For almost my whole life I’ve heard stories of lost lakes and raining frogs. Some of these are so fantastic that they challenge the imagination. For example there is the story of a huge lake somewhere in the United States that disappeared suddenly, only to reappear again as if by magic. Another story consists of a tornado that rained down thousands of frogs on a community. Other versions variously use sardines or larger fish as the “raining” object of the story.
These tales seem like the substance of folklore…a whopper of a tale told by an old man to his grandchildren. But, is there a core of truth to these legends? Surprisingly…the answer is “yes”! Not only is there a core of truth, these stories are largely and absolutely true.
There is indeed a place in Virginia known as “Mountain Lake,” a large 50-acre body of water. At over 3000 feet in elevation it is one of the highest natural lakes on the eastern seaboard of the United States. With a large lodge and cabins, it has been a tourist destination for many over the generations. But, in 1999 something amazing and devastating began to happen as the lake levels dropped to dramatically almost emptying the basin.
By 2003 the lake had returned to normal. But in 2006 the lake emptied completely leaving behind dead and rotting fish for a few days, and then filling back in slightly. From 2008 to 2012 the lake was mostly dead and dry. The lake was more of a puddle or a pond after that until this year (2020) when spring rains began to replenish its water supply. It is now one-third full.
But, can stories about it raining frogs, sardines, and larger fish really happen? The answer again is a surprising, “yes.” There are confirmed reports from Missouri, Louisiana, Kansas, Australia, and Serbia of frogs, small fish, larger fish, rocks, and pebbles raining down out of the sky. In every case high winds (probably tornadoes) accompanied these reports. After all, people frequently report of tornadoes emptying entire ponds of their water as they pass over. Scientists assume that creatures such as fish or frogs were picked up out of a pond or the ocean by the cyclonic winds and were deposited elsewhere once the storm lost energy and wind speed.
But why rainfalls of ONLY frogs or fish? That’s easy…tornadoes are a type of centrifuge. As the cyclonic winds lose energy and speed, things of similar weight and composition fall from sky at the same time. So, sometimes truth is indeed stranger than fiction in this wonderful world God created.