In Search of Nessie September 27, 2006
I decided not to try fishing again this morning, so Holly and I drove north to Loch Ness to see if we could find the infamous monster and put an end to all the controversy. Inverness and the north end of Loch Ness are only about twenty miles north of Strathnoon and an easy drive with good road.
We stopped in Inverness first and went to the public library to check email and then moved on to find lunch and explore the lake. Our plan was to first scour the west side of the loch by road and by boat and then, if unsuccessful, turn up the east side scanning the lake from the higher ground on that side. We were determined to sight and photograph the monster clearly enough to end all doubts of her existence.
Loch Ness is about thirty miles long and two miles wide and is up to 600 meters deep. It is said that Loch Ness holds as much water as all other lakes in Great Britain. The waters are cold and stained form the peat that the streams and rivers flow through on their journey to the lake. The terrain around the lake is mountainous and sparsely populated except for Inverness.
Our first stop after Inverness was the Loch Ness Clansman Inn where we had a quick lunch and then boarded one of the cruise boats. We opted for the one hour cruise as we felt that our chances were better watching from the shore and with the length of the lake and the roads narrow and winding it would take us a while to complete our circuit and search. The boat motored down the lake to Urquhart Castle which stands on a promontory and is now a ruin but still quite impressive. We then motored back to the dock the whole time with eyes glued to the water in case we would miss our quarry. We saw nothing in the hour but did not loose our conviction because we knew our quest would not be easy.
Back in the car we continued our drive down the lake until we arrived at the Loch Ness Monster Exhibition Centre; a highly scientific institution that is devoted to uncovering the mysteries of the loch and what swims there. Even with this vast arsenal of research we gained no new knowledge that would aid our search. No, it would have to come down to endless seconds and minutes of scanning the waters constantly searching for an unusual ripple or a wake where no boat had passed. We moved on as vigil as ever.
We were almost to the south end of the lake and stopped at a lakeside viewing area when we saw something strange appear from the dark waters. We couldn’t believe our eyes; what was this rising from the water in front of us. It was Nessie herself she had come up from the depths to sit on a half submerged boulder to enjoy the subdued late afternoon light. Holly recovered and quickly snapped a couple of pictures before Nessie again disappeared beneath the loch’s waters. You can see the pictures by going to our picture site listed at the top of the blog.
Our quest satisfied we turned north east when we reached Ft. Augustus and the south end of the lake to make our way home. As the sun began to set we drove through the mountains into the gathering doom happy in the knowledge that we can now provide mankind the answer to one of the world’s great mysteries.
We stopped in Inverness first and went to the public library to check email and then moved on to find lunch and explore the lake. Our plan was to first scour the west side of the loch by road and by boat and then, if unsuccessful, turn up the east side scanning the lake from the higher ground on that side. We were determined to sight and photograph the monster clearly enough to end all doubts of her existence.
Loch Ness is about thirty miles long and two miles wide and is up to 600 meters deep. It is said that Loch Ness holds as much water as all other lakes in Great Britain. The waters are cold and stained form the peat that the streams and rivers flow through on their journey to the lake. The terrain around the lake is mountainous and sparsely populated except for Inverness.
Our first stop after Inverness was the Loch Ness Clansman Inn where we had a quick lunch and then boarded one of the cruise boats. We opted for the one hour cruise as we felt that our chances were better watching from the shore and with the length of the lake and the roads narrow and winding it would take us a while to complete our circuit and search. The boat motored down the lake to Urquhart Castle which stands on a promontory and is now a ruin but still quite impressive. We then motored back to the dock the whole time with eyes glued to the water in case we would miss our quarry. We saw nothing in the hour but did not loose our conviction because we knew our quest would not be easy.
Back in the car we continued our drive down the lake until we arrived at the Loch Ness Monster Exhibition Centre; a highly scientific institution that is devoted to uncovering the mysteries of the loch and what swims there. Even with this vast arsenal of research we gained no new knowledge that would aid our search. No, it would have to come down to endless seconds and minutes of scanning the waters constantly searching for an unusual ripple or a wake where no boat had passed. We moved on as vigil as ever.
We were almost to the south end of the lake and stopped at a lakeside viewing area when we saw something strange appear from the dark waters. We couldn’t believe our eyes; what was this rising from the water in front of us. It was Nessie herself she had come up from the depths to sit on a half submerged boulder to enjoy the subdued late afternoon light. Holly recovered and quickly snapped a couple of pictures before Nessie again disappeared beneath the loch’s waters. You can see the pictures by going to our picture site listed at the top of the blog.
Our quest satisfied we turned north east when we reached Ft. Augustus and the south end of the lake to make our way home. As the sun began to set we drove through the mountains into the gathering doom happy in the knowledge that we can now provide mankind the answer to one of the world’s great mysteries.
posted by Gary and Holly Davis @ 3:33 PM
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