Monster Mystery

People had been telling stories about a strange creature in Lake Champlain for thousands of years. Local Native American tribes shared legends about a beast in the water. The Abenaki, for example, told tales of a horned serpent, or snake.

In the early 1700s, travelers from Europe arrived. The Abenaki warned them not to make too much noise near the lake. They might upset the creature.

Years passed. The legends continued to spread. In the 1800s, dozens of fishermen, railroad workers, and travelers claimed to have seen the creature. Newspapers printed stories about the sightings. They told of a 15-foot-long beast with silver skin.

So when Captain Crum told his story in 1819, a number of local people weren’t surprised. These stories reached P.T. Barnum. He owned a popular circus. Barnum offered a $50,000 prize to anyone who captured the creature.

People near and far rushed to the lake. Many swore they had seen the beast. They began calling it Champ, or Champy, after the lake where it was said to swim. But nobody could get their hands on the mysterious creature.

People had been telling stories about a strange creature in Lake Champlain for thousands of years. Local Native American tribes shared legends about a beast in the water. An example is the Abenaki tribe. They told stories of a horned serpent, or snake. Then travelers from Europe arrived in the early 1700s. The Abenaki warned them not to make too much noise near the lake. They might upset the creature.

Years passed. The legends continued to spread. In the 1800s, dozens of fishermen, railroad workers, and travelers said they saw the creature. Newspapers printed stories about these sightings. The stories were about a 15-foot-long beast with silver skin.

So when Captain Crum told his story in 1819, some local people weren’t surprised. P.T. Barnum heard these stories. He owned a popular circus. Barnum offered a $50,000 prize to anyone who captured the creature.

People rushed to the lake. Many said they had seen the beast. They began calling it Champ, or Champy. They named it after the lake where it was said to swim. But nobody could get their hands on the creature.

People had been telling legends about a beast in the lake for thousands of years. Native tribes told stories of a horned serpent, or snake. They warned visitors not to make too much noise near the lake. They might upset the creature.

Years passed and more stories spread. In the early 1800s, many people said they saw the creature. So when Captain Crum told his story in 1819, a lot of local people weren’t surprised. People began calling the creature Champ, or Champy, after the lake.

In 1977 a woman named Sandra Mansi was sure she had evidence proving Champ was real. She took a photo! Experts have studied her photo and say it’s authentic. But just because the photo is real, doesn’t mean Champ is.

There are many possible reasons for the sightings. And the object in the photo could be anything. Maybe it was a bird, a log, or a piece of trash. One expert thinks Champ could be a big fish, like a sturgeon. Other experts think there would be signs of a big creature like Champ living in the lake. It would be eating other plants or animals. But no signs have been found yet.

Then in 1977, something changed. A woman named Sandra Mansi was at the lake. She saw a head poke out of the water. She rushed to grab her camera and snapped a photo. Mansi was sure she had evidence proving Champ was real: a picture! When newspapers printed the photo, many readers agreed.

Today people can use computers to create fake images that look real. But this technology did not exist back then. Experts have studied Mansi’s photo and agree it’s authentic. But just because the picture is real doesn’t mean that Champ is.

The object in the photo could have been anything. Perhaps it was a bird in an odd position. Maybe it was a twisted log or a floating piece of trash. Or maybe it really was Champ!

In 1977, something changed. A woman named Sandra Mansi was at the lake. She saw a head poke out of the water. She took a photo. Mansi was sure the picture was evidence proving Champ was real. Many readers agreed when they saw the photo printed in newspapers.

Today people can use computers to create fake images that look real. But this technology did not exist back then. Experts have studied Mansi’s photo. They agree it’s authentic. But just because the picture is real doesn’t mean that Champ is.

The object in the photo could have been anything. Maybe it was a bird, a twisted log, or a floating piece of trash. Or maybe it really was Champ!

To this day, plenty of people think the photo is proof that Champ lives. One of them is Nick Valenzuela. He’s a cryptozoologist (krip-tuh-zoh-AH-luh-jist). “Lake Champlain is an incredibly large lake,” he says. “It’s definitely possible that it could support a creature of Champ’s size.”

In August 2020, Valenzuela traveled to Lake Champlain. He interviewed people who say they’ve seen Champ. He noted similarities in their stories. Most stories describe Champ as a sweet and shy creature that wants to be left alone.

Valenzuela also teamed up with Katy Elizabeth. She has spent years looking for Champ. They went out to the center of the lake. Using special tools, Elizabeth and her team recorded underwater noises. They heard strange sounds. Elizabeth says the sounds don’t match noises from any animals she knows of. Instead, she thinks they’re coming from a creature we haven’t yet found: Champ.

After all, thousands of new animals are discovered each year. Couldn’t one of them be living in Lake Champlain?

To this day, plenty of people think the photo is proof that Champ lives. One of them is Nick Valenzuela. He’s a cryptozoologist (krip-tuh-zoh-AH-luh-jist). “Lake Champlain is an incredibly large lake,” he says. “It’s definitely possible that it could support a creature of Champ’s size.”

Valenzuela traveled to Lake Champlain in August 2020. He talked to people who say they’ve seen Champ. He noticed that their stories were similar. Most stories describe Champ as a sweet, shy creature that wants to be left alone.

Valenzuela also teamed up with Katy Elizabeth. She has spent years looking for Champ. They went out to the center of the lake. They used special tools. Elizabeth and her team recorded underwater noises. They heard strange sounds. Elizabeth says the sounds don’t match noises from any animals she knows of. She thinks they’re coming from a creature we haven’t yet found. She thinks they are from Champ.

After all, thousands of new animals are discovered each year. Couldn’t one of them be living in Lake Champlain?

But others point out that there are possible explanations for the sightings. One of these people is Nina Ridhibhinyo. She works at the ECHO Center. That’s a museum on Lake Champlain with a Champ exhibit. One idea? Champ is a fish!

“The largest animal that we know lives in the lake is the sturgeon. It can grow to be 8 feet long and can jump out of the lake,” Ridhibhinyo says. Sturgeons are as long as some alligators. From far away, people could think a jumping sturgeon is Champ. “People could also be seeing logs on the water,” she adds.

Ridhibhinyo notes that experts have studied the creatures in the lake and what they eat. A creature of Champ’s size would leave signs that it’s eating other plants or animals. But no such signs have been found . . . yet!

But others point out that there are possible explanations for the sightings. One of these people is Nina Ridhibhinyo. She works at the ECHO Center. That’s a museum on Lake Champlain with a Champ exhibit. One idea? Champ is a fish!

“The largest animal that we know lives in the lake is the sturgeon. It can grow to be 8 feet long and can jump out of the lake,” Ridhibhinyo says. Sturgeons are as long as some alligators. From far away, people could think a jumping sturgeon is Champ. “People could also be seeing logs on the water,” she adds.

Ridhibhinyo notes that experts have studied the creatures in the lake and what they eat. A creature of Champ’s size would leave signs that it’s eating other plants or animals. But no such signs have been found . . . yet!

Real or imagined, Champ is loved by many. People come to the lake every year to search for Champ. Many claim they have seen the creature. Others are there to buy Champ toys and books. Champ is even the mascot of a baseball team, the Vermont Lake Monsters!

We may never know what Captain Crum or Sandra Mansi saw on the lake. Maybe it was a sturgeon. Maybe it was a log. Or perhaps there really is a monster swimming in Lake Champlain.

What do you believe?

Real or not, people love Champ. They visit the lake every year to look for the creature. Other people go to buy toys and books. Champ is even the mascot of a baseball team. It’s called the Vermont Lake Monsters!

We may never know what Captain Crum or Sandra Mansi saw on the lake. Maybe it was a sturgeon. Maybe it was a log. Or maybe there really is a monster swimming in Lake Champlain.

What do you believe?

Real or not, people love Champ. They visit the lake to look for the creature. They buy Champ toys and books.

We may never know what Captain Crum or Sandra Mansi saw on the lake. Maybe it was a sturgeon. Maybe it was a log. Or maybe there really is a monster swimming in Lake Champlain. What do you believe?