The Return of the Lake Monster

Stories of giant serpents, octopus-type creatures, cat-faced water spirits, and even a plesiosaur-like cousin of Scotland’s “Nessie” living in Devil’s Lake have been told for many generations, but nothing has ever been photographed.  Sure, if you dig around online you might find a blurry image of what I’m quite sure is a floating log….

Well, let me submit for your consideration this photograph that I took from the park’s south bluff last weekend. I didn’t see the shadow in the water at the time. In fact, I didn’t even see it when I first edited the photograph. It wasn’t until I was about to share it online that I noticed what looked like a black smudge. In going back to correct the image, I realized it wasn’t an ordinary “flaw”. It’s not something created by dirt on the sensor or something on the glass. By zooming in I could see it looked much more like a shadow of something just above or below the water. Plainly, it’s not above the water or the object casting the shadow would be in the shot.  What’s more, I snapped 2 shots just a few moments apart and in the second photograph, the shadow had gone! Did some sort of mysterious creature rise to follow those kayakers only to sink back down into the depths of Devil’s Lake moments later?? Insert “mystery music” here!!!

Below I’ve zoomed in quite far and it certainly still looks like a shadow on or beneath the water.  Compared to the kayakers in the frame, it’s pretty large…

Well, now that the park is quieting down for the season, we expect to see a lot more wildlife on the water. I can tell you this much, I’ll be paying a bit more attention to what’s going on out there this autumn!  And maybe not kayaking alone!

Derrick Mayoleth

For nearly 2 decades the Skillet Creek blog has focused on 3 main goals; To inspire you to visit and explore the Devil’s Lake region, to help you get the most your visit by sharing tips, events, and other helpful information. Lastly to advocate for our environment & wildlife and talk about how we can keep our natural areas amazing now and into the future! That last goal can sometimes cause controversy, but it’s the only way we can accomplish the first two. – Derrick Mayoleth, Owner.