Possible sighting by fisherman at Blue Lake witnessed in Crittenden County, Arkansas

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In June, 1980, a friend and I were fishing in an ox-bow type lake adjacent to the Mississippi River in Crittenden County, Arkansas, near the town of Hughes, off highway 147. This is just across the river from Memphis, Tennessee, and the area was experiencing was the hottest summer on record at the time. It is heavily forested, running basically north and south along the river for many miles, and connecting with other river basins emptying into the Mississippi. My friends' family owned the land surrounding the lake, and theirs' was the only inhabited structure for at least a few miles in any direction. A small section of one end of the lake had a beach and was used by swimmers and picnicers during the day. The more distant areas were used only by occasional fisherman. We were in a 16-foot boat a few yards off shore, trolling among the cypress trees in 8-10 feet of water for crappie using minnows as bait, using a quiet electric motor. It was near sundown, about 8:00 pm. but still light...