Myth or reality? Friend or Foe? No one can say for certain.
Just like how Loch Ness has Nessie and Lake Champlain has Champ, Okanagan Lake has the Ogopogo. Dating back to at least the 1700s, tales of a vicious water spirit known as N'ha-a-itk ('snake of the water') by local First Nations people have developed into a different creature entirely. The current name comes from a parody of a British song, in a verse that goes:
His mother was an earwig,
His father was a whale;
A little bit of head
And hardly any tail--
And Ogopogo was his name.
The Ogopogo is also an interesting phenomenon because, as opposed to the mostly myth-based belief in Nessie or other cryptids, there could be a scientific explanation! The creature's log-like appearance and general size (10-20 meters, or 30-60 feet) match that of the Basilosaurus cetoides, a prehistoric whale from the Cenozoic era, 35 million years ago. Some believe that the cool temperatures of Okanagan's practically untouched depths could have kept the ancient creature alive and generally unbothered. But, there is also a popular opinion that the stirrings in the water are sturgeon near the surface creating the waves. Either way, and whatever the explanation, the idea of having a creature in the lake that we can't explain has caused people to write poems and sing songs about it. Someone created a poem to one of the previous Captains on the M.V. Okanagan as imagined as being from Ogopogo. It was sent as a telegram to Capt. W. E. Spiller on February 22, 1963, as follows :
I've sailed with you for many a year,
In troubled seas, and weather clear,
Many times I've crossed your path-
Admired your seamanship, fore and aft,
Often when the fog was dense
And nerves were all so very tense -
Did you sometimes than you lucky stars
That you eased through the bridge without any scars?
Well, I was with you every day
Nudging a bit to clear the way,
I always managed to stay out o' view,
Never noticed by you or your crew,
I'll be very lonely when you are gone,
And now that it's time to say 'adieu' -
My very best wishes go with you.
'OGOPOGO'
(author unknown)
If you read these articles in the Okanagan Historical Report #54, you will probably have a good chuckle at some of the far-fetched descriptions of what people said they saw, but if you want a more recent article which offers a bit more logic and less drama, "The Legend, The Spirit, The Creature" offers some alternatives to consider. Many books have been written about the creature, and Lloyds of London even offered a million dollars (good until Feb. 1, 1985) for conclusive proof of Ogopogo's existence. To my knowledge, no one was lucky enough to be succesful.
The sheer amount of sightings and interest in the Ogopogo make it a well loved part of the Okanagan. It's said that the creature's main haunt is Rattlesnake Island, but sightings have varied across and around the lake. Who knows - maybe you'll be the one to see it next! Until then, you can gaze at our wonderfully carved example inside the entrance, send your friends pictures, and tell them all you've spotted the Ogopogo! This beautiful carving at the Sicamous was created by Aaro Murtomaki. <<Previous Forward>>
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