Bear Lake, Utah.
Straddling the Utah/Idaho border in Utah’s upper northeastern corner is beautiful Bear Lake. In addition to its excellent opportunities for boating, skiing, and fishing, Bear Lake is allegedly home to a sea monster.
Said to resemble a giant brown snake nearly 90 feet long, the legend dates back to when only Indians inhabited the area. When white settlers came to the valley, the Shoshone Indians inhabiting the area told of how the creature had often captured and carried away their people. Their description of the animal sounded much like an enormous crocodile or a mythical dragon.
According to many who have seen the serpent, it has a thin head, a large mouth, and small legs it uses to move swiftly through the water. The slithering snake-like creature has also been described as spouting water from its mouth and moving so fast through the lake that it leaves a wake, much like a boat.
Others say the monster crawled onto the beach on short, flipper-like legs. Once upon the sand, it holds its head high and turns it from side to side as it looks about.
Though many believe the monster is nothing more than a legend, some scientific research has examined its existence. Findings suggest the creature could be a dinosaur-like animal or a descendant of a sea lizard from when Lake Bonneville covered the entire basin.
In the summer of 1871, a local citizen was said to have captured a “young” member of the monster family near Fish Haven. This report had some credibility as it was reported in the Salt Lake City Herald:
“This latter-day wonder is said to be about twenty feet in length, with a mouth sufficiently large to swallow a man without any difficulty, and is propelled through the water by the action of its tail and legs.”
The citizen, a fisherman, set a large trap, made especially to capture one of the “beasts.” No one seems to know what happened to the captured creature.
If the legend of the sea monster itself is not enough, another legend says that even the mythical Pecos Bill, the “King” of tall tales, once wrestled the sea monster in a fight that lasted several days.
Does Bear Lake hold a sea monster? The debate rages on around the campfires, but either way, an excursion to this beautiful lake, often called the Caribbean of the Rockies, will provide a great summer adventure.
©Kathy Alexander/Legends of America, updated November 2026.
Also See:
Legends, Ghosts, Myths & Mysteries
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