The Haunted Waters of Lincoln City

There lots of good reasons to visit the Oregon coast; gorgeous views, historic locations, fresh seafood, spacious beaches, local festivals, and even ghosts and cryptids. That's right, there's a ton of supposedly haunted locations along the Oregon coast. And Lincoln City has it's fair share of these, from restaurants, to museums, to cemeteries, and even the very waters around the city. Two particular bodies of water are said to be haunted (or inhabited) there; Devils Lake and Siletz Bay.

Devils Lake (not to be confused with Devil's Lake, Wisconsin), in the north, is a large calm fresh water lake, that empties into the ocean via one of the world's shortest rivers, D River (if I remember correctly, this is what happens when boy scouts get to name things). Legend has it this lake is inhabited by a monster, either a giant fish, or a large tentacled monstrosity, distinct from know giant squid, octopus, or even the legendary kraken, in that it has a freshwater environment. According to the legends, Native Americans fishing here would experience the churning water as the monster passed below, and on one particular full moon night, canoes full of warriors were pulled under the water by the angry monster as they tried to impress maidens who were watching them from the shore.
 

(Devils Lake photos taken at Blue Heron Landing Boat Rentals)

I didn't get any pictures of the monster on my visit to the lake, just some rather content looking ducks.

(It's almost like they have no idea of the potential death lurking below the lake's surface.)

Further south is Siletz Bay, named for the Siletz tribe. Here a ghostly schooner (or similar vessel) is said to sail just above the waters, one last remnant of the vessel that washed ashore over a century and a half ago, and is now buried in the mudflats. This phenomenon is supposed to happen on foggy days however, so the weather was probably too nice on my latest visit. Which is when you unsurprisingly, get clearer more easily identified pictures.

(Siletz Bay photo taken from the Public Beach Access on the north side) 

 

 
Sources/Further Reading:

“Devils Lake (Lincoln County, Oregon)” Wikipeida
(Last Modified 2018-04-01)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devils_Lake_(Lincoln_County,_Oregon)

“Ghostly Encounters - Lincoln City, OR” Visit Lincoln City on Oregon's Central Coast

(Last modification unknown)
Http://www.oregoncoast.org/things-to-do/itineraries/ghostly-encounters/

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