What Would You Do, If You Saw A Sea Serpent?

OCEAN PARK, Sept. 1. – The dread sea serpent which has visited this beach at
odd times during the last five years has again been seen.

This year he was rather late arriving, as usually he makes his appearance
during the early summer months and shows up once or twice during the season.

Until yesterday he was not seen during the present season by any of the old
inhabitants, who have learned to watch for his appearance, and it was
thought he had hied himself to new shores and had tired of the pasture
grounds off the shores of California.

Early yesterday morning, however, he was spied a short distance off the
horseshoe pier by Ed Mathews, a local resident, and George Franklyn, a
visitor from Los Angeles who had come to Ocean Park for an early morning
fishing.

News that the giant serpent was off shore sped rapidly and soon the rail of
the pier was lined with a curious throng who watched the antics of the huge
creature as it swam back and forth on top of the waves.

At no time did it come near enough to the pier for any of the spectators to
get a shot at it with a file, despite the fact that one was brought for the
purpose.

For nearly twenty minutes the creature disported itself before the eyes of
the spectators, and then swam away seaward. All during the day curious
persons who had missed seeing the creature in the morning passed the beach
in the hope that it would return, but they were disappointed.

“The first thing which attracted my attention was when a huge head bobbed up
above the surface of the water,” said Mr. Franklyn last night.

“This head was about the size of a keg. A great mouth was cut across the
lower part of it and gleaming teeth could be seen.

“I had with me a powerful pair of spyglasses and I turned them toward the
creature. From where I was standing the eyes appeared to be as large as
base balls and to protrude from the head.

“Running along its spine was a great fin, while two other fins protruded
from the sides. With these fins the serpent lashed the water about it to a
foam as it swam back and forth.

“I could not at first believe that I was seeing anything real and I rubbed
the lenses of my glasses in astonishment. At last I handed them to Mathews
and for several minutes he stood gazing at the creature.

“We then called to other persons who were some distance away and several of
them ran up. They, too, were astonished at the appearance of the strange
serpent. At last one man said it was possible the creature might swim near
the pier in time and a youth who was present ran to his home a short
distance away and secured a rifle.

“For ten minutes longer we stood watching the serpent hoping it would come
close enough to give us a shot at it, but it did not do so and at last it
turned and swam rapidly away, its head rising several feet above the surface
of the ocean as it went.

“I have never believed in sea serpents before this time and have always
thought that they were the product of some fanciful person’s imagination.

“I know different now and believe that the ocean is inhabited by many
strange creatures about which our most noted scientists and students know
nothing.”

Loren Coleman About Loren Coleman
Loren Coleman is one of the world’s leading cryptozoologists, some say “the” leading living cryptozoologist. Certainly, he is acknowledged as the current living American researcher and writer who has most popularized cryptozoology in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Starting his fieldwork and investigations in 1960, after traveling and trekking extensively in pursuit of cryptozoological mysteries, Coleman began writing to share his experiences in 1969. An honorary member of Ivan T. Sanderson’s Society for the Investigation of the Unexplained in the 1970s, Coleman has been bestowed with similar honorary memberships of the North Idaho College Cryptozoology Club in 1983, and in subsequent years, that of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, CryptoSafari International, and other international organizations. He was also a Life Member and Benefactor of the International Society of Cryptozoology (now-defunct). Loren Coleman’s daily blog, as a member of the Cryptomundo Team, served as an ongoing avenue of communication for the ever-growing body of cryptozoo news from 2005 through 2013. He returned as an infrequent contributor beginning Halloween week of 2015. Coleman is the founder in 2003, and current director of the International Cryptozoology Museum in Portland, Maine.

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