Live Like a Native

Who is Normie?

Does a mysterious creature dwell in the lake?

BY RENEE ROBERSON

There have long been sightings of mysterious creatures in different areas of Lake Norman. Author Chuck McShane discussed the origin of these stories in his book A History of Lake Norman: Fish Camps to Ferraris, and resident Matt Myers became intrigued enough to create a website, LakeNormanMonster.com, designed for people to share their own stories.

“I’ve heard fish stories since I moved here in 2001,” says Myers. “A friend and coworker of mine bought a boat not too long after we moved. After spending some time on the boat fishing and boating, my interest piqued in these fish tales . . . I spent the time putting together a small site for people to submit their own monster fish stories. It was just for fun to start with. However, it’s taken on a life of its own and grown over the years.”

So just who is Normie? Rumors have abounded for years among locals that there are “catfish the size of Volkswagens” near the dam at Cowans Ford, while others have seen a creature resembling an alligator swimming through the lake. Other speculate there could be large exotic fish jumping through the water as the source of some of these sightings. Fisherman have reported a large creature eating their fish before they could reel the catch in.

The work Myers did gathering and cataloguing these sightings led to the website catching the eye of experts and television producers.

“Shortly after the site started gaining popularity, I was contacted by a Swedish gentleman by the name of Jan-Ove Sundberg,” says Myers. “Jan was the Expedition Leader of GUST – the Global Underwater Search Team. He’ s been featured twice on The Learning Channel – most popularly in “Loch Ness: The Search for the Truth.” Jan took quite an interest in Lake Norman. He was even kind enough to write an exclusive introduction for the website back when it was in its infancy. Unfortunately, he passed away a few years ago, but his experience in the field of cryptozoology and his advice was an inspiration to keep the site going.”

In 2014, the TV show “America’s Monsters” featured the Lake Norman Monster in an episode titled “Champ & Normie” segment that also included Lake Champlain. Myers and many other Lake Norman community members and leaders were featured in the segment, which is now available for viewing on Amazon Prime.

“I worked on a documentary film crew for a couple of years about 15 years ago, so I was accustomed to the setup and lights and cameras, but it was an entirely different experience being in front of the camera,” says Myers. “The crew was great. I had a lot of input into the content and info (except they called Charlotte the capital of N.C… I’ll give them a pass. It was a Canadian crew).”

The research into the folklore of Normie has also spanned two books, Lake Norman Monster: A Decade of Sightings, written by Myers and a children’s picture book, Normie the Lake Norman Monster, written by his wife Amy.

Visit LakeNormanMonster.com to read more about the sightings around the lake, and keep your own eyes open next time you’re out on the water!