FIELD FILE · LOUGH-REE-MONSTERLAKE & SEA MONSTERLOCAL LEGEND
Lough Ree Monster
Also known as The Lough Ree serpent
Ireland’s best-known lake monster, seen by three fishing priests on Lough Ree in May 1960 – a sighting the BBC carried to the world.
Lough Ree – Loch Rí, the King’s Lake – is the second of the three great lakes on the River Shannon, a broad, island-studded stretch of water in the Irish midlands between Athlone at its southern end and Lanesborough at its northern tip. It forms the border between Westmeath and Longford on the east and Roscommon on the west, and its islands are rich in history, from the early Christian monastery on Inchcleraun to the legendary death of Queen Medb.
Ireland has an old tradition of lake beasts – the péist or ollphéist said to lurk in many a lough, and the water-hound dobhar-chú – but Lough Ree’s monster belongs to the modern era. On May 28, 1960, three priests out fishing on the lake noticed an unusual animal about 100 yards from their boat. They watched it closely enough to estimate its size: around six feet (1.8 metres) long, with a head roughly 18 inches (45 centimetres) across.
Because the witnesses were clergymen with no obvious reason to invent a story, their account carried unusual weight. It was reported widely in Irish newspapers and picked up by the BBC, and regional tourism bodies still describe it as perhaps the most credible lough-monster sighting in the world. It came at the height of the Loch Ness craze, when lakes across Britain and Ireland were being scanned for similar animals.
Since then there have been occasional sightings from fishermen and locals, and boaters on the Shannon tell of hard knocks and thumps against the hulls of their cruisers in the middle of the lake. None has produced evidence, but the story is a favourite of the region’s tourism and boating community.
- Status
- Local legend
- First reported
- 1960
- Best-known location
- Lough Ree, on the River Shannon between Athlone and Lanesborough
- Also called
- The Lough Ree serpent
- Reported in
- Ireland
What witnesses describe
In the 1960 sighting, an animal about 1.8 metres long with a head about 45 centimetres across, seen at a distance of roughly 100 yards. Later reports are vaguer: movement in the water, or something large knocking against a boat from below.
Where and when it’s seen
The open water of Lough Ree, especially the wide central and southern basins between Athlone and the lake’s islands. Most reports come from anglers and cruiser crews in the boating season.
Notable sightings
- May 28, 1960The three priests Lough Ree
Three priests fishing on the lake reported watching an unknown animal about 100 yards away, roughly six feet of it visible, with a head around 18 inches across. Their account appeared in Irish newspapers and was broadcast by the BBC.
What could explain it?
- Large eels are plentiful in Lough Ree – the lake has a commercial eel fishery – and a big eel or a group swimming near the surface could appear as a long, dark body.
- Otters, swimming deer and cattle, or large pike may account for heads and wakes seen at a distance.
- Knocks against boat hulls are easily caused by submerged timber, rocks in shallow areas or large fish.
- The Loch Ness craze made people across Britain and Ireland more likely to interpret unusual sights on large lakes as a monster.
Legend, culture and tourism
The Lough Ree monster is a cherished piece of midlands lore, promoted by regional tourism bodies and retold to Shannon boaters, and it sits alongside older Irish water-beast traditions such as the dobhar-chú. The lake itself is popular for fishing, sailing and island-hopping to monastic ruins.
Places to visit
Cruises and boat hire from Athlone’s harbour head out onto the lake where the priests had their 1960 encounter.
Where it’s reported
Ireland Westmeath Longford Roscommon
Lough Ree Monster in the news
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Sources
First published · Updated
