Loch Ness Monster is ‘caught on camera’ by stunned holidaymakers in second ‘sighting’ this year
THE LOCH Ness Monster has been "caught on camera" by stunned holidaymakers - in the second sighting this year.
Australian tourists Peter Jackson and Phillippa Wearne were driving alongside the loch in the Highlands when they saw something big and fast moving through the water.
The couple quickly snapped the image of "Nessie" on a smartphone and showed it to a local skipper who told them he'd "not seen anything like it".
Phillippa, 60, a retired lawyer, from Sydney, said: “I really was just stunned and I thought, ‘what is it?’
“It was pretty big even from 150 yards or more offshore. I didn’t know what to think. We took photos and showed them to people at a B&B and then showed them to people on a cruise."
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Skipper for the Loch Ness Project, Ali Matheson, said he had not seen anything like it.
Philippa added: “It seemed to be moving fast but in the direction of the current.
"We just figured if he’s worked on here for years and not seen anything like it, then it must be something.”
Peter, 64, a retired engineer, said: “We were dumbfounded but excited.
“We just thought ‘wow, what is it?’
“It has been a childhood dream to come here. We were just driving along when we spotted it.
"We stopped the car and ran back along the road to get the shots.”
The couple noticed the object moving in the water at 5.18pm about four miles south of Urquhart Castle.
They were driving north on the A82 on the west side of Loch Ness and after safely stopping, ran back to find a clearing in the trees and took out their smartphones to take pictures.
Peter said: “I know I saw something and I know it was large so I am keeping an open mind.”
Phillippa said: “We had a lovely feeling between ourselves watching it until it disappeared.”
Gary Campbell, registrar of sightings at Loch Ness, said: “It’s great that once again smartphone technology has allowed visitors to the area to snap something unusual at the loch.
“This makes it much easier to identify known creatures which has led to a drop in recorded sightings over the past few years.
“This is only the second sighting of 2017 to make it on to the official register and we’re already halfway through the year, so we’re delighted that Nessie appears to have popped up again.
“With regard to Peter’s pictures, as with pretty much all Nessie photos, they are just that little bit indistinct.
"However, the report that he has submitted gives much more detail on the distances and time frames and from this, there is really no clear explanation as to what the family caught on camera.”
He is appealing for anyone else who may have been in the area and seen something similar on June 22 to get in touch.
The couple arrived in the UK on June 1 and will continue on their travels until returning home to Sydney on June 30.
Phillippa said: “It has always been a wish of ours to explore Scotland, we have Campbell and Cameron blood apparently.”
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