Creature record / 1971

Fr Gregory Brusey and Roger Pugh: the Loch Ness sighting from Fort Augustus Abbey

October 1971 · Fort Augustus Abbey, Fort Augustus, Loch Ness, Highland, Scotland, United Kingdom

13Thinly documented Cryptid Creature 14 sources 2 videos

Mid-October 1971. A calm, sunny morning at Fort Augustus, at the south-western end of Loch Ness. Fr Gregory Brusey, a Benedictine monk and master organist, walked the abbey grounds with his friend Roger Pugh, an organist visiting from London. The water was smooth. Then, about 200 yards out, it churned. A black neck rose from the loch, about eight inches thick and seven or eight feet high. A hump followed. It rose, then dove sideways back into the water. "It was not a boat or a log or a fish," Brusey said. "It was a different animal." Close by, Nessie hunter Tim Dinsdale heard one of the men say there was movement in the water. Low sun glare blinded him.

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Key facts

When	October 1971
Time of day	morning
Where	Fort Augustus Abbey, Fort Augustus, Loch Ness, Highland, Scotland,United Kingdom
Duration	about 20 seconds
Witnesses	2
Witness roles	civilians
Found
Evidence	none confirmed
Investigations	none recorded
Status	undisputed

The creature

A big commotion on smooth water about 200 yards out, then a black, pole-like neck about eight inches thick and seven or eight feet high, followed by a hump. It rose, then dove sideways back into the water. Brusey insisted it was not a boat, a log or a fish but a different animal.

Size	about 2.3 m (neck seven or eight feet above the water)
Distance	about 180 m from the witnesses
Colour	black
Motion	slow drift
Duration	20 seconds
Weather	clear

HMAS Hobart and the DMZ "Mystery Helicopters" (related)

Context

Fort Augustus sits at the south-western end of Loch Ness. Its Benedictine abbey ran a monastery and a school on the shore. In 1971, one of its monks was Fr Gregory Brusey. He was 58. A master organist, he taught music at the abbey school and conducted a brass band. He had studied music at Edinburgh University and organ in Budapest, and was ordained in 1941. He was not the first monk of Fort Augustus to report something in the loch. Dom Cyril Dieckhoff had described a sighting there in 1940.

Sources (14, most influential first)

Unimpeachable Nessie Eyewitness, Father Gregory Brusey · Westside Spirit· 2015-02-16 · Press, book, documentary · news
Unimpeachable Nessie Eyewitness, Father Gregory Brusey · NY Press· 2015-02-16 · Press, book, documentary · news
The Pole Like Nessie Sightings · Loch Ness Mystery blog (Glasgow Boy)· 2015-06-03 · Wiki, blog, podcast · blog
The Loch Ness Hoodoo · Loch Ness Mystery blog· 2025-11-22 · Wiki, blog, podcast · blog
Fr Gregory Brusey OSB, Mus Bac (Edin) · Corbie 2024 (Michael T.R.B. Turnbull) · Wiki, blog, podcast · blog