The Loch Ness Monster has made her first appearance of the year, striking new footage suggests – and a monster hunter believes it could reveal her daily routine.
Eoin O’Faodhagain felt “deja vu” when he saw a 10-foot shape moving in the loch while watching via webcam on Tuesday morning.
He’d spotted the same shape before, but that was at sunset and it was going the other way – leading Eoin to wonder if he’s exposed the monster’s routine.
He said: “It’s the first time I have captured it early in the morning, moving north. I have previously captured it moving south, late in the evening and near dark. We have discovered for the very first time that Nessie forages one way in the morning while light is at a bare minimum, and travels back when the light of the evening is diminishing.
“The question in my mind is: why and where is this creature going in the mornings and returning in the evenings, in the same area of the loch? It is fantastic to get the first sighting of 2024, but it is also great to pick up on different patterns of Nessie’s behaviour that weren’t known before, through watching daily on the webcam.”
Mr O’Faodhagain, 59, made his sighting using a webcam maintained by Visit Inverness Loch Ness (VILN) at Shoreland Lodges, near Fort Augustus on the loch’s southern shore.
In his clip, which has been sped up for brevity, something is plainly visible moving north at dawn, leaving a long wake in the water behind it.
Footage he captured in November showed the same thing in reverse – an identical shape moving south just before sunset.
The purpose of Nessie’s commute is unclear, but Eoin believes she could be setting out on the hunt for food.
Or perhaps she just prefers to move in twilight when boat traffic is quieter, he suggested.
Mr O’Faodhagain said: “Maybe Nessie is not as active during the day and rests on ledges down in the depths of Loch Ness having a siesta. This may also explain why folk do not see her too often during the day, when all tourist cruisers and pleasure crafts are out and about, creating noise and disturbance.”
In any case, Eoin believes the footage is a better match for the mythical monster than any of the other residents of the loch.
He said: “The wake is uncharacteristic of known creatures that inhabit Loch Ness. I never heard of seals being habitual, and leaving a single line wake in the water, and otters are not known to leave a wake like this.
“The wake is too straight to be considered serpentine either. It is not any sort of a bird. I have no idea what Nessie could be, but what ever species it belongs to, it is live.”
Mr O’Faodhagain often logs on to watch the water from his home in County Donegal, Ireland.
Over the years, he’s racked up multiple entries in the Official Loch Ness Monster Sightings Register. But new restrictions concerning webcam sightings have kept his recent contributions off the record.
The VILN webcams can be watched live online at visitinvernesslochness.com
