Biggest search for Loch Ness Monster in 50 years set for this August in Scotland

For years, tourists have flocked to Loch Ness in Scotland in hopes of catching a glimpse of the rumoured Loch Ness Monster, the large marine creature said to be living in the water. Now, a massive search has been planned in effort of locating the legendary creature.

A hunt for Nessie is being organized by the Loch Ness Centre in the village of Drumnadrochit in the Scottish Highlands, along with a research team called Loch Ness Exploration, and eager volunteers are invited to join the search on the weekend of August 26.

“We re-opened the Loch Ness Centre at the beginning of summer and since then have had a flood of inquiries from people who really wanted to reignite this search,” said Paul Nixon, general manager of the Loch Ness Centre, in an interview with CTV News Channel. “We’ve been reached out by the Loch Ness Exploration who want to partner with us, as we are really committed to continuing this research to try and unveil what mystery lies underneath the water of the famous loch.”

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The Centre says this will be the largest search for Nessie since the 1970s, when the Loch Ness Investigation Bureau studied the Loch in 1972.

According to the organization, drones taking thermal images of the lake will be flown over the water, and a hydrophone will also be used to detect any acoustic sounds underwater.

“The 1972 search very much focused on a surface watch and that’s what we’re calling volunteers to do - to get as many eyes on the water as possible,” said Nixon. “Obviously this time we know how to use smartphones so we’re able to capture far more detail than ever before. That, coupled with the thermal imagery and hydrophone studies, you're really bringing to the throw this new wave of technology that's out there.”

According to Nixon, in 1987 a fleet of boats were sent up and down the Loch scanning for odd shapes in the water below, as part of a survey called Operation Deep Scan.

Now, the search will be revived in hopes to locate Nessie or learn more about the monster.

Accounts of Nessie sightings date back 1,500 years, however, there has been no credible evidence of the animals actual existence.

Back in 1934, a famous photo of the supposed monster appeared to show a dinosaur-like creature in the water, suggesting to some people that Nessie was a solitary survivor of the long extinct plesiosaurs which were thought to have died off 65 million years ago.

In 2019, scientists from New Zealand said the sightings of the monster could have be giant eels, as a significant amount of eel DNA was found in the Loch Ness waters. However, the researchers said further investigation is needed to explore this idea.

“I’m very curious to see what we might, or might not, find,” says Nixon.