![Lake Champlain’s Champ – Hoax, Legend Or Wild Imagination?](http://townsquare.media/site/497/files/2022/04/attachment-Lake-Champlain.jpg?w=300&h=200&zc=1&s=0&a=t&q=89&w=980&q=75)
Lake Champlain’s Champ – Hoax, Legend Or Wild Imagination?
Hoaxes and Legends. What did P.T. Barnum once say? "There's a sucker born every minute." Well now, did he really say that, or is that just a hoax? Apparently, no one has ever been able to confirm that he did.
Speaking of hoaxes and legends, the great State of New York can lay claim to many of both. Can a legend be considered a hoax if it can't truly be confirmed to be such? I say no.
I had the pleasure of visiting the country of Scotland a few times in my life, and with each visit, I was sure to travel around its most famous lake, Loch Ness. This long, deep, and narrow lake is very similar to the Finger Lakes, like Seneca and Cayuga.
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Loch Ness is 23 miles long, and 1 mile wide, stretching northeast from Fort Augustus to Inverness. And of course, the lake is home to the Loch Ness Monster. It's a legend but is it also just a hoax where people have falsely claimed to have seen the monster? During my trips to and on Loch Ness, I did not see or hear of anyone witnessing any monster in the lake.
And did you know, that our state has its own version of a Loch Ness Monster? Well, it's not considered a monster, whatever that really means, but a large creature has been supposedly spotted many times in New York State's 3rd largest lake (and largest natural freshwater) - Lake Champlain.
This creature is known as Champ. According to the Lake Champlain Region website, Champ is described to be a large, horned serpent, or giant snake. The article mentions that the year 1873 was a busy year for the sightings of Champ, and even piqued the interest of P.T. Barnum, offering a cash reward for the hide of the creature.
You'll find many attractions related to Champ around Lake Champlain, including a statue in Port Henry. But the question remains. While Champ may be a local legend, is this creature just a hoax or just the wild imagination of hundreds of people who have claimed to witness a sighting?
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