The Manipogo lake Monster

You've certainly heard of the Loch Ness monster.  You may have heard of Ogopogo - the monster f lake Okanogan in Central British Columbia Canada, Or Champ of Lake Champlain.  But have you heard of Manipogo?

Ever since my early childhood I spent every summer at my parents cabin near Manipogo beach, on lake Manitoba about an hour's drive from our home in Dauphin, Manitoba, Canada. Just north of a little village called Toutes Aides (which is French for "everybody helps").

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I was told that the place was named after the lake monster Manipogo.  Apparently there were a few sporadic Sightings of Manipogo throughout the 20th century. It was named Manipogo in 1957 after Ogopogo. There's a brief Wikipedia article on the monster. But in all the summers I spent there the only monster I saw was a cartoon character on T-shirts sold at the local stores.

However, there's a small island not far from the beach that is said to be its home and I've visited there many times. They call it the monster's island - I have no idea what it's really named - because of a shallow cave carve on it's Northern shore by the action of the waves. It's barely a cave - it's maybe five feet deep. But as a child it was mysterious and wonderful place. The really cool thing about the island is that the shore and the surrounding waters are covered in small sedimetary rocks which sport millions of fossils. There are snails, tiny clam shells, patterns resembling snake skin - or is it Manipogo skin? - and many others. I'm surprised there's never been any scientific expeditions there. It would seem like a god-mine for studying the prehistoric Lake Agassiz which used to cover most of the province.

Though I've never been lucky enough to spot Manipogo or any other crytptid ( a cryptid is an unverified animal like Sasquatch etc - subject of the pseudoscience cryptozoology) - perhaps you have? If so, tell me about it. I'd love to hear your stories.