By Tim Binnall
A dedicated Loch Ness webcam viewer has recorded what he believes to be the site's resident monster briefly emerging from the water at the iconic location, though whether he will receive credit for the sighting remains to be seen. Eoin O'Faodhagain of Ireland reportedly spotted the odd anomaly while watching the livestream that overlooks the Scottish landmark this past Tuesday afternoon. Managing to capture the scene (seen above) for posterity, he explained that "the sighting only lasted for over a minute, but the footage clearly shows an object rising high out of the water, showing at first one large hump, then two humps, and then, disappears completely, showing only the flat surface of the water afterwards."
A particularly prolific virtual monster hunter, O'Faodhagain has amassed more than a dozen recognized Nessie reports over the past few years by way of his diligent work watching the Loch Ness livestream. However, his most recent sighting has reignited a controversy that has been simmering since earlier this year when he was credited with the first official Nessie report of 2022 and then lost the 'honor' after it was revealed that the 'creature' was actually a pair of paddle boarders. In Loch Ness Monster research circles, the somewhat embarrassing switcheroo sparked a heated debate over the quality of webcam sightings and seemingly cast a pall over such potential evidence.
To that end, there has yet to be a virtual Nessie report recognized by the Official Loch Ness Monster Sightings Register so far this year after a whopping ten had made the cut in 2021. Speculation abounds that Gary Campbell, who acts as arbiter of the record, may be reticent to put his stamp of approval on such accounts due to the brouhaha back in April. Be that as it may, O'Faodhagain has submitted his footage in the hopes of garnering the first official webcam sighting of Nessie this year. While he waits to see if his report gets the nod, his critics have already dismissed the video as another 'monstrous' case of mistaken identity.
Veteran Nessie hunter Steve Feltham, who is vehemently against the veracity of virtual sightings, argued that the 'creature' seen in the footage is not the famed monster. "I've cleaned up the image a little," he explained "and I think it clearly shows a person in a canoe, you can even make out the paddle." Time will tell if his assessment proves to be persuasive enough to relegate the report to the registry's proverbial reject file or if Campbell will give it the 'historic' nod. Meanwhile, in an attempt to broker peace between the two warring camps, researcher Roland Watson has proposed moving the webcam to a spot at Loch Ness that would provide a much clearer view of the water, which just might satisfy all parties involved in the debate.