I thought that a few weeks ago you explained Nessie away as the ghost of a plesisaur.

I'm afraid that I am in the camp of people who think Nessie is a hoax and a string of misidentifications by people with big imaginations.  Scotland is too well settled an area with populations going back several thousand years for there to be so large an animal living there and there hasn't been conclusive proof of it's existence.  If there really were Nessies in the loch, somebody would have caught one or found a dead one hundreds of years ago.

But if they did exist, would they be related to Champ from Lake Champlain or other lake monsters from around the world?

Karas:

Wrong. The theory about the Loch Ness Monster being a ghost was referenced by me in a previous post. However, if you go back and read it, you'll see the info came from author Jim Marrs, writing about the opinions of the US Government's remote-viewers who came up with the ghost theory. I commented on Marrs' words, whio was commenting on what the remote-viewers said, which is very different to specifically me having "explained Nessie away as the ghost of a plesisaur," as you worded it.

Yep, there's all sorts of reasons why Nessie (or Nessies) may not exist. As I note in this article above, "no poll can accurately offer a definitive explanation for anything." Which is true. And that there are so many theories for the "creature" is indicative of one thing: a lack of any evidence at all provokes a wealth of theories.

It's the same with all lake monsters - absolutely no hard evidence, but a lot of theorizing. I don't know how we could ever say that Champ and Nessie are related. After al, it would require evidence (a body, DNA etc) to comapre the two. But I'm pretty confident that won't happen.

I was fascinated with the Loch Ness monster as a kid. read all kinds of books. I eventually came to the conclusion there really is no creature there at all.

But it sure is fun to speculate about.

 I agree that Loch Ness is creepy all in itself.  There is no doubt that one get's the sense that there is something unusual and creepy about the place.  Monster or not.  It just sets the stage for mystery (if you skip the random shops hocking stuffed Nessies, etc.) Just the thought of Alestier Crowley lurking around Loch Ness at one point could make one's imagination run wild.  It, along with Roswell, are must see vacation spots for all of those who enjoy the bizzare.  Or, you could just go to Comic Con.  : )

 It is hard to believe that an ancient creature could survive in that Loch for so many years....yet, I do believe it is there. Have there ever been any reports of injuries from attacks or missing fishermen that have gone unexplained. It seems that Nessie might be not as mean as some folks say. One day I hope to return home to Scotland and enjoy the hospitality of my bretheren and members of the Maxwell clan. But, I am just a poor American bidding my time until retirement when I can travel....

Gael:

There are one or two reports/rumors of attacks, the most famous being that of St Columba, first recorded in the 7th century but which is believed to date from the 6th century, in which a man is allegedly killed by the creature. But, it a very old story, steeped in legend and not much in the way of fact, and (despite what some have claimed) it occurred not in Loch Ness, but in the River Ness - a river that flows from Loch Ness.

I guess it could have some truth to it, but the age of the story means we'll never get any more data than we have now. If you like horror fiction, you might enjoy Steve Alten's novel, The Loch. It's a story of horror and conspiracy at Loch Ness - and deaths too LOL. It's a good, atmospheric story.

I once saw a show about Loch Ness, where they interviewed 3 different people who have lived on Loch Ness all there lives, and sure enough, all 3 said they has seen the monster on at least one occasion, and all three described radically different creatures.  While hardly conclusive, I can't help but feel that is fairly persuasive evidence that the thing isn't real.  I would have to think that if there were a real creature, there would be some sort of consensus concerning it's appearance among the locals.  Still, I wouldn"t mind if I'm wrong.  "Hope for the best, expect the worst". Without any real evidence to the contrary, that's the best I can do.