05.11.16 Drosgol (SN
717 885)
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| Drosgol (SN 717 885) |
Drosgol is an unassuming
little hill that is situated amongst the eastern lands of the Pumlumon
range. These lands descend west to
fertile grazing fields before towns are encountered and the natural barrier of
the sea. These hills can portray a
remote and slightly wild persona where meeting another person on them is
somewhat of a rarity, they are all the better for it.
Today’s walk was a
special occasion as Rob Woodall had chosen Drosgol as his last 300m P30 in the
whole of Wales and England with their respective totals being 1332 and
1130. In old money these can be
considered the 1,000ft hills.
The meeting point was
arranged to the south-west of the hill, at the end of a narrow paved lane that
confidently aimed due east from the confines of Tal-y-bont, where adequate
parking was found on a gravelled area adjacent to a disused mine. When I arrived Adrian Dust was waiting beside
his car, he’d already visited a number of hills earlier in the day and had his
sights set on Moel Golomen; a 317m map heighted hill on the ridge to the south
of the Afon Cyneiniog.
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| The upper reaches of the Cyneiniog valley with Moel Golomen in the background |
We chatted for a while
before Adrian set off, I then took shelter in my car as a brisk shower sped
south across the hills. Once the rain
had stopped I set off down the continuation of the narrow lane to a green path
that climbed steadily toward the summit of Drosgol. I’d set off an hour before the meeting time
of 3.00pm as my right knee was still proving problematic and I also wanted to
survey the hill’s bwlch and its summit before everyone reached the top.
As I gained height I
found a sheep track contouring round the western side of the hill toward the
bwlch which nestled between Drosgol and its higher neighbour; the Sub-Pedwar of
Llechwedd Cwm Byr. Arriving at the bwlch
I positioned the Trimble on top of my rucksack to give it elevation above its
immediate surrounds, measured a 0.45m offset between its internal antenna and
the ground at its base and proceeded to gather five minutes of data. Except for an occasional flurry of wind, all
was quiet and undisturbed.
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| Looking toward the critical bwlch of Drosgol |
After packing the
equipment away I slowly plodded up to the summit and took two data sets, with
the second being at the top of an attractive rock bluff. As the Trimble gathered its customary five
minutes of data the sun burst through the thickened grey blue sky giving depth
to the landscape, the near forestry radiated its autumnal colours as delicate
yellows merged with those of orange as the predominant greens flanked their
surrounds.
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| Gathering data at the critical bwlch of Drosgol |
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| The wooded colours of autumn |
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| Gathering data at the summit of Drosgol |
Once the surveys for the
day were complete I had a bite to eat and waited on a rocky hummock and watched
as small figures emerged on the upper ridge, all heading toward the
summit. Alex was first to arrive with
Adrian and Jon, closely followed by Matthew and Rob.
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| Heading for the summit |
The next half hour or so
gave us magical light as the late afternoon sparkled. Once everyone had arrived Rob headed toward
the summit and stood on top, another fine achievement completed amongst many
that he has done.
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| Adrian admiring the view |
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| Rob heading for the summit |
Whiskey and cake were
passed round as we stood on top and basked in the late afternoon sunshine. Photos were taken and a few minutes of
video. These celebrations are special events,
shared amongst good hill walking friends who gather in appreciation of a
person’s determination and enthusiasm to finish a list of hills.
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| Rob and friends on the summit of Drosgol |
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| Rob on the summit of Drosgol having completed the Welsh 300m P30s |
As the sun ebbed behind
a large bulbous cloud out to the west we headed back to the valley and the
awaiting cars, I slowly made my way down at the rear trying to protect my knee
and stopped on occasion to photograph and admire the delicate sun burst and
cloudscape forming out to the west, a beautiful scene to end the day.
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| A beautiful cloudscape to end the day |
Survey Result:
Drosgol
Summit Height: 367.6m
Summit Grid Reference: SN 71769 88547
Bwlch Height: 326.2m (converted to OSGM15)
Bwlch Grid Reference: SN 71621 88808
Drop: 41.4m
Dominance: 11.26%
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