Lake Labynkyr — the Labynkyr Devil

OVERVIEW

Labynkyr is a lake of 44.7 km² in Oymyakonsky Ulus, Yakutia, 1,020 m above sea level and on average 52 m deep. Unusually for the region it does not freeze solid in winter, keeping water at about 2 °C when surface air falls to −60 °C. Yakut folklore and eyewitness accounts say a huge animal, the Labynkyr Devil (Labynkyrsky chort), lives in it: dark grey, with an enormous mouth and eyes set as far apart as the width of a raft of ten logs, aggressive, and able to come ashore.

HISTORY

Scientific interest began with a report by the geologist V. I. Tverdokhlebov, who recorded seeing a large moving object in the lake on 30 July 1953; a series of expeditions produced nothing convincing. A 2005 television expedition ('Iskateli') found by echo-sounder an anomalous crack in the lake bed and, by deep-water camera, remains of animal jaws and vertebrae. In 2013 the Russian Geographical Society and the Diving Sport Federation dived under the ice, setting a record for the deepest dive under ice (59.6 m); the largest creatures they met were dogfish about 1.2 m long, and the Siberian Times said there was no evidence of anything else.

REPORTED ACTIVITY

Cryptozoologists have proposed a giant pike, a relict reptile or an amphibian. Local people also reported the 'devil' in neighbouring Lake Vorota, but an expedition there showed it held no monster.

VISITING

The lake is remote: the 2013 expedition took about 20 hours to drive 30 km across the ice in modified KAMAZ trucks.