is a small collection of peaks including which is the highest point on the
island
An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...
of
Anglesey
Anglesey ( ; ) is an island off the north-west coast of Wales. It forms the bulk of the Principal areas of Wales, county known as the Isle of Anglesey, which also includes Holy Island, Anglesey, Holy Island () and some islets and Skerry, sker ...
(although not in the
county
A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...
of Anglesey — see
Holyhead Mountain). It lies about west of the coastal town of
Moelfre and south-west of the hamlet of
Brynrefail. The meaning of ''Bodafon'' is obscure. ''Bod'' is a common placename element meaning 'dwelling' and ''afon'' here is probably a corruption of the personal name A(e)ddan (''afon'' is Welsh for 'river' but topography rules that out).
On the mountain is a lake named Gors Fawr (the big marsh), containing rudd, roach and recently pike. Originally, there were two lakes on either side of the road but one is now a covered reservoir. The lake is spring fed despite local legends that claim it is connected to lakes in Snowdonia, and is bottomless. To the east of the lake is found an Iron Age settlement called Cytiau'r Gwyddelod
(Irishmen's huts).
The wildlife is dictated by the heathland habitat, different heathers, two types of gorse, cotton grass, bog asphodel, tormentil etc. There are adders, lizards, stone chats, peregrine, chough and cuckoos (there is an old local song about the cuckoo on Bodafon) etc. Heron, coot and ducks are in the lake and water rail are occasionally seen or heard. A rare form of pillwort exists in the lake. Mynydd Bodafon holds a special place in druidic and spiritual history
Although the name Mynydd Bodafon may refer to the hill itself, it is also the name for the wider geographical area, which is part of the
Penrhoslligwy parish.
Rabbits tend to be the only grazing animals currently and parts of the heath are reverting to pioneer woodland because of that. There are occasional fires that sweep across the heathland but these are often at the wrong time of year and subsequently encourage bracken.
References
External links
www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Mynydd Bodafon and surrounding area
{{coord, 53.34244, N, 4.29812, W, type:mountain, display=title
Marilyns of Wales
Mountains and hills of Anglesey
Moelfre, Anglesey
Llanddyfnan