Hodgee

The first thing you should know about this monster is that she might be a hoax. While this webmaster has seen her mentioned in two cryptozoological publications (Scott Francis' Monster Spotter's Guide to North America and Preston Dennett's Supernatural California), there was talk in the comments of an online article about Hodgee that she was a hoax, and a photo on the website dedicated to her that purports to be of scientists searching for Hodgee is actually of Loch Ness. That said, she is a fascinating monster and if she is a hoax the creators of the Hodgee website have done an excellent job convincing the public; there have even been news reports of the monster. Aquabeasties plans to conduct an investigation into the website and find out if the reports of sightings are true. Meanwhile, here is her story.

Hodgee.com gives a detailed history of Hodgee sightings in Lake Hodges, a reservoir in Southern California. Here are some paraphrased highlights:

1916: The Santa Fe Railroad decides to create a dam on the San Dieguito River, and reports of Indian warnings of a river monster are dismissed by the San Diego Union as "...ramblings attempting to stop the project..."

1921: Two mines on the shores of the lake begin operating using heavy equipment, and local fishermen report seeing "a large disturbance" in the water. A Navy spokesman denies rumors that the Navy is conducting tests on early submarines in the lake.

1923: Four days apart, both mines' equipment is pushed over or partially crushed and the mine owners blame each other. The Sherriff says the perpetrator must have used a boat to get between the mines and wiped away footprints.