Hundreds join huge search forLoch Ness Monster

The biggest search for the Loch Ness Monster in more than 50 years is getting under way in the Scottish Highlands.

Two hundred volunteers are to help record natural – and any unusual – sights on Loch Ness from vantage points on land.

Almost 300 have signed up to monitor a live stream from the search, which is taking place on Saturday and Sunday.

It is 90 years since the modern myth of Nessie began.

In April 1933, hotel manageress Aldie Mackay said she had seen a whale-like creature in the loch.

The Inverness Courier newspaper reported the sighting and the editor at the time, Evan Barron, suggested the creature be described as a “monster”.

Since then the mystery of Nessie has inspired books, TV shows and films, as well as sustaining a major tourism industry.

This weekend’s search has been organised by the Loch Ness Centre in Drumnadrochit and a volunteer research team called Loch Ness Exploration.

Drones fitted with infrared cameras are to be flown over the loch, and a hydrophone is to be used to detect unusual underwater sounds.