In Canada's Lake Okanagan, a massive serpentine creature has been reported for centuries. Known to indigenous peoples as N'ha-a-itk, modern sightings of Ogopogo may outnumber those of the Loch Ness Monster.
Scotland's Loch Ness has the world's most famous lake monster. But Canada's Lake Okanagan has one with a longer history and arguably more sightings.
Ogopogo. Estimated length: 12 to 15 meters. Dark green body. A serpentine head. Multiple humps along its back. When it surfaces, it undulates across the water in a wave-like motion before silently submerging.
The Loch Ness Monster became globally famous in 1933. Ogopogo sightings predate that by centuries.
The Syilx (Okanagan) people, indigenous to the shores of Lake Okanagan, called the creature N'ha-a-itk—"the lake demon."
N'ha-a-itk was believed to demand offerings from anyone crossing the lake. Before making the journey, indigenous travelers would cast a small animal into the water as sacrifice. This practice was reportedly observed strictly until European settlers arrived.
According to tradition, N'ha-a-itk dwelled near Rattlesnake Island in the center of the lake. The island was strictly off-limits.
In 1926, passengers in more than 30 cars simultaneously observed a large creature on the surface of Lake Okanagan. This mass sighting brought the creature—by then nicknamed "Ogopogo" after a 1924 British music hall song—to widespread public attention.
In 1968, Arthur Folden filmed a large, moving object on the lake's surface using an 8mm camera. The footage was analyzed by multiple experts, who concluded it was neither a boat wake nor a floating log.
In 1989, Kelowna car dealer Ken Chaplin captured video of a serpentine creature lifting its head above the water. The footage shows a long neck and head protruding from the surface for approximately one minute.
In 2011, two kayakers filmed two dark objects crossing the lake's surface on a mobile phone. The video received millions of views on YouTube.
The sheer volume of sightings may partly reflect the lake's extraordinary dimensions.
Lake Okanagan stretches 135 kilometers long with a maximum depth of 232 meters—dwarfing Loch Ness (37 kilometers long). The lake floor contains complex terrain offering ample hiding places for a large animal. Deep water temperatures hover around 4 degrees Celsius year-round, and the nutrient-rich water could theoretically sustain a large predator's ecosystem.
Formed during the last ice age approximately 10,000 years ago, Lake Okanagan may have once connected to older water systems. It is theoretically possible that an ancient aquatic species became trapped as the ice retreated.
The Canadian government does not treat Ogopogo as a joke. In 1989, British Columbia officially designated the creature as a protected species. Capturing or killing it is illegal.
New sighting reports are filed with the city of Kelowna every year. A statue of Ogopogo stands in a lakeside park, greeting tourists. But ask the older locals, and you will sense something beyond civic pride in their voices. There is still reverence. There is still caution.
Something, they believe, still moves beneath the surface.
