Not all lake legends are human. “When my husband was a kid and visiting his grandparents’ cottage on Lac Pemichangan, Que., he invented a lake monster,” cottager Laura M. told us after we asked for your stories of legendary cottagers. “He called it the Porkyfish: porcupine plus fish. It had dead eyes, spikes on its back, and human arms. My grandparents’ cottage has since been sold, but we keep up the legend for our kids at our own cottage.”
Okay, so Porkyfish isn’t real (Right? Right?) But… what about these other lake creatures? Sure, they may not be legends yet. But spread the word, and they will be.
1) Cressie
Crescent Lake, NFLD. Some who’ve spotted this East Coast beast (its name is a portmanteau: “Crescent” plus “Nessie”) describe it as “shiny” and having a “fish-like head.” So, it looks like… a fish.
2) Manipogo A.K.A Winnipogo
Lake Manitoba and Lake Winnipegosis, Man. In classic lake monster-style, Manipogo/Winnipogo has “humps you can spot above water.” Sightings have been reported since the 1800s. Which is also when photography was invented. Yet nobody tooka photo of these monsters. Pfft. What a waste of an invention.
3) Mugwump
Lake Temiskaming, Ont. Mugwump sounds like the stuff of nightmares: roughly six metres long, with a black, glistening head and “protruding” eyeballs. Some reports say it can also crawl on land. Gah! But the name is kind of cute.
4) Ponik
Lake Pohene-gamook, Que. The description of this creature is all over the place: A serpent body. Humps. A horse head. Catfish whiskers. A tail as big as an airplane. This bonkersness prompted the Montreal Gazette to send a writer and a photograph to investigate in 1977. Sadly, “our team didn’t find Ponik that day.” Or ever.
5) Turtle Lake Monster
Turtle Lake, Sask. It’s either an ancient-looking creature similar to a sturgeon or an ancient-looking creature that’s similar to a dog or a pig. Nobody has bothered to give this monster a nickname, so we will. Turtley! Dogapig! Sturgeon!
6) Old Ned
Lake Utopia, N.B. There’s a good chance that Ned—with his dorsal fin and flat tail—might actually be a basking shark. At least one illustration of Ned depicts him as having short, dog-like legs. Male basking sharks have two penises. Which could perhaps look like legs if you squint.
7) Ol’ Slavey
Great Slave Lake, N.W.T. There aren’t many descriptions of Ol’ Slavey. But to be fair, Great Slave Lake is the deepest lake in North America. So he can probably easily hide.
8) Thetis Lake Monster
Thetis Lake, B.C. Move over, Ogopogo. Your province has another lake monster. Or maybe not; as the story goes, two boys invented their August 1972 sighting as a joke. (They were inspired by a monster movie they’d seen on TV earlier in the week). It was still enough to make the RCMP investigate. Riding horses outfitted with snorkel gear, we assume.
This story was originally published in the August 2024 issue of Cottage Life.
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