In the far north of China, there is a mountain called Changbai.

Near the top is deep, cold lake. Many people say that the water in the lake is too cold for fish or plants. But some people say that a monster lives there.

The first sighting of the monster was in the early 20th century. Four hunters saw it and thought it looked like a dragon. Local people began to call the lake ’Dragon Lake’. Nothing more was seen until 1962 when an employee of the Julin Meteoreological Bureau visited a weather station near the lake. He saw two black monsters swimming through the water. Eighteen years later, the same man saw seven or eight white creatures and two big black ones. A monster family?

Not everyone believed this story of monsters in the lake. The lake water is icy cold, say some experts. Others argue that the lake is far too young for any unknown animal to live there. The lake was formed in 1702 after a strong volcanic eruption.

There is no hard proof of the monster, only an nuclear photograph. In spite of this, Mr Hou of the Tourism Bureau is not unhappy. Monsters are very good for tourism, as the people of Loch Ness in Scotland discovered many years ago. The more attention the monster gets, the more tourist money will flow into the region. Monsters mean money.