The 500-Metre Tops of England and Wales – the Deweys

The listing to The 500-Metre Tops of England and Wales appeared in Michael’s Mountain tables book which was published by Constable in 1995.  This list mixed metric and imperial height in its criteria to bookend up to the 2000ft height band and listed hills between 500m – 2000ft (609.6m) in height with 30m minimum drop.

Mountain tables by Michael Dewey

Since this publication there have been a number of amendments to this list, and Michael Dewey has confirmed the addition, deletion and reinstatement of the following three hills:

Dewey addition:

Cefn Cyfarwydd (SH 75201 63067) which was surveyed using a Trimble GeoXH 6000 by Myrddyn Phillips, with assistance from Aled Williams, and is situated in the great sweep of rock and heather bound hills that make up the higher north-eastern Carneddau in north Wales.

Summit: 501.7m at SH 75201 63067

Bwlch:  471.0m at SH 74708 62751

Drop:  30.7m

Cefn Cyfarwydd (SH 752 630)

Dewey deletion:

Twyn Walter (SN 82837 17506) is another hill surveyed with the Trimble GeoXH 6000 by Myrddyn Phillips, giving a summit height of 502.1m with its 475.9m col height relying on LIDAR analysis conducted by Aled Williams, and is situated in the limestone grasslands of Mynydd Du in south Wales.

Summit:  502.1m at SN 82837 17506

Bwlch:  475.9m at SN 82597 17917

Drop:  26.25m

The cairned summit of Twyn Walter (SN 828 175)

Dewey reinstatement:

Beefstand Hill (NT 821 143) has been reinstated by Michael Dewey based on communication with John Kirk who petitioned for this hill to be accepted back in to the Dewey ranks.  Having been included in the original list, it was subsequently deleted and has now been officially reinstated.  This reinstatement took place in January 2015.

Hello John,

Many thanks for your email on hill and mountain nationality. I think that your last paragraph sets it well ‘It is better to be inclusive rather than exclusive’.

Should anyone set a binding rule or a law, perhaps not!  However, I think that it should be the person who raised the list to make the decisions on the borderline tops that should or should not be included in any list.

Yes, I think that Beefstand Hill should be reinstated into English and Welsh 500 metre table (Dewey table). It makes sense when you look at the map.

Best regards,

Michael (January 2015)

The summit of Beefstand Hill.  Photo: John Kirk

Myrddyn Phillips (February 2019)

For the UKHillwalking article relating to these changes