"I am fairly convinced that there was a large school of fish, and the animal was probably feeding on them. I was later told an ex-Marine had been there on vacation and had also seen and described the same animal.

"During our 2008 expedition, I saw nothing even remotely resembling the animal we saw in 2007."

This year, Anderson organized an expedition at the end of July, and participants camped at Button Bay for a week.

"We had teams by the lake in shifts equipped with a high-speed video recorder with zoom lens and infrared for evening hours. We were using decoys to try to lure Champ in closer to get better footage."

They're trying to be thorough with their search for Champ, she said.

"While our goal is to find proof of Champ, identifying things that could be mistaken for Champ is also important. It helps in sorting out reported sightings and identifying actual Champ sightings from misidentifications.

"I believe Champ does indeed exist, and I hope proof of Champ's existence will come in time."

lmckinstry@pressrepublican.com