Columbia pointed out that BC has two of its own legendary lake monsters, called Ogopogo and Cadborosaurus. David revealed that "Ogopogo is a lake monster, like Nessie, supposedly living in Lake Okanagan, in the interior of BC. Cadborosaurus, or Caddy to his friends, is a sea monster supposedly living in the waters off Victoria's breakwater, which shelters the Inner Harbour area."

This was a revelation to me, since I thought Loch Ness was the only story of this kind. Now, after some research, and with the tip from David, I have found that many a lake has its attendant monster, or legend thereof, and that there is much folklore regarding the creatures. There are plenteous websites that offer information about the lake legends, like this one and this one and many more. And David's BC lake creatures are not alone by a long shot!

What this tells me is that many people, like me, crave mysteries. We want things to be unsolved and larger than life, because that means that we can hold onto our fascination and our hope of something compelling. Do I think that one of these lake monsters will be found? Of course I can't rule it out. New species (or really old ones) have been located before--why not in the bottom of a lake? But will it bother me if they are never found? Not really. These sea creatures are already alive in the imaginations of thousands of people, and they'll stay there as long as we have the capacity to think and dream.

What's your favorite legend?

Photo link here.