Loch Ness monster hunters gear up for the biggest Nessie hunt in decades

As It Happens7:30Loch Ness monster hunters gear up for the biggest “Nessie” hunt in decades

Monster hunters from around the globe will have their eyes fixed on Scotland's Loch Ness later this month in what might be the largest Nessie hunt since the 1970s.

The Loch Ness Centre, in partnership with a group called Loch Ness Exploration and any willing volunteers will scan the water — visually and using available technology — for signs of large life.

"For us, it's about getting as many eyes on the water as possible," Paul Nixon, general manager of the Loch Ness Centre, told As it Happens guest host Peter Armstrong.

The last search of this size, led by the now-defunct Loch Ness Investigation Bureau, happened in 1972.

A mix of manpower and modern technology could be the keys to success this time around, according to Nixon.

Rather than the film cameras of decades ago, the hunters will deploy thermal imaging drones each night in hopes of capturing heat spots, which may be signs of life. They're also dropping hydrophones — underwater microphones — to depths of 18 metres to see what they can hear.

Each hunter will be armed with the recording capabilities of their smartphone. And webcams streaming the lake from multiple vantage points will let volunteers from across the globe participate in the search.

Loch Ness Exploration founder Alan McKenna leads small groups of skeptics and believers alike to the loch's edge once or twice a month. Together, they look for evidence of some kind of creature in the water.

They usually don't have the resources to explore under the water, which McKenna said is an advantage of a large-scale hunt. He hopes they'll be able to document breaks in the water's surface, which might suggest movement of a large creature, later this month.

Loch Ness lore

The earliest reported sighting of a strange beast in Loch Ness was believed to take place around 500 A.D. But the myth didn't gain much traction until 1933 when a local newspaper reported a couple's claims of seeing "an enormous animal rolling and plunging on the surface."

Since then, countless theories about what lurks below have surfaced. 

Evidence that the plesiosaur, a sea-dwelling dinosaur, could have lived in freshwater excited some Nessie believers last year. But previous research ruled that theory impossible — a DNA study of the water revealed Loch Ness to be home to 3,000 species, none of which were dinosaurs. 

These days, many — including experts — believe that an oversized eel or squid is responsible for the years of monster sightings.

Nixon said he's heard all kinds of theories — including one that claims people are actually spotting a portal to another dimension, rather than a deep-sea denizen. He, on the other hand, believes simply in the "possibility of something there." 

McKenna says he used to believe a dinosaur-like creature existed under the waves. But these days, he says he simply doesn't know what the source of the legends could be.

He does think, however, that whatever might live in the lake, there's a lot of them — and that they've occupied the lake for a very long time.

It's all about the hunt

All, including skeptics, are welcome on the hunt. McKenna said one man who regularly attends expeditions with Loch Ness Exploration describes himself as "98-per-cent skeptic, but there's that two per cent that there might be something" that keeps him interested.

McKenna said everyone has that kind of desire to believe. "I challenge anyone to drive along the side of the loch and not look at the water. Everyone that I've been with always looks at the water."

McKenna says some non-believers have told him he's wasting his time. He disagrees.

"It's not wasted. You're in the middle of the Scottish Highlands, you're looking over this beautiful loch and the beautiful hills around you. I've never had a bad day, even in the pouring rain," he said.