Description of the attraction
Loch Ness is one of the largest lakes in Scotland. It ranks second in terms of area and first in terms of water volume, because it is quite deep - in some places its depth reaches 230 m. The lake is located about 37 km southwest of the city of Inverness and is part of the Caledonian Canal. Loch Ness is part of a system of interconnected freshwater lakes of glacial origin. Due to the high content of peat, the water in the lake is very turbid.
Several villages and Urquhart Castle are located along the shores of the lake. There are artificial islands on the lake, the so-called crannogs. But the lake attracts tourists not only with beautiful views. First of all, the legend of the Loch Ness monster, Nessie, brought him popularity.
The earliest mentions of an unknown huge animal inhabiting the lake date back to the times of Roman legionnaires. In the drawings of local residents, the Romans were able to identify all the representatives of the local fauna, except for a giant animal that looks like a seal with a very long neck. The Life of Saint Columba, an Irish monk who preached in Scotland, also describes how Columba prayerfully chased the lake monster away from his disciple who climbed into the water. The unknown animal is also mentioned in medieval legends.
The modern wave of interest in the monster rose in 1933, when the newspaper published an eyewitness account of a meeting with Nessie. Since that time, the controversy about the Loch Ness monster has not subsided. More and more evidence of its existence appears - photographs, films, sound recordings, which are refuted by skeptics. At the moment, there are many versions. Proponents of the existence of Nessie talk about a relict plesiosaur or an animal similar to it, opponents try to explain the observed phenomena by other reasons - standing waves (seiches), gas bubbles rising from the bottom of a peat lake, floating logs, etc.
Whether Nessie exists or not, Loch Ness is one of Scotland's top tourist attractions, and local inns and gift shops are thriving. On the shore of the lake in the village of Drumnadrohit there is a museum and center for the study of the Loch Ness Monster.
