08Mar1999 UK: Swimmer tells of Loch Ness close encounter.Two claimed sightings of Nessie have created a wave of excitement in monster-hunting circles. An American visitor said he spotted the elusive monster on land and a Nessie researcher claimed to have actually touched the beast.
President of the Loch Ness Monster Fan Club Gary Campbell said yesterday: "The land sighting is unusual and significant because there have been no
sightings of the monster on land since June 1963.
The tourist, who does not want to be named, said he spotted the beast on a beach between Foyers and Dores. The American, from West Virginia, said "The creature was between 10 and 15 metres in length with a very long neck." "I was so startled at the beast appearing out of the darkness that I didn't
get time to take a photograph before it scurried off into the water." The man registered his sighting with the Official Loch Ness Monster Fan
Club but refused to disclose his personal details for fear of ridicule. The report is the first sighting of the monster in 1999. Mr Campbell said:
"It is quite rare for Nessie to be spotted so early in the year because she normally hides for most of the winter months. "But it's good to see that she is alive and well." The sighting followed a claim by former Nessie researcher Mr Robert Badger who said he swam beside and touched the monster while he was working with an investigation team at Loch Ness. Mr Badger, 50, a factory worker, of Castlehead, Paisley, said it was such a
scary experience that he would not venture near the loch again. He was diving in the 1000ft deep loch when he literally bumped into Nessie.
Mr Badger's claim took the William Hill Bookmakers annual £500 award for the best recorded sighting in 1998. He said " I was a volunteer with the Loch Ness Investigation Bureau and had to do some underwater work on a boat moored off Temple Pier just across the bay from Urquhart Castle.
"I swam out from the jetty to where the loch bottom falls sharply away to really deep water.
"I thought that for safety reasons I shouldn't go any further out when an object materialised out of the gloom in front of me. "As I got closer I could see that it was the body of a huge creature moving
from my right to my left heading out into the main part of the loch. "I couldn't see the end of the beast but I got close enough to touch its
skin which had a rough texture." Mr Badger said that he got the impression that the body was rounded and about 20ft in diameter.
Not Available for Re-dissemination.
Sources:THE HERALD 08/03/1999 P3