Comments on: Chinese Water Dragons and the Aquatic Cryptids of Canada

By: Mnynames

Mnynames — Sat, 08 Jul 2006 12:00:35 +0000

I’ve never heard of an Idleworm, but your description sounds like the Scandinavian Lindorm or Lindworm, which some early researchers speculated might be land-dwelling, juvenile sea serpents. 2 recurring features in tales of the Lindworm were its very large size (Often preying on cattle) and its horrible stench upon being killed.

By: crunchyfrog

crunchyfrog — Sun, 02 Jul 2006 04:06:07 +0000

Hello All you cryptofanatics

I am just new to this group and find it very interesting. I am glad that canada is known for something more than our inability to keep the stanley cup here.

As for lake monsters, I believe that I may have an answer to the eyewitness accounts of great dark shapes underwater. We use to have a cottage on lake huron, when I was a kid. I remenber one particular morning when I spotted a large swirling black mass in the shallows. When I approached it, I found it to be made up of hundreds or thousands of juvenile fish. I was not sure, but I believe they were catfish. So some of these dark shapes maybe unusually large shoals of bait or baby fish. I believe in a back issue of the great fortean times there is a picture from Australia of this event that I saw, and it sure looked like some kind of large beast.

By: shumway10973

shumway10973 — Wed, 28 Jun 2006 06:37:27 +0000

of course there can be large aquatic creatures in the northern climates. Some of those lakes actually keep a constant temp. remember that most legends and myths begin some where, usually beginning in fact. There have been other reports in America’s deep south of reptilian bipeds attacking people, and doing things that no man in a costume could do. true, I was taught that we were the only biped, but we are still finding new creatures all the time. Plus don’t forget that we haven’t even touched the surface of discovering what is under the water.

By: Ranatemporaria

Ranatemporaria — Tue, 27 Jun 2006 20:35:00 +0000

I worry some times that this site is sliding towards BF and away from other issues… but it might just be my favoritism towards the aquatic!?

By: Jeremy_Wells

Jeremy_Wells — Tue, 27 Jun 2006 15:02:18 +0000

We had stories from divers working on the Greenup County (Kentucky) Dam across the Ohio River of refrigerator length catfish. I’ve personally seen a catfish taken from the Ohio River that measured nearly 6 feet in length (I was just a kid, but my uncle caught it, and its tail hung over the tailgate of his compact pickup truck).

While I haven’t seen any eels since I was a kid (which I imagine has something to do with septic tank run-off and other pollution in those eastern Kentucky streams I played in as a youth), between the big snapping turtles, giant catfish and nearly lobster size crawfish I’ve seen in my day, it wouldn’t surprise me to hear that there were some oversized eels or other “giant” examples of known creatures in northern lakes (or of an altogether unknown creature.)

As for “lake monster” bodies washing to shore, if I may play devil’s advocate, the problem there is that, like any other living creature, a lake monster would sink when it first died. Look at a dead fish in a fish tank. The fish sinks first, then, after the body begins to bloat, it floats to the surface.

However, say something starts eating on this dead fish (like another fish in the aquarium). If this happens, the bloating effect is negated because the gases created by the body can escape through all those little bites, rather than swelling the body and causing it to float to the surface.

What I’m getting at is, a big piece of protein like that, while it surely isn’t going to be eaten in a single setting, is going to get nibbled at and torn to pieces.

So, to paraphrase the immortal Don Ameche “Ogopogo eats his dead.”

By: twblack

twblack — Tue, 27 Jun 2006 01:50:14 +0000

I have to agree with OLE BUD I am a little on the sketpic side when it comes to lake monsters. I am in no way saying they do not exist for I have never seen one and my skeptcism is of ignoranace also. But with a lake monster only having so much space so to speak and to have all the radar and teck. stuff we have today well leaves me with more skepticism then most cryptid things. I hope they are for real but over time no bodies. If something of 25-50ft has to die sometime and to think no remains would wash up to the shore in a lake? With BF he has so much more space that when death comes I can understand no body being found the old story their has never been a dead bear found out in the woods is a good example of why no body of BF has been found.Well I could give a 100 things here as to why I am a little skeptical on lake monsters but I hope they do exist!

By: stonelk

stonelk — Mon, 26 Jun 2006 22:29:45 +0000

Thank you Ranatemporaria,
That could very well explain the souce of the legends of the idleworm.

By: TemplarKnight21c

TemplarKnight21c — Mon, 26 Jun 2006 22:27:42 +0000

I don’t really recall hearing a version of the Wendigo story that involved it being a lake monster, but ok. Also, I remember reading two separate articles from Fortean Times about supposed dragons from Asia, specifically China, I believe, that were photographed. One from a plane, the other from the ground.

By: Ranatemporaria

Ranatemporaria — Mon, 26 Jun 2006 18:05:14 +0000

Stonelk.
As discussed here numerous times before, eels (i know of species Aguila anguila/vulgaris) in europe, travel over land on wet nights and dark days to look for new waters in search of food and to return to mating grounds, this could be the scource of stories. There are also very similar stories from the east, this being my favorite.

By: stonelk

stonelk — Mon, 26 Jun 2006 17:18:56 +0000

Stories about lake monsters always remind me of old european legends of idleworms. The way I remember it an idleworm was a snake or eel like creature some times depicted with short legs or stiff fins that they were able to walk with. They were migratory and likely to turn up in a pond or the village well. Perhaps the idleworm was the offspring of the european cousins of the north american lake monster. I have searched the net for stories on the idleworm legend but cant find any. Any one else heard of a idleworm?