viernes, 14 de junio de 2013
miércoles, 17 de abril de 2013
martes, 20 de noviembre de 2012
Champ is a member of the elite group of creatures who share a common bond classed as cryptozoological animals. These creatures include dragons, unicorns, Pegasus, Sasquatch, Yeti, and of course, Champ's "cousin", the Loch Ness Monster. The single trait they all have in common is that their existence on earth has never been satisfactorily proven or conclusively disproven. Lake Champlain Named for its discoverer, Samuel de Champlain, Lake Champlain is a spectacular hundred-mile-long lake that stretches down from Canada and runs north and south between Vermont and New York, forming a natural border between them1, 3. While in some spots the lake reaches a depth of 400 feet, extending 150 yards or more from the shore much of the lake is only 12 to 14 feet deep2. A characteristic trait of long, narrow lakes with deep channels is the seiche. Both Loch Ness and Lake Champlain are endowed with this peculiar feature. A seiche is a perpetual wave in an enclosed body of water, which lies in a geographic area that undergoes severe winters. Changes in spring and autumn temperatures affect the shallow areas of these long lakes more rapidly than they affect the deep channels, causing the deep water to slosh back and forth, between the lake's boundaries, like a plucked guitar string. At the surface, the seiche in Lake Champlain may be barely a ripple while below the surface it is usually about 30 feet high and at times may grow to a height of 300 feet3. Champ History Samuel de Champlain is often quoted1, 2 as having written that he saw, "a 20-foot serpent thick as a barrel, and a head like a horse" in Lake Champlain during his explorations in the 17th Century. However, this misquote is believed to have first appeared in a 1970 Vermont Journal article by the late Marjorie Porter. In Champlain's true journal, he most likely described the gar fish2, 6 in an entry that reads (Muerger 1988): "... there is one [fish] called by the natives 'Chaousarou', which is of various lengths; but the largest of them, as these tribes have told me, are from eight to ten feet long. I have seen some five feet long, which were as big as my thigh, and had a head as large as my two fists, with a snout two feet and a half long, and a double row of very sharp, dangerous teeth. Its body has a good deal the shape of the pike; but it is protected by scales of a silvery gray colour and so strong that a dagger could not pierce them." The earliest genuine report of a Champ sighting is from 1819. A "Capt. Crum" aboard a scow on Bulwagga Bay saw "a black monster" about 187 feet long with a flat head that resembled a seahorse. According to the account, the monster reared its head more than fifteen feet out of the water. The creature was two hundred yards in the distance and traveled "with the utmost velocity" while being chased by "two large Sturgeon and a Bill-fish." With his remarkable vision, Crum noticed that it had three teeth, large eyes the color of a peeled onion, a white star on its forehead, and a red band about its neck2. Champ was relatively quiet for the next 50 years until reports of the monster started resurfacing in newspapers around 1873. The news stories drew the attention of P.T. Barnum who offered a $50,000 reward for Champ, captured dead or alive. Although many sought the reward, no one was able to deliver the giant to Barnum1, 4, 5, 6. Champ Sightings From the varied description in reports over the years, Champ is chameleon-like and a master of disguise2, 3. Reports have compared him to a great snake, a large Newfoundland dog, a yacht, a horse, a manatee, a periscope, a lizard-like four-legged animal, and a whale.
Manipogo is the name given to the Lake Monster reported to live in Lake Manitoba, Manitoba, Canada. Sightings of this cryptid have been known from at least 1908. Other incidents include, in: 1948: Reported that some sort of creature rose six feet out of the lake and gave a “prehistoric type of dinosaur cry.” 1957: Visitors saw a “giant serpent like creature in the lake.” (The creature was dubbed Manipogo in 1957, the name echoing British Columbia’s Ogopogo.) The two most intriguing sightings occurred in 1962 and 1997. The first sighting was during a fishing trip. Dick Vincent of KCND Television (later CKND, now Global) and his television colleague, John Konefell, spotted a serpent-like creature and chased after it in their boat. They were unable track down the mysterious animal, but were able to take a blurred photograph. The photograph showed a large, dark object rising two feet out of the water. In subsequent years, Vincent denied that it was Manipogo, claiming he wasn’t sure what it was.
The Iliamna Lake Monster, or commonly referred to by locals as Illie, is a cryptid whose legend has haunted the Alaskan fishing village of Iliamna. The native’s tales describe a large beast that roams the waters. The monster has many reported sightings along with a few reported causes of death under its belt. Over the years, it has gained enough attention to lure the Animal Planet show “River Monsters” in attempt to find out what may lie beneath the waters. The monster is a reported 10–30 feet in length with a square-like head that is used to place blunt force unto things such as small boats. Although there is no physical evidence to conclude the monster's existence, many reports beg to differ. Sightings 1942: Babe Alyesworth and Bill Hammersley reported seeing a large, dull, aluminum-colored fish from their plane. This encouraged others to come forth with sightings and more information. 1963: Biologist reported seeing a 25–30 foot fish from overhead; it did not come up for air. 1977: A pilot, while flying over Pedro Bay, spots a 12–14 foot fish on the surface as it dove down, revealing vertical tail. 1987: Resident Verna Kolyaha reported seeing a large black fish with white stripe down its fin. 1988: Several locals report the same sighting from water and land, a large black fish with a fin swimming near the surface.