Lake Champlain, 1878

One of the earliest recorded descriptions of the creature in Lake Champlain that would later come to be known as Champ was given in 1878. On August 30^th of that year, six people aboard a yacht on the lake saw the creature. One witness estimated Champ's length at over 50 feet. This same witness described the beast as having "two large folds just back of the head projecting above the water," with "two or more folds at what was apparently the tail."

Lake Champlain is about 100 miles long and connects Vermont, New York, and Canada. Champ has been spotted consistently over the years, well into the last century.  In 1977, Sandra Mansi took a famous photograph of Champ while visiting Lake Champlain.

© C Harris Lynn, 2011