'Champ Search' Posts Video of Anomalous Sonar Return from Lake Champlain

A still image of the anomalous sonar return from the video posted to Champ Search’s YouTube page. *(Champ Search / YouTube)*

Cryptozoological organization Champ Search shared a video last month which some think may have captured evidence of a monster living in Lake Champlain.

At approximately 490 square miles and depths reaching 400 feet, Lake Champlain sprawls across parts of New York and Vermont, stretching into Quebec at its northernmost point. Lake Champlain's monster, known locally as Champ, has reportedly been seen by dozens of eyewitnesses, caught on film at least a few times, and spawned its own industry in the local culture.

This latest video features an anomalous sonar return captured in the lake on September 10th.

Champ Search, led by director Katy Elizabeth, estimated the length of the object caught on sonar to be approximately 20 feet.

Noted in the video is what some believe to be a front appendage of some kind—like a flipper—moving the creature along in the water.

A comparison was also made between the object and two others caught on sonar by Champ Search back in August of 2019.

That sonar showed a scan of Lake Champlain’s bottom and was reportedly recorded by Elizabeth and her team while they travelled by boat at around 45 mph towards Port Henry on the New York side of the lake.

Elizabeth estimated the size of the objects captured on sonar during that excursion to be approximately 25 and 30 feet, respectively.

Critics of that evidence point to the difficulty of accurately capturing something on sonar while travelling at 45 mph.

But Elizabeth was sure that she had captured something unusual in 2019.

“It’s a Raymarine Dragonfly 4 Pro Sonar. It’s a chirp sonar and shoots chirps to the bottom as well as the sides. I know how to use it and that the images are reliable even when the boat is traveling at that speed,” she told New York Upstate. “Going at 45 mph, if that had any effect on the sonar images it would be a big blur on the screen. The sonar from what I understand slows things down to read them accurately.”

Jim McGowan, the Americas Marketing Manager for Raymarine, told the news site that "at 45 mph, typically you’re doing well if you see the bottom and depth. As for targets in the water column, it’s hard to know what you’re looking at.”

Most normal fish would be "blurred over" on the screen, he said, unless it was a big school.

"You might not even see it," he added.

However, McGowan admitted, "I have no experience knowing what [something the size claimed by Elizabeth] would look like going at that speed. I can’t dismiss it. I didn’t see it firsthand. We don’t have opportunities to drive over targets that big. I’m not certain I can tell you what it is.”

Elizabeth and Champ Watch are similarly certain that the object seen on sonar in this latest video also represents something unusual.

The video compares the capture to several prosaic explanations used to explain the footage—including schools of fish, and individual animals like sturgeon, perch, and even a small whale—and finds each explanation unsatisfactory.

Some have even compared the object to that which was seen in the Bodette film, at least the portion of the film ever made publicly available.

The Bodette film is footage shot in 2005 by fishermen Dick Affolter and Pete Bodette. which is said to show a mysterious creature swimming near their boat during a fishing expedition on Lake Champlain. The film was never fully released, with only a few clips used as part of a broadcast for ABC news, and with its current ownership held by a lawyer asking for exorbitant licensing fees for its use, it likely won't be seen publicly any time soon.

To report your own encounter with the impossible, reach out to us directly at the Singular Fortean Society through our contact page.

If you enjoyed this article and would like to support the Singular Fortean Society, please consider becoming an official member by signing up through our Patreon page—membership includes a ton of extra content and behind-the-scenes access to the Society’s inner workings.