So I first heard this story from one of my neighbors who grew up on the lake.� I was a bit dubious at first (sorry Brian) as I had a hard time imagining that a creature suited for salt water could adapt to living in a fresh water environment. But Brian’s a reasonably honest guy so I knew it had to be true.� Well, ran across this story on HistoryLink.org the other day that verifies his tale.

It seems Butch was a free spirited harbor seal who made Lake Sammamish home for 25 years before dying in 1975. Nobody is quite sure how Butch came to the lake. There were several theories that he swam through Lake Washington and up the slough to Lake Sammamish. But the fact that he had a collar on�gave more credibility to the theory that he escaped the circus.�

At any rate, he was probably a far more welcome resident than the recent reports of Nutria.� Would have been neat to see him but it was far before my time.

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