Some call him the Protector, others call him the Guardian or the Tree Spirit.
No matter what his name is, the branch display hanging from a wire is an iconic landmark that welcomes visitors to Osoyoos with his creepy presence.
Megan Bell calls him the Vineyard Monster.
She loves the vine creature so much she created a children’s T-shirt dedicated to the iconic Osoyoos statue. The T-shirt is part of the launch of her new clothing line Lake + Wild.
Hanging just off Highway 97 (coming from Oliver and Penticton) for more than 25 years, it stands high above vineyards with Osoyoos Lake behind.
There’s debate about whether someone added eyes on him, but the eyes may have been there all along.
An Osoyoos Facebook page has also featured debate about what to name the vine/branch man. Of the more than 100 suggestions for the name – the Watchman, others the Phantom of the Vineyard, Monster, Bud the Cable Guy, Treesus and more – no consensus was reached.
“I moved to the Okanagan three years ago from Vancouver and just love it,” Bell says. “My clothing is about celebrating beautiful B.C. I only have a few designs on the go as I only launched Dec. 4 but I hope to expand as time goes on. “Honestly, I just see this guy every day going to work and I thought ‘he needs to be on a shirt for kids!
“I have a one-year-old and loved the idea of getting him a shirt depicting the ‘vineyard monster.’”
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