Saturday 20 December 2014

Loch Ness Websites

Many websites carry a section which gives links to other websites covering their primary subject. I thought I would take this opportunity to survey the Loch Ness Monster web scene. As it turns out, there is not a lot out there in terms of dedicated websites. You will find a lot more websites discussing the Loch Ness Monster as part of wider remit on mysteries, cryptozoology, the paranormal or rational scepticism.

Despite that, Loch Ness websites are a diverse array. Some are dedicated to the monster, some are sceptical and others try to maintain a neutral position. Others are regularly updated whilst others haven't changed in years. But, in general, there is not much in the way of ongoing debate and analysis, unless you include discussion forums.

There is a multiplicity of discussion forums which carry lake cryptid sections or threads in amongst their formats. However, there has been a trend in recent years to see some of these conversational genres move over to Facebook. The quality of these varies and tends to be dominated by sceptics.

There is also a subclass of website which I call "recycling websites". They do not add much in the way of new or interesting content and just copy other websites' images or items. I don't include these and neither do I include sites which are generally cryptozoological in nature and have a section on Nessie; unless it is noteworthy.

I am sure there are others out there, let me know if you find a worthy candidate.









Wikipedia: Loch Ness Monster

Okay, it is just one page, but it belongs to Wikipedia. I suspect it is the most visited webpage on the Loch Ness Monster as all manner of people go to it for the basic lowdown on the creature.









Legend of Nessie

The goto website for Nessie information since the late 1990s. Here you will find the basic facts on Nessie as well as extended information on sightings, films, photos, people, the loch and its various deceptive moods. One of my favourite sections used to be the forum, "Nessie's Chatterboard". Unfortunately, the forum was shut down years ago due to it being abused by certain people. Some things never change.

As far as I can tell, the website has not been updated for over three years, but that doesn't change the historical usefulness of its information.










Nessie on the Net

A satirical, spoof website on the monster which doesn't take itself too seriously. Run by Mikko Takkala, it is largely lightweight, but its popularity is maintained by the webcam it runs for remote monster hunters.









Loch Ness and Morar Project

An information packed website on Loch Ness and its history run by Adrian Shine and the Loch Ness Project. The archive room has many useful papers on non-monster work done at the loch such as ecology, geology and biology. Adrian is sceptical (but open minded) of monsters, so various themes run through the website based on that position.









Loch Ness Investigation

Another sceptical website run by ex-LNIB man, Dick Raynor. In some regards, it is similar to the previous website, but there is more emphasis on photographic work and the various phenomena that deceive observers at the loch. I don't agree with some of the conclusions made on the site, but this and Adrian's website provide a useful counterbalance against getting too monster biased.









Nessie Hunter

This is the website of long term monster hunter, Steve Feltham. It is not a comprehensive website on Nessie, but rather a personal perspective on the loch, the monster and the hunt from Steve's twenty year perspective.










Nessie's Grotto

This is one of the older websites, run over that time by Lois Wickstrom and Jean Lorrah. It is a compendium of various items of interest, such as people sending in their webcam snapshots, occasional newsletters, interviews and Loch Ness facts.










The Loch Ness Giant Salamander

A specialised website by Steve Plambeck dedicated to his theory that Nessie is a giant salamander. Steve occasionally updates his website with updates on that theory as well as general observations on the loch and its monster.









Tony Harmsworth

Probably the most vociferous of sceptical websites. Tony is the ex-curator of the Official Loch Ness Exhibition and has lived near the loch for over thirty years. The website covers various aspects of the monster in a dismissive manner, and you're left in no doubt as to what Tony no longer believes in! You can read his book, "Loch Ness Understood", at the site.










Ed Skoda

Ed Skoda is a cryptozoological sceptic, but his research has allowed him to compile an interesting "storyboard" of Australian newspaper items from 1933-1934 which chart the progress of the Loch Ness Monster from the point of view of the Australian media.








Gary Campbell's Sightings Register

Gary Campbell has put together this website to collate as many reports of the Loch Ness Monster from St. Columba right up to the present day. Most are taken from Henry Bauer's book, but Gary has added to that list since 1985 and the last report is from 20th May 2014. Gary has the running total at 1,067, but I am pretty sure the final number is north of 1,500.

As an aside, when I attempted to access Gary's site, my ISP blocked it as a site that contains content that falls into the category Violence & Weapons! No idea why that is happening.


TO THOSE WHICH ARE DEPARTED

But websites come and websites go. People die, people get ill and people just lose interest. So, there is a subsection of websites which are now defunct but which are preserved via Internet archiving agencies. I am glad to say my own blog is now being archived by WayBack Machine, so when I am long gone, hopefully there will still be people reading these articles.

You can learn more about these extinct websites here.








23 comments:

  1. As I recall, a certain since deceased name associated with the loch behaved badly and got Nessie's Chatterboard closed down. The place went crazy towards the end with people imitating other regulars and posting nonsense under their names. There were almost no sceptical comments either.

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    1. I was a regular Pro-Nessie poster there, and then I changed email addresses and asked to re-register. They became suspicious that I was an alias of Beckjord due to the fact that I spell "Erik" the same way. As such, I was locked out, and very unhappy about it, too. Ah, the 90s....

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  2. I was going to suggest www.njan.org , until I read the criteria, but here it is anyway. This site is a grab bag of lake and sea monsters, but has, I think, a good section on Nessie. Equal play is given to both sides in the scientific theories subsection. There is a Camp 1 - The Rines Hypothesis and Camp 2 -The Shine Hypothesis sections with some good PDF docs for downloading from each camp. I thought it might pass your muster GB :-)

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    1. Yes, I had a look and wondered if it was a "recycling" site as it has may links to other sites and documents. But admittedly, there is a degree of that in other websites. Also many links I tried to click on gave me 404 inaccessible errors. Do you have that issue?

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  3. Yes I do, I was able to download the docs a few months ago. Now all of a sudden I get the 404. I thought it was just me or my location (California USA). Apparently not! Maybe they're delinquent on paying the server light bill. Hopefully it will come back up soon. One item of interest is Adrian Shine's Loch Ness ebook.

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  4. "Abused by certain people"?

    Please elaborate, as you seem to be insinuating something about specific people!

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    1. I mean certain people can make forums and some can break them.

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    2. I'm sure my many fans and followers on this blog regard me as a "maker" rather than a "breaker".

      Don't worry everyone, I'll always contribute here when I have something helpful to say!

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    3. If you're so popular, you can go and create your own website!

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    4. That was the plan but it looks like my buddy has gone cold on the idea. :-(

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  5. The website you attributed to Paul Cropper is actually the "Yowieocalypse" by Ed Skoda, a sceptic of all things cryptozoological - but also very good at providing an alternate view. I was particularly impressed by the way he was able to prove that the famous George Gray yowie of 1968 was a practical joke.

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  6. Incidentally, and i admit entirely unrelated to this article, that head-and-neck shaped object is still in the water off Point Claire.

    I drove past today and some excited looking lady was eagerly taking a photo of it from the roadside.

    It does look very convincing!

    I saw

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  7. Ha, if so, it's suffering from pretty severe rigor mortis!

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  8. Merry Christmas to all my fans - especially Jenny Haniver, Jake, Roland and the person who thinks I'm several paid people working shifts. Here's to a fun, fact-filled 2015!!

    Genuinely - Merry Christmas all.

    GS

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    1. Its a pleasure Geordiemorning,evening and nightshift.
      Your wit Is very refreshing and welcomed like a dualie rascal in the extrawide iccream lane in walmart.But seriously.its a pleasure.happy new year.

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  9. Merry xmas to u too gerdie lol. All the best to everyone. Or as we say in welsh....nadolig Llawen !+

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  10. From across the pond ...To all in the UK and around the world, a very Merry Christmas.

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  11. Am I the last one to turn off the lights? Bye bye all.

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