Monster Hunting: The Torch Lake Monster

The crystal waters hold a horror...or does it?

WELCOME TO HALLOWEEN SEASON! 🎃

Here are the mysteries you’re uncovering today.

• Cancer needs to go die.

• Horror Haiku is a thing that we all need in our lives.

• Why does Michigan have so many lake cryptids?

• Aliens or ghosts. You choose.

First off, thank you to everyone who took the time to answer the polls in last month’s newsletter. You let me know I’m on the right track.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and a friend (who recently beat cancer. YAY!) is raising money for Sara’s Project, a charity that helps women dealing with breast cancer. My aunt had breast cancer and is actually on her third cancer battle. Cancer won’t get the freaking hint to piss off. (And many of you know I lost my father-in-law this year to esophagus cancer.)

If you want to help out, you can check out M. Pax’s Cancer Warrior Women Poster Pack.

I don’t like poetry. Unless its a Haiku. Something about those click with me. I like to read them, so when

Honeygloom

created a horror haiku club I was all about reading them. (Not writing, though. I just don’t feel like doing that, and I don’t have to. Remember folks, you do not have to do all the things. You can just enjoy something.)

Are you a first time visitor to Twisting the Myths? Subscribe to discover more mysteries and monsters like the one below, enjoy a quick tale, or get inspired.

YET ANOTHER LAKE MONSTER IN MICHIGAN?!

Torch Lake is Michigan’s longest and deepest inland lake, clocking at an impressive 19 miles long and 285 feet deep. The turquoise water is crystal clear. It is considered a beautiful area. Picture perfect. Instagram-worthy!

Photo by Joel Gaff on Unsplash

But something lurks in its depths. Something that has been haunting and hunting people since the 1960s and 1970s.

This monster is said to be a cross between a lizard and a mountain lion. Often described as a “sea panther”, it rises out of the water at night to feed on anyone stupid enough to still be out on the lake after dark. Many unusual or unexplained drownings have been blamed on this monster.

OR MAYBE NOT…

The tale of the Torch Lake monster was first told by Dave Foley, a former counselor at Hayo-Went-Ha camp that resides on the lake’s northern edge. He enthralled campers with stories of a monstrous beast that lived on the bottom of the lake and terrorized land dwellers.

I found image this on Canva.

Later, his fellow counselor, Bob Thruston immortalized the cryptid with a song that described it as having a slimy, green body and mismatched eyes.

So, does the Torch Lake Monster actually exist? Or was Dave just trying to tell a scary story? There are some rather large muskellunge swimming in the lake, and in 2009, a Rapid City fisherman caught one that weighed in at 50 pounds. In one aspect, yes, monsters do roam the waters of Torch Lake, but as to their supernatural origins? Given that Dave has taken credit for starting the legend, I think we have to put this one in the category of fun and spooky stories to tell in the dark.

But, you never know, a photograph might surface one day. Strange and monstrous creatures DO exist in Michigan.

WHAT IS YOUR TAKE ON THE TORCH LAKE MONSTER?

A spooky campfire tale? Or does hope spring eternal that these cryptids will be proven real one day?

My next email will drop into your inbox on October 28th. Keep your eyes peeled because I’m sharing how to make your own magical narwhal friend!

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If you were inspired, please hit like 🩷and share Twisting the Myths with someone you know would love to join the fun. 👻

Thank you for reading.

Until next time, stay spooked!

~Patricia J.L.