Loch Ness Monster Sighting Becomes a Circus

It seems that everyone wants to get in on the Loch Ness Monster act !
Popular Author Steve Alten, who penned MEG, a Novel of Deep Terror, soon to be made into a movie, also has written The Loch, a thriller about the Loch Ness Monster, who is–get this–a giant EEL. Alten, of course, is jubilent that his heavily-researched book has been authenticated by the video that accompanied the newly-announced sighting of that creature. He even has the coolest Llama Monster cam on his site. Yesterday I saw a boat in the distance, and the peaceful green pastures overlooking the loch reminded me so much of the stunning drawings Martine Carlsen created for our book, Lucy, the Loch Ness Llama. This morning, there are actually sheep grazing there!

In other related news,

• A U.K. bookmaker has announced a £1 million reward (about $2 mil USD) to the person who can photographically prove the existence of the Loch Ness Monster. This will be accomplished by the give-away of 50,000 one-use cameras at a sort of “Nessie Love-Fest” to be celebrated this weekend on the shores of Loch Ness (Wish I could be there!)
• Destination Loch Ness, a group of business and tourism people (guess where) are seeking World Heritage status from the U.N. for Loch Ness and the Great Glen. This effort is related to the history and beauty of the area, but certainly a new sighting of the Loch Ness Monster couldn’t hurt (or could it?)
• Organizers of a swimming/kayaking race in Loch Ness recently included insurance for participants against attacks by the Loch Ness Monster.

A LiveScience commentary sheds doubt on the authenticity of Gordon Holmes’ interpretation that his video was really of the monster. It seems that Gordon often “sees things” no one else can see. He has a history of claiming to see odd and unusual creatures, and he sells a self-published book and DVD featuring what he claims is evidence for the existence of fairies, wrote Benjamin Radford.

Bloggers (including this one) are having a hey-day with the recent sighting. Happy Jihad’s House of Pancakes response to the LiveScience article debunking Gordon Holmes’ video, was a succinct “No Shit!” My favorite, though, is CryptoMundo, both for its in-depth, ongoing coverage, and for the comments sections, which cover the gamut of speculation about the real origin of the Loch Ness Monster.

Then, There’s Me

By a very small stretch of the imagination, it is not difficult to project the image of a Llama swimming as very closely resembling some kind of legendary sea creature. The image at the right (© Martine Carlsen) shows Lucy taking her very first swim in Loch Ness, under the scrutiny of a seabird. That she enjoys it extremely is evident, although her form leaves a little to be desired.

Never you mind though, once she masters the intricacies of the breast stroke as opposed to the dog-paddle, she becomes an extraordinary swimmer, able to hold her breath underwater for long periods of time.

Now I ask you: Is it too far a stretch to see why tourists on boats, Loch Ness Monster hunters, or even Gorden Holmes, might mistake this friendly llama for a monster of the deep? If you still have doubts, I suggest you read the book.

I rest my case.