OGOPOGO
Perhaps the world's second most famous
lake cryptid, Ogopogo inhabits Lake Okanagan in British Columbia, Canada. His name
comes from a silly song composed in his honor. The original name given to the
creature by the local Native Americans was Naitaka, and he was feared as an evil
spirit. An ancient drawing of Naitaka is seen at right. Native Americans
crossing the lake were always careful to bring along an animal to sacrifice to the
monster. Those who omitted the sacrifice were dragged under and never seen
again. Teams of horses have been lost swimming across the lake, in a smiliar manner.
Nowadays, Ogopogo is more
benign, acting as a draw for tourists. The statue seen in the photo on the left is
just one example of a friendlier Ogopogo. A stamp of the creature (above) was even
produced as part of a cryptozoology series.
A
photo allegedly showing Ogopogo
An
artist's view of Ogopogo
