Search for Pepie

The captain of the 125-passenger paddle-wheeler Pearl of the Lake, says he has seen Pepie and believes the creature deserves respect and recognition. The latest twist in the tale is that anyone who can hook, net or capture Pepie on film could earn a $50,000 reward.

There have been a lot of people over the years who said they saw it, or something they couldn’t explain, on the lake, but up until now, there hasn’t been a central clearinghouse for that information. Collecting the reward will require a good photograph or a bit of fin or skin. If the photo is determined to be authentic, or if a University of Minnesota biologist can confirm the DNA came from a monster, fame and fortune will follow.

Quoted from Chad Lewis and Noah Voss, authors of PEPIE – The Lake Monster of the Mississippi River, “The early Native Americans warned of a deadly beast inhabiting the waters of Lake Pepin along the Mississippi River. For the past 150 years, the legend of the beast dubbed Pepie has grown to epic proportions.” According to a historical account, there has been multiple statements of a large monster-like creature in the waters of Lake Pepin.

“A lake monster was seen swimming on Lake Pepin” on April 28, 1871, according to the Minnesota Historical Society’s Book of Days Almanac. Legend has it that the Dakota, who lived along the scenic, wide stretch of the river, beached their birch bark canoes for thicker dugout canoes when traveling on Lake Pepin. The reason? There were large creatures lurking in the lake that had easily punctured the thinner birch canoes.

Visit Lake City and see if you can spot Pepie the Lake Pepin Monster!