Llyn Glaslyn (Lake of the Blue Spring)

At 1,970 feet above sea level, and covering an area of 18 acres Llyn Glaslyn is one of the glacial lakes of Yr Wyddfa (Mount Snowdon), and being the highest and remotest of the larger lakes it abounds in legend.

It is said that no bird will fly over it, (but climbers will undoubtedly have watched ravens swoop over the lake). It is the abode of demons (just folklore?), it is bottomless (it was only sounded in 1900-1901 and is 127 feet deep), it never freezes (yes it does freeze), and that it harbours no ordinary fish (no fish live there, unless they can tolerate copper. It was stocked with trout in 1912 but washings from the nearby copper mine has killed them all according to divers).

Llyn Glaslyn and Llyn Llydaw in distance

The most famous legend connected to the lake is the undoubtedly the Afangc or Afanc (Welsh for Beaver, pronounced avank) which was a Welsh water monster that originally lived in Llyn-yr-Afanc (The Beaver Pool) near Betws-y-Coed roughly twelve miles to the east. The Afangc has been described as various things from different sources, namely a crocodile, beaver, dragon, demon and dwarf like creature. Regardless, it was a troublesome pest that would cause flooding to the local area by thrashing around in the lake. When all attempts to kill the beast had failed, it was decided to entice the creature from the pool and relocate it to another lake out of the way. They used a local girl as the bait, and made her sing near the lake. When the Afangc left the lake to get near to the girl, the local villagers captured it and bound it in chains. It was decided to remove the Afangc to Llyn Ffynnon Las (Lake of the Blue Fountain (which is now called Llyn Glaslyn)) and they used a pair of oxen to move the monster. The Afangc was taken through the Dolwyddelan parish and through the pass between Moel Siabod and Cribau, called Bwlch Rhiw yr Y chain (pass of the oxen’s slope). One of the oxen struggled so much that it lost an eye on the western slope, which was then called Gwaub Lygad yr Ych (Field of the ox’s eye) and its tears formed a pool – Pwll Lygad yr Ych, which never dries up although no stream flows into or out of it. The rest of the journey to Llyn Glaslyn had no more incidents, and it is said that the Afangc jumped into the lake upon arrival, and was then trapped there by the lake’s rocky banks.

In the 1930’s, an eyewitness Oliver Vaughan, was walking with a friend up the slopes of Mount Snowdon. When they stopped for lunch they were looking down on Lake Glaslyn. They saw a grey line appear in the lake and thought it to be a creature rising to the surface. Then a pale coloured, almost white head appeared on the surface. Mr Vaughan said it was not an otter or anything else he was familiar with and remained puzzled as to what it was they had seen.