In 1925, two miles north of Santa Cruz, Calif., a creature washed ashore unlike any seen before. Dubbed the Moore's Beach Monster — after Charles Moore, the fellow that discovered him — this beast has been described as stinky, with elephant-like legs, a whale-like tale and a head like a duck. Suffice it to say, the Moore's Beach Monster was quite a sight.
While descriptions of the beast vary from person to person, the esteemed E.L. Wallace, who had twice served as president of the Natural History Society of British Columbia, offered a very intriguing report of what he saw upon examining the sea creature. After review, he put the kibosh on the theory of it being a whale, based on the short length of the creature's tail, and suggested it to be a type of plesiosaur that was, perhaps, encased in ice that recently thawed.
Some believe the Moore's Beach Monster may be the same as the San Clemente sea monster, witnessed by a number of people in the early 1920s. While the real history of the Moore's Beach Monster may never be known, it's safe to say it would have been a pretty scary thing to see when it was alive and kicking — or swimming, as the case may be.