Strange Tales of Lake Monsters and Bigfoot in Sweden

For many in the outside world, Sweden may bring to mind vast expanses of pristine wilderness, meatballs, and furniture, but it is also a land brimming with mystery and folklore, and perhaps its very own monsters. 

Lying out in the province of Jämtland in modern Jämtland County, Sweden, is the lake called Storsjön, meaning simply “The Great Lake.” With an area of 179 square miles, it is the fifth largest lake in Sweden and is well known for its meandering hiking trails, serene nature, and outdoor activities, but it is also known for harboring its very own lake monster. The first written mention of something strange in the lake comes to us all the way back from 1635 when a church minister named Mogens Pedersen wrote about the birth of the monster at the hands of two trolls named Data and Kata. The trolls were apparently cooking up a witch’s brew concoction in a cauldron when something started to move and quiver in the cauldron and a big bang was heard, as well as a “groaning sound as if from a sick child.” Pedersen writes:

“A long, long time ago two trolls, Jata and Kata, stood on the shores of the Great-Lake brewing a concoction in their cauldrons. They brewed and mixed and added to the liquid for days and weeks and years. They knew not what would result from their brew but they wondered about it a great deal. One evening there was heard a strange sound from one of their cauldrons. There was a wailing, a groaning and a crying, then suddenly came a loud bang. A strange animal with a black wormlike body and catlike head jumped out of the cauldron and disappeared into the depths of lake Storsjön. The animal enjoyed the the lake, grew immensely and caused horror among the people living around the shores. Finally, it had gotten to the point where it was long enough to reach around the island Frösön and could bite itself in the tail. Ketil Runske bound the mighty monster with a strong spell which was carved on a stone and raised on the island of Frösön. The serpent was pictured on the stone. Thus was the spell to be tied till the day someone came who could read and understand the inscription on the stone."

The beast was apparently later cast under a spell and bound to the bottom of the lake by carving a magic spell into the Frösö Runestone. One version of the legend of this runestone from a 1685 inquiry by the prolocutor Andreas Plantin reads:

“It is said that beneath this [rune]stone lies a dreadfully large head of a serpent and that the body stretches over Storsjön to Knytta [sv] village and Hille Sand[g] where the tail is buried. The serpent was called a rå and therefore shall this stone be raised. Since no one peacefully could cross [Storsjön], the ferryman and his wife state, along with many others, that this stone was torn down and broken in two during the last turbulent time. As long as this stone lay on the ground many strange things occurred in the water until the stone was raised and assembled anew.”

While this is all certainly pure myth and folklore, that hasn’t stopped sightings ever since of something very large and weird in the lake. The creature, known as Storsjöodjuret, or literally “The Great Lake Monster,” and sometimes affectionately called “Storsie” is typically described as being a serpentine creature with shiny dark gray or brownish skin, a round head like a cat or dog’s, a long neck, powerful tail, humps often mentioned, and two pairs of stumpy legs or fins, the whole of it measuring anywhere from 10 to 45 feet in length. While there have been hundreds of supposed sightings of the creature, there are some that stand out as particularly notable, mostly really taking off in the 19th century. 

In 1839, Aron Andersson and others at Hackås watched a red-gray animal with a head like a horse’s and a white mane swimming away from the shore. Newspapers reported in July 1857 that workers at the Forssbacka bruk (iron mill) on the lake spotted from far away a creature with a cat-like head "black and gleaming,” and a serpentine body that created a distinct wake in its path. In 1893, Marta and Karin Olsson washed clothes on the lakeside near Sörbyn in October when they saw an animal’s head rising and falling in the water. After Karin threw some stones at it, it swam swiftly toward the shore. The women ran but saw the animal submerge eventually. In 1894 there was even an attempt to capture the creature when amusement park owner Maria 
Helin and other citizens of Östersund formed a company to hunt it down using a huge iron trap baited with pig, as well as a whaling ship equipped with a harpoon, but they met with no success. In 1899, the naturalist Peter Olsson published a booklet documenting 22 eyewitness testimonies and collated the details in his summary, where he concluded that the beast was some sort of animal new to science. 

Moving on into the 20th century, in 1931, Anders Bergqvist and Jonas Hansson saw two humps in the water at Myrviken. Then in 1947, Anna Rahm observed a gray animal, 9 feet long and with a powerful tail and large ears, at Åssjön,  with a  tongue that moved  up and down threateningly, and eyes that “rolled.” On August 10, 1983, Carina Johnsson took photographs of a large, swiftly moving animal in the bay of Brunfloviken, and an alleged embryo of Storsjöodjuret was even supposedly found on the shore on June 18, 1984. 

One incredible encounter with Storsjöodjuret from 1989 was related by witness and Jämtland native Don Maxwell on the blog Vikram’s World. Maxwell’s a professional pilot with a special interest in Lake Storsjön, often flying around in the area for his own personal enjoyment. He had of course heard the stories of the monster in the lake and often looked down upon the waves wondering if it was really there. He was mostly skeptical, but one flight on a chilly morning in 1989 would change his mind entirely. He says of what happened:

“Suddenly, the tranquil waters began to stir, and from their depths emerged an inexplicable spectacle. A colossal mass, adorned with five peculiar humps trailing behind, materialized and gracefully traversed the serene lake. At first, I speculated that it might be an immense submarine, its sheer size giving the illusion of segmented sections as it surfaced, possibly to extend its periscope.

However, my assumptions swiftly shifted as I discerned a curious detail – fine hairs adorning the foremost hump. As it ascended further, it unveiled itself not as a mechanical behemoth but as a whiskered serpent, bearing an uncanny resemblance to the mythical dragons of lore. The following three humps elongated into imposing arcs, unmistakably constituting the creature’s sinuous body. The last hump ascended akin to the creature’s head, and it began to exhibit signs of agitation, manifesting in rapid, rhythmic breaths.

In a heart-pounding moment, our gazes met, and the creature emitted a deafening hiss. Fear coursed through me like an electric shock, an unprecedented sensation during my airborne journeys. The prospect of losing control of my aircraft and the subsequent peril of a potential crash into the lake loomed large. However, instinct propelled me to tear my gaze from the mysterious serpent and fixate firmly on the plane’s controls.

Determined, I maintained an unwavering forward course, steering the aircraft toward the shoreline from whence I had taken flight. I dared not divert my attention downward, for the very thought of the creature beneath filled me with an overwhelming dread, one that could have led to a catastrophic accident had I yielded to it. The true extent of the creature’s capabilities remained a haunting mystery, and I had no intention of discovering them firsthand. Returning to the airstrip where I had taken off, I began to ponder deeply on my recent encounter. I emphasize that I was in full possession of my faculties, even having consumed no alcohol. The astonishing sight I had witnessed remained vividly real in my mind. It left me with a firm conviction that indeed a mysterious creature dwelled in the lake, a creature observed by numerous locals in the vicinity.

my perspective has evolved significantly regarding the allure of this lake. I have transitioned from a skeptic to a staunch believer in the existence of lake monsters, such as those reported in Loch Ness, Scotland; Lake Champlain, spanning Vermont and New York and Lake Ikeda in Japan, among others. It has become evident to me that this elusive creature simply seeks solitude and shuns the limelight, whether it is in the heart of the lake or anywhere else within it. If people are to catch a glimpse of it, then it should be from a respectful distance, avoiding any intrusive or overwhelming encounters. My personal encounters have not deterred me from occasionally taking to the skies above the lake. Even when I am not flying, I find myself peering through telescopes or binoculars at its vast expanse. If the mysterious creature still calls this place home, I earnestly hope it’s granted the serenity it deserves, so it can continue to relish the tranquillity of its pristine aquatic habitat.”

What was this thing? In July of 1996, a man named Gun-Britt Widmark took a video of a 33–39-foot animal in July 1996 while he was boating off Östersund, and the following year Elin and Cecilia Hemreus saw the animal’s head and one arched loop of its body from only 30 feet away while they were swimming near Tippskar Island. The head was described as horselike, with two black eyes on the sides, a neck that was about 6 feet long, and a body with large, round scales like armored plates. Even more recently, in 2000, a woman in Brunflo saw a blackish serpentine creature measuring 25 feet long swimming just offshore, and in 2008 a film crew claimed to have captured Storsjöodjuret on film, reporting that their infrared cameras showed an “endothermic mass” in the lake. 

There have been so many sightings of Storsjöodjuret that the lake has 8 monster observation points positioned in places where eyewitnesses have claimed to have seen the beast, a museum dedicated to the monster, and an interactive research center where visitors can learn more about it. The creature is also notable for actually earning protected status as an endangered species in 1986, although this was removed in 2005. 

Besides lake monsters, it also seems that Sweden has its very own Bigfoot. Swedish story producer, researcher and writer Fred Andersson has uncovered an interesting report from the October 12, 1970 edition of Norrbottens Dagblad that depicts an encounter with some sort of hairy humanoid monster while driving on his way to Gällivare. The translated report reads:

“Leif Petersson was on his way to Gällivare. Then he saw something very peculiar by Kelvajärvi. “I didn’t dare get out of the car since I didn’t have my rifle with me but I had the presence of mind to film it.” It was yesterday afternoon when Leif was traveling in his car on road 45 toward Gällivare that he claims to have made the macabre observation. Opportunistically enough he happened to have his camera in the back seat. “I’m interested in animals and nature and in later years I’ve also begun to shoot animals with my camera”, says Leif. About 5 km before Gällivare, near Kelvajärvi, Leif says he saw a large, hairy creature, about 100 meters in front of the car. It crossed the road with a lumbering gait. What he’s speculating about now is that it might have been an abominable snowman. Critical voices say that it must have been a bear, and insinuate that Leif might not have been entirely sober at the time of the observation. “ I am very familiar with animals and nature, so I’m not mistaken. I have personally shot 13 bears. And I haven’t had liquor since 1964. This was no ordinary animal. I didn’t dare get out of the car since I didn’t have my rifle with me but I had the presence of mind to film it”, Leif continues. Now everyone is excitedly awaiting the super 8 mm film that has been sent to Stockholm to be developed. “It should be enough to silence all critics”, Leif concludes.”

You can see the video he allegedly took here. What does this show? Is it real or a hoax? Who knows? In the 1980s there was quite a wave of sightings of the Swedish Bigfoot around the area of Edsbyn in Hälsingland, which was all documented by the Swedish cryptozoologist and ufologist Jan-Ove Sundberg. It began in the summer of 1985 when a Swedish radio reporter talked about strange growls being heard in the province. After this, the sightings began coming in of a large, hairy man-like beast in the region. One of the first and more well-known reports came from moose hunter Karl Johansson. He and a friend had been out tracking what they at first thought was a moose, but they soon realized that this was something else, something big, hairy, and smell walking on two legs. They finally released their dogs to give chase, but the animals came back absolutely terrified and with their tails between their legs. After this, Mrs Gustavsson and her husband claimed to have heard odd grunting and growling at night, only to wake to find enormous footprints and strange droppings, which didn’t come from a normal animal outside. According to Mr. Gustavsson. From time to time they even saw the beast, and she said of this:

“Its droppings reminded me of human excrement and first I thought that it was but they were left in such places a human never would go and I always found it in the area where we had seen this creature. It came quite close to our cabin and would kind of howl in the moonlight with a voice that reminded us of a human with a bass, very very deep. We saw it more like a silhouette against the sky and it never came so close so we could identify it properly. It was huge, powerful and gave the impression of being primitive but also intelligent!”

At around the same time, a woman went out to the family cabin in a place called Voxna to clean and get ready for the summer holiday. She suddenly heard what she described as "pretty heavy feet moving around outside” and was so scared that she hid under her bed, not coming out until an hour had passed and the noise had stopped. When she went outside to investigate she found large footprints measuring 45 centimeters in length and 30 centimeters wide. A few weeks later, two teenage girls, named Tina, 15, and Petra, 16, were out swimming and playing in a small lake near the forest when they heard what sounded like something large and powerful crashing through the brush. They at first thought it was a peeping tom, and went to go try and surprise the presumed pervert, but what they found was a beast that resembled “an ape but it was uglier and very large and more resembled a man than an animal,” and which exuded a “terrible stench.” The monster allegedly reared up and thumped on its chest, sending the two girls screaming and running all the way home. 

Andersson has found some intriguing recent reports on the phenomenon of the Swedish Bigfoot. According to Andersson, in July 2010, the user Eldaron on the Swedish forum Flashback shared a story he claimed to be real. The witness writes:

“When I was young, I went a lot in the mountains in central Hälsingland with my grandmother. We were on our way to a mountain, that I don’t remember the name of, in the evening to see the sunset. On a dirt road we were driving on, I looked out into the forest when I saw something in the forest, maybe ten meters in. I told my grandmother what I saw, and she looked very serious. She turned the car back home instantly and began to tell us that she lived here when she was little. She stopped and pointed into the forest where you could see an old, almost collapsed house from the 19th century. “That’s where I lived”, she said. She had been playing with her sisters when she had seen it run fast past her, She started to scream and her father came quickly — and he looked scared. Later that evening, her grandfather sat down with her and said she had seen the troll.”

It is curious to see the mention of the troll because Swedish folklore is full of tales of trolls, often depicted as large, hairy brutes. Andersson himself even makes this connection, saying:

“The similarities are as big as the differences between trolls and bigfoot. They both are seen as large, animalistic (they’re even scientifically counted as animals in the Norwegian movie Trollhunter from 2009), smelly and hairy — but the trolls have a way more human approach to living, as stated earlier in the text. This can be because of how we’ve seen our green surroundings through the ages, where spirits and other supernatural entities roam — deeply connected to nature. Sweden is a mining country, and the stories about gold and other expensive metals could have been merged with legends of big, hairy rock-throwing giants. Maybe, like the Læstadius brothers though, stories about gruesome vikings hacking their way through innocent victims somehow turned into terrifying forest monsters?

The idea of trolls as giant humanoids is interesting, and it’s not that far-fetched to connect it to later stories about the American Bigfoot, the Yeti of Nepal, the native American stories about Sasquatch, the Menk and Alma in Russia and last but not least, the Australian Yowie. But like many later stories, the trolls/giants had human qualities; raising families, having homes (though deep in huge caves covered with gold and other valuable objects) and their own language. Sometimes described as beautiful humans, but most probably because of their shape-shifting abilities. If the trolls Kata and Jata were so active in releasing lake monsters into Swedish lakes, why aren’t stories about Bigfoot-like creatures more widespread in Sweden? There must be tons of them, considering the country is 70% covered with forest and as much as 97% is uninhabited by humans. One can only imagine what’s hiding out there…

We can see how the troll and bigfoot mythologies merge here, and the question is if there’s any difference at all in the end. Has the current speed of information streamlined the experiences, removing more detailed obstacles to comprehending the experiences? It’s much easier to visualize a big ape-like creature than something as old-fashioned as a John Bauer troll. John Bauer was a Swedish artist who during the turn of the century became hugely popular with his paintings of trolls, gnomes and other kinds of forest beings. His work did affect the Swedish consciousness so much that most people see fictional trolls as Bauer saw them, something that’s a lot harder when it comes to real-life experiences.”

Andersson continues with some other stories from the same thread, saying:

“The connection between the subject of the thread, bigfoot, and trolls is so strong it’s pretty obvious there’s a lot of similarities between the two creatures, from the size to the overall hairy appearance — and the always present, deep, dark forest. There’s a few other stories being told in the Flashback thread. During the summer of 2010 the user Respons tells about a fascinating observation in Västervik. She and her boyfriend decided to go up on a nearby smaller mountain close to where they were living at the edge of the forest, to crack open a beer or two. While sitting admiring the view they suddenly saw a bipedal creature, slightly hunched and with a gray-brown fur, run past them among the trees at an immense speed. The boyfriend thought it was a bear, but there’s no chance it could have been that according to the witness. “It looked more like a fat man, but the speed made that impossible’’. Another user, Spjuit, claimed to have seen a shorter version, approximately 150 centimeters in height, since childhood. They were seen on moonlit dirt roads, and once near a friend’s stable. The most spectacular experience came from a user who once, as a passenger on a bus, observed the driver swerve to avoid one of the creatures standing in the middle of the road. There was no reaction from her two fellow passengers, and the driver continued on without comment.”

Another recent account comes from Katrineholm, Sweden, from an anonymous witness who claims to have been out walking along a trail listening to music when they had a very odd experience. The witness would say:

“I was walking along the illuminated track here in the woods with my MP3 earphones in, when I felt a presence. I snatched my headphones out and then heard a rustling and felt vibrations in the ground, similar to a moose bull walking. I walk further about 100 meters or so when I get this feeling that this (thing)is moving besides me. Just as I pass a small clearing in the forest two deers are passing by and when I'm taking a quick photo this bastard is caught on the picture. I'm all upset now, had to write about it. The picture was taken in the woods outside Katrineholm, east of the illuminated track (not Forssjö track, but it's on the other side of highway 52). 

I'm walking along the illuminated trails and paths (in the forest) as I often do on weekends when I'm home from the city I study in. Usually I see deer during my walks with few exceptions. It is often the same group of deer, three smaller ones. So when I hear something moving in the bushes I'm prepared. So when I hear something moving along the bushes, I'm prepared for them, and make myself ready with the camera,waiting for the clearing in the terrain to come. This is where and when the picture is taken. I just registered something big and dark and whith the same colour as a moose but I thought it looked very strange. As my first thoughts are moose or wild boar, I don't follow but move a bit to the left. From my new position, the two spruces (that the creature is movig in behind) "has moved" to the right visual field, so I can't follow the the group on the other side (but I can hear them). I felt no anxiety at all at this point as I've almost run and skied into moose at several occasions. It was first when I looked at the picture that shivers were sent down my spine”

What does this picture show? Another curious account was reported on the Facebook page Crypto Sweden concerning a witness called “Magnus.” It started when he and his daughter began hearing chilling sounds like shrieks and growls at night while staying at their remote summer cabin. The witness gave an interview on his experiences and then went back to explore the area. A post on Crypto Sweden describes what he found as follows:

“Magnus recently went back to explore and document the specific area he told about in the interview that seemed very special. It consisted of 5 high trees with tree breaks done on an extraordinary height of 4 to 4.5 meters (13 to 14.9 feet). One of the trees stood alone while the other four where standing together, only a few meters apart from each other. All of these trees had the tree breaks directed outwards and away from the center. All around the particular area there were a lot of brushwood, high rough grass and a lot of raffle.Between the high trees,on the inside, the bigfoots had built like a fence out of trees in the shape of an arc, like a corral.The five big trees with broken tree trunks were marking the outside of the corral.Inside the enclosure it was wiped clinically clean. Magnus figured this place must have some sort of significance to them. We were hoping for him to be able to gather more info on it and document it with filming. It's been there for several years but was very hard to enter. Big x-markers in many direction but also difficult terrain with a lot of big pushed down trees and other obstacles. When he entered the area now he found to his great surprise and frustration that the Bigfoot have torn the whole construction to pieces. They also have removed some of the X-markers and obviously abandoned the area. During this last summer there seem to have been commotion going on between the creatures in the area. His mother, who are the one living there, has heard a lot of shouting, howlings as well as agitated discussions going on between them. This is something they have never before witnessed. The creatures have always been very silent. Anyways I helped Magnus with doing subtitles to the film he made in an effoert to document the whole thing. He is obviously very disappointed. He really hope they haven't all left the area for good. Lets's hope they haven't and will return in spring as usual, as he is very dedicated to his research of them.”

What do we make of such reports, and are they in any way linked to the trolls of myth and legend? Are they perhaps real creatures that inspired the legends or are they merely the figments of folklore and overactive imaginations? And what are we to make of the lake monster reports? Sweden may not be the first place one thinks of when they imagine lake monsters and Bigfoot, but it is a land steeped in mystery and wonder, and perhaps something is lurking out there that is even stranger than what we might suppose.