Lou Carcolh

Lou Carcolh is a bizarre cryptid from French folklore, specifically the Gascony region, depicted as an enormous, slimy, snail-like creature with a serpent’s head and long, grasping tentacles. Said to dwell in caves outside the town of Hastingues, it reputedly lurks just inside its cavernous lair, snaring unwary travelers who wander too close. Locals once warned that the creature’s slimy trails could be found winding ominously across forest paths. While most scholars see Lou Carcolh as a myth born from medieval fears of dark, unexplored caves and monstrous hybrids, it remains embedded in local identity, appearing in village crests and cultural events that turn this grotesque monster into a playful, if eerie, mascot.