Phantoms and Monsters

Bownessie: The Windermere Monster Deception
Deadly EEE Virus Discovered in Upstate New York
Fortean / Oddball News - 8/6/2010
Panther on the Prowl in Southern Georgia

Bownessie: The Windermere Monster Deception

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 01:13 PM PDT

thewestmorlandgazette - A team of monster hunters will set sail on Windermere in a fresh search for 'Bownessie'.

Lakeland hotelier Thomas 'The Gladiator' Noblett and celebrity psychic Dean 'Midas' Maynard will embark on their second journey into the depths of Windermere in search of the fabled monster.

The two men led a team of investigators to the lake to look for evidence last year but returned empty handed.

"Since last year, a lot of local people have told me they have felt something in the lake but have been too scared to say anything," said Mr Noblett, owner of the Langdale Chase Hotel.

"There is obviously something large in there. You just have to look at the depth, width and length of it to know that."

Bownessie was first spotted by tourist Steve Burnip in 2006. Mr Burnip described a serpent like creature, around 15-feet in length, at the north end of the lake.

Mr Noblett was prompted to prove the existence of the creature when he was hit by a three-foot wave whilst swimming on Windermere last year.

"A lot of people boo-hoo it but they are mainly people who have never set foot in the Lakes," said Mr Noblett.

"Those who have seen it describe it as a very long and eel-like. One sailor told me he saw what looked like a big slab of meat roll past his boat and disappear underneath the boat.

"It could be a very large catfish that has just grown to be really big. Some of those fish do live for a very long time."

Mr Noblett and his crew of three will set out on a £300,000 yacht using sonar equipment to try and track Bownessie.

They will explore the deepest part of the lake and sail to a spot near Gummers Howe, where the creature was snapped by Winderemere photographer Linden Adams in 2007.

"Whenever I swim across the lake I always get the heebys jeebies at that part. There is a real eerie feeling around there."

Mr Maynard said: "The last Bownessie investigation was very memorable and we are hoping to have the same if not better results this time around.

"Since last year I have been contacted by many members of the public who have told me that they have also witnessed seeing something large in the lake over the past few years and we hope to get more evidence to back up these claims."

The Bownessie hunters will set sail on September 11.

Click for video

NOTE: I have been watching this story develop for about 3 years. Frankly, I think this 'cryptid' is a tourist grab for the Langdale Chase Hotel. Why? Well, in 2008 I was asked by a LakesTV representative to publish the screen captures from the original video (above) on my blog. The video was located on the LakesTV website at the time. I asked if I could use the video and was denied...I was told that they wanted to 'market the video and it would be copyrighted'. I declined to publish the screen captures and decided to wait until something else popped up on this 'creature'. Then in July 2009, the owner of the hotel, Thomas Noblett, conveniently experienced a rogue wave while swimming in the lake. I rarely pass judgment on a sighting or encounter, but this particular saga doesn't pass the smell test. It could very well be a large eel or fish...but using the 'Nessie' moniker as part of a name is somewhat disingenuous. Anyway, you make your own determination on this 'cryptid'...Lon

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Originally posted 9/6/2009

In Search Of Bownessie

thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk - A team of investigators will scour Windermere in a hunt for a legendary monster that is claimed to lurk in its deep waters.

The search follows years of reported sightings of a big creature in the lake, the most recent being in July when Lake District hotelier Thomas Noblett was hit by a three-foot wave as he was swimming.

A chartered boat will take to England's longest lake on September 19 with celebrity and sports psychic Dean Maynard at the helm. He will be joined by Windermere photographer Linden Adams who claims to have seen 'Bownessie' – the nickname for the monster – from a viewpoint on Gummers How in 2007.

There will also be people with cameras dotted around the shoreline to capture any unusual activity.

"Linden Adams and I are really geared up and ready for the challenge ahead and we hope to find some concrete evidence something big does exist in the lake," said Mr Maynard.

In 2006 The Westmorland Gazette reported how Huddersfield University journalism lecturer Steve Burnip, of Hebden Bridge, saw a serpent-like creature emerge from the waters as he stood at Watbarrow Point across from Waterhead.

He described it as being 15 to 20 feet long with a little head and two small humps following in its wake. He said it looked like a giant eel.

"I am absolutely convinced that there is a big creature in the lake," said Mr Burnip. "I am really pleased that there is a renewed interest in it because I know what I saw.

"I can see it in my head now, this grey lump and the humps breaking the water like you see in the classic Loch Ness pictures. There is something in there, something quite big and elusive."

Mr Adams, whose picture of the creature was studied by photographic experts after appearing on the front page of the Gazette, said: "I looked at it through binoculars and the naked eye and what I saw was huge.

"A lot of photographic experts have had the opportunity to look at the pictures and they are still baffled."

Ecology experts have told the Gazette that catfish are sometimes introduced to lakes by anglers. They believe that what could be being seen is the Welsh catfish that originates from mainland Europe.

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Originally posted 7/23/2009

'Windermere Monster' Wake Pummels Swimmer

A bizarre swimming incident on Windermere coincided with the announcement that a team of paranormal investigators will plumb the lake's depths in search of a giant creature.

Thomas Noblett, 46, was swimming the lake this week when he was suddenly swamped by a three-foot wave of unknown origin.

A spate of eyewitness sightings reported by The Gazette during 2006-2007 described a 50-foot long serpent-like animal surfacing on Windermere.

Psychic Dean 'Midas' Maynard, who came to prominence by accurately predicting sports score lines and X factor winners, will join The Centre for Fortean Zoology (CFZ), in the hunt for the beast in September.

Mr Noblett trains on the lake for four hours every day in preparation for a channel swim.

Never having had to deal with anything more than the odd passing trout, the 46-year-old said he had since reconsidered the legend of the Windemere monster.

"I didn't entertain it before. Now when I'm in the lake it has my full attention," he said.

Mr Noblett, managing director of The Langdale Chase Hotel, was swimming close to Wray Castle at 7am on Wednesday morning when the 3ft swell hit.

He and swimming trainer Andrew Tighe – paddling in a boat beside him – were the only people on the lake.

"We had gotten up early and Windermere was crystal clear. The lake was totally empty apart from us and all I could hear was the slapping of my arm against the water," explained Mr Noblett.

"All of a sudden this wave just hit us. Andrew said 'where the hell did that come from?' and it made the boat rock from side to side," he continued.

Treading water, alone, in the centre of the lake, Mr Noblett watched as two large waves sped towards either shore.

"It was like a big bow wave; a three-foot swell at least. There was two, as if a speed boat had sped past, but there were no boats on the lake," he said.

Previously an escape from the jellyfish he dodges while training at sea, Mr Noblett said the lake's depths were not so inviting anymore.

"I always look forward to swimming in Windermere, now I'm starting to get the fear. Twice I have looked down and seen fish, but only small trout. The reeds sometimes scare you, because they suddenly appear like triffids."

Devon-based CFZ are the world's only full time cryptozoology organisation for the study of unknown animals.

Dean 'Midas' Maynard will join CFZ in September to search the lake for the monster.

Mr Maynard, with a background in ghost hunting, is currently searching for a sonar-equipped boat to use in the search.

"It's a fascinating subject. I'm not saying there is or isn't something down there. Most eyewitness accounts describe some sore of eel, which if living in open water can grow very big," said Mr Maynard.

Mr Noblett is swimming across the English Channel in mid October. He hopes to raise £10,000 for Richard Rose Central Academy in Carlisle and the Cyctic Fibrosis Trust.

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Monday, February 26, 2007

Suspected Monster Spotted in Lake

Windermere, UK - Sightings of a suspected monster in Windermere have prompted claims that it could be the English equivalent of Nessie.

The 50ft long "creature" was snapped by photographer Linden Adams, 35, who was out walking with his wife near the lake recently.

They were at a secluded spot more than 1,000ft up a mountain when they spotted a dark shape moving in the water.

"It just came out of the blue," said Mr Adams. "The water was incredibly peaceful and then this huge thing appeared, diving and thrashing around."

He thought it was 50 ft long when compared to boats nearby.

He said it had a head like a labrador, only "much, much bigger".

'Serpent-like'

Mr Adams, from Bowness-on-Windermere, said he knew the lake well and what he saw was not a freak wave or boat. His sighting comes just months after scientists visited Windermere to examine claims by a tourist that they saw a 20 ft "serpent-like" creature.

A team of scientists visited the site last October to interview eye-witnesses and sent divers to Coniston Water to investigate reports of similar sightings there.

Mr Adams has christened his find the Bowness monster. "When I looked at my pictures on my computer I realised I had something," he added.

He sent his picture to a forensic photographer who confirmed it had not been digitally enhanced.

Richard Freeman, of the centre for Fortean Zoology which researches mystery animals, said the sightings could be giant sterile eels which, unlike normal eels, stay in fresh water and "get bigger and bigger".

Bownessie: The Windermere Monster Deception

Deadly EEE Virus Discovered in Upstate New York

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 12:27 PM PDT

uticaod - Tests found 28 mosquitoes collected in the northwestern Oneida County town of Vienna carried a virus potentially deadly to both humans and horses, the Oneida County Health Department said this morning.

The mosquitoes tested positive for Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE), last reported in the county four years ago. At that time, the death of a pony was attributed to EEE, resulting in the aerial spraying of a 5-mile radius around the farm where the animal died. The location of that 2006 case could not be immediately learned.

This year, anyone who visits woodlands or works outdoors in Vienna is at greater risk of infection from the virus because of exposure to potentially infected mosquitoes, the health department said.

"The location of the collection site, one of 12 in the county, suggests an expansion of infected mosquito activity in neighboring Oswego County, which has reported 14 positive pools since June," Oneida County Director of Health Dr. Gayle Jones said.

The species of infected mosquito usually bites birds, so transmission of the disease to humans would require a species of mosquito capable of creating a "bridge" between infected birds and uninfected mammals, Jones said.

While human infection is rare, when it does occur, symptoms develop within 4 to 10 days of exposure from a mosquito bite. Symptoms may include a headache, high fever and vomiting, progressing into disorientation, seizures and a coma. One-third of infected people die from the disease, while many who survive must live with brain damage.

Diagnosis is made through spinal fluid testing. There is no specific treatment for EEE.

The health department offered these tips for people to reduce risk of infection in the Vienna area:

* Use insect repellant containing DEET on exposed skin and clothing.

* Wear long sleeves and long pants when possible.

* Have secure and intact screens on windows and doors.

* Empty standing water from flower pots, buckets, barrels and children's wading pools. Drill holes in swings so water drains off them. Turn children's pools upside down when not in use. Standing water is where mosquitoes breed.

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CDC - Eastern Equine Encephalitis

Eastern equine encephalitis virus (EEEV) is transmitted to humans by the bite of an infected mosquito. Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) is a rare illness in humans, and only a few cases are reported in the United States each year. Most cases occur in the Atlantic and Gulf Coast states (see map). Most persons infected with EEEV have no apparent illness. Severe cases of EEE (involving encephalitis, an inflammation of the brain) begin with the sudden onset of headache, high fever, chills, and vomiting. The illness may then progress into disorientation, seizures, or coma. EEE is one of the most severe mosquito-transmitted diseases in the United States with approximately 33% mortality and significant brain damage in most survivors. There is no specific treatment for EEE; care is based on symptoms. You can reduce your risk of being infected with EEEV by using insect repellent, wearing protective clothing, and staying indoors while mosquitoes are most active. If you think you or a family member may have EEE, it is important to consult your healthcare provider for proper diagnosis.

NOTE: EEEV was one of more than a dozen agents that the United States researched as potential biological weapons before the nation suspended its biological weapons program. 30-35% of infected humans die, and half of survivors are left with severe neurological impairment...Lon

Deadly EEE Virus Discovered in Upstate New York

Fortean / Oddball News - 8/6/2010

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 11:15 AM PDT

Aleister Crowley's Dilapidated Villa For Sale

telegraph - The dilapidated, whitewashed Italian villa, set amid the hills of Sicily, was owned in the 1920s by Aleister Crowley, whose outrageous drug-taking, keen sexual appetite and interest in mysticism later made him a cult figure for the Beatles, David Bowie, Ozzie Osbourne and Iron Maiden.

The cottage, near the town of Cefalu in Sicily, contains explicit, erotic frescoes of men and women entwined together, painted by Cambridge-educated Crowley when he lived there in the early 1920s.

The frescoes, inspired by the work of Gauguin, also include naked devils, satyrs and serpents.

The estate agents that are selling the property, which has been abandoned for years and is overrun with bushes and long grass, have suggested that it should be turned into a museum devoted to Crowley's extraordinary life.

He called the house the Abbey of Thelema and turned it into a kind of commune, where daily life revolved around yoga, adoration of the Sun and the study of his own mystical philosophical writings.

Eventually his libertine tastes so offended Mussolini's fascists that they expelled him and his lovers from the country in April 1923.

Local people believe that the villa, which hosted orgies and experiments in free love that predated the hippy movement by decades, is cursed and refuse to go near it.

Crowley, who called himself The Great Beast, created a religious philosophy known as Thelema and is known for his mystical writings, including The Book of the Law, in which he set out the main tenets of Thelema.

He was also a keen chess player and mountaineer, taking part in the first British attempt to climb K2 in the Himalaya, in 1902.

He travelled widely in Europe, Asia and the Americas and was thought to have been a spy for British intelligence.

He died in a Sussex boarding house in 1947 at the age of 72.

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Ghost Hunters to Investigate 'London Dungeon' on Friday 13th

pinkpaper - The London Paranormal Society, the UK's premier public ghost-busters, will investigate London Dungeon next week – to coincide with Friday the thirteenth.

The group, led by openly-gay medium Ian Shillito, will spend six hours in the reportedly-haunted location looking for some of its supernatural inhabitants.

And, as usual, the public are invited to attend – being given the chance to investigate one of the capital's most scary locations.

Shillito told PinkPaper.com: "Beyond the mutilated exhibits, torture equipment and dark corridors, we find multiple reports of ghostly children, silent figure's appearing in the mortuary or gliding around the Great Fire exhibit.

"General poltergeist activity is encountered when doors rattle, open and close whilst knocks and raps are heard, especially in the Jack the Ripper area.

"Previous investigations have uncovered much auditory phenomena, and many of the investigators were spooked in the world's largest mirror maze as strange mists, dragging footsteps and clanking of chains have been experienced. Sightings are regularly witnessed fuelling the stories further."

In 1212, a hospital dedicated to Thomas Becket stood on the site of the dungeons. The Hospital of St Thomas the Martyr was run by Augustinian monks and nuns who provided treatment for the poor, sick and homeless.

By the 17th century the area had become a popular place for alternative entertainment. Dog, bear and cock fighting, binge drinking were all to be found in the many local taverns. Tooley Street (originally called St Olaves Street) and gained a reputation for being an infamous red light district. In 1838, London Bridge station was built therefore creating a series of arches. During the WWII, the arches were used as air raid shelters by many of the residents of the nearby tenements.

On Feburary 17 1941, the arches received a direct hit by a bombing raid killing 68 local people who were spending the night It is believed that many of the bodies were never recovered and still remain entombed to this very day.

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Corpse Gets Parking Ticket in Seattle

seattlepi - A Seattle parking enforcement officer ticketed a man Tuesday who authorities say was likely dead hours before the ticket was issued.

About 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, the parking enforcement officer marked the man's car in a 2-hour parking zone. The woman returned a few minutes after noon and found the car hadn't moved.

"The PEO rapped on the window twice in an attempt to wake the man," police spokeswoman Renee Witt said in a statement. "When she was unsuccessful she concluded that the individual was simply a sound sleeper. The PEO left the ticket on the windshield and continued her patrol."

She later learned he was dead.

About 40 minutes after the man was fined $42 for parking too long in the 2-hour spot, his girlfriend found the car with a GPS device.

Medics were dispatched at 12:47 p.m., but the man was unconscious and unresponsive when they arrived, Fire Department spokeswoman Dana Vander Houwen said.

The driver was Derek Michael Eldridge, 36, according to the King County Medical Examiner's Office. The office is waiting for tests before releasing his cause and manner of death, though police say there was no sign of homicidal violence. Eldridge's exact time of death was not released Wednesday.

Parking enforcement officers have radios and a reasonable expectation to call for help in an emergency.

But police Sgt. Sean Whitcomb said it's not uncommon for parking enforcement officers to find people asleep in their cars. The woman, a 29-year parking enforcement veteran, did nothing wrong in the circumstances, he said.

The ticket issued was Eldrige's first parking ticket in Seattle Municipal Court, records show. The ticket was voided about an hour and a half after he was pronounced dead.

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Chinese Protesters Cut Off Fingertips and Swallow

AFP - Four protesters in Beijing cut off their fingertips and swallowed them in a desperate bid to bring attention to their cause, state media reported Thursday.

The men, from the central province of Hunan, travelled to the capital to seek resolution of a dispute with their former employer, who they claim sacked them on trumped-up charges, the official Global Times newspaper said.

They gathered at Tsinghua University, one of the nation's most highly regarded, on Sunday and rested their hands on books on the pavement, the report said.

Then, in front of hundreds of bystanders, each in turn held a cleaver and brought it down, cutting the tops off their little fingers and swallowing the severed tips, it added.

"I felt so calm doing that, as we have been driven from pillar to post," Li Bo, one of the men, was quoted as saying.

The four have since been seized by police and forced out of Beijing, the report said.

The case highlights the desperate measures some people in China will take to bring attention to grievances that have been ignored by local governments or courts.

Over the past year, some protesters have even set themselves on fire and died to prevent their houses or businesses from being demolished, in cases that have shocked the nation.

According to Li, the electric power bureau in Hunan's Yongzhou city fired the four in December 2008 on charges of absenteeism, which he says were wrong.

They tried to have their case heard at the city's committee for labour disputes, which rebuffed them, claiming they had never worked for the electricity bureau.

Last month they filed a lawsuit against their former employer but a court in Hunan rejected it, the report said.

Li alleged the four had also received death threats from local government officials in Hunan, and after all legal avenues were exhausted, they decided to come to Beijing as a last resort, it added.

Under a system dating from imperial times, Chinese people can petition government authorities in Beijing over injustices or unresolved disputes.

However, many such petitioners complain of official unresponsiveness to their concerns, while others report being detained by authorities and kicked out of the capital to be sent home.

As Well...Ukranian Man Eats Grandmother Alive

skynews - A 26-year-old Ukranian man has allegedly eaten his grandmother alive.

Computer programmer, Sergei Zhmaryov, has been accused of gouging out 60-year-old Lydia's eyeballs before eating her.

He allegedly used a shard of broken mirror to carve the grandmother's face while she was still conscious.

It is believed Zhmaryov cut her tongue out to stop her screams for help, and then ate it.

He also allegedly cut off her lips and ears. The woman died at the scene.

Ukranian authorities believe it may have been a ritualistic killing.

Zhmaryov was found in his underpants, holding a cross and chanting prayers.

He could face up to 20 years in prison on murder charges.

Fortean / Oddball News - 8/6/2010

Panther on the Prowl in Southern Georgia

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 10:09 AM PDT

The bite marks of a big cat appeared on a horse on a farm a few miles north of the Florida border several weeks ago. Owner Larry Rodgers blames the attack on a Florida panther. (Photo by Paul Leavy / Valdosta Daily Times)

athensreview - A big cat is prowling South Georgia, judging by the marks on Larry Rodgers' horse, Peppy.

Rodgers noticed a lump behind Peppy's jaw on July 21. He at first assumed it had taken a kick from another horse on his property a couple of miles north of the Florida border. Upon closer inspection, Rodgers saw long scratches and a puncture wound that appeared to be bite marks.

Rodgers called a veterinarian, and the horse is doing well. But Rodgers and others are still talking about what kind of cat could be roaming the area.

Stories in the rumor mill describe coyotes, bobcats or even a lion or tiger escaped from a local theme park. State wildlife officials say they've had no official sightings of lions or tigers, and officials at the Wild Adventures theme park say there has been no escape.

Rodgers says he believes the cat was a Florida panther. The cats grow up to 8 feet long and weigh up to 130 pounds.

About 80 of the endangered panthers are left, according to the Florida Panther Society. Most live in south Florida, though some are known to range north. In the mid-1990s the society tracked a few of the animals into South Georgia.

Rogers says the panther swiped the hindquarters of another horse, which has not left Peppy's side since the incident. While there has never been a report of a Florida panther attacking a human, Rodgers and his family aren't taking chances.

"We're all kind of watching out for one another, but I don't think a big cat would attack a person," he says. "Still, we're all pretty cautious."

Panther on the Prowl in Southern Georgia

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