In search of Nessie in Loch Ness
On my tour of Scotland, I couldn’t miss a visit to Loch Ness, a Scottish lake that is said to be home to the legendary sea monster Nessie. So I drove to the lake, which is about 10 km from the beautiful town of Inverness. Thanks to the Nessie hype, Loch Ness is one of the most famous freshwater lakes in the world and a real crowd puller. It all started with a photo taken by London surgeon R. K. Wilson, who published the first photo of Nessie in 1933. Stories about the sea monster, which is said to be a mixture of sea serpent and dinosaur, date back to 565 AD. At that time, an Irish priest named Saint Columbia reported a monster that was said to have emerged from the 230-meter-deep lake. However, his stories were not taken very seriously. It was not until 1933, when the panoramic road around the lake was built, that people again reported seeing a sea monster in the lake. When the photographic evidence followed, the lake became known worldwide and is still a magnet for many tourists today. Of course, I wanted to see Nessie and was very excited to see what awaited me in Drumnadrochit, the center of the Nessie cult. There is a visitor center here with a very modern exhibition where I learned everything about Nessie and the lake. A short film also tells the story of Urquhart Castle, which is not far from the lake and which I visited after watching the film. A path leads to it through green meadows as far as the eye can see. I felt like a damsel when I stood in the castle tower and was treated to a breathtaking panorama of Loch Ness and its hills. After this fantastic view, I made my way to the shore of the lake. The water of the lake is deep blue and almost black, and at 230 meters, the Scottish lake is remarkably deep. There was something magical about it. But unfortunately, Nessie, the infamous sea monster, simply did not appear. Nessie is so popular in Scotland that it has been placed under nature conservation. I was a little sad that Nessie didn’t show herself to me, but I was infinitely happy for this beautiful, enchanting backdrop on this sunny day in the Scottish Highlands.
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