Mapping Mountains – Trimble Surveys – Cilfaesty

 

14.07.21  Pen Aran Hill (SO 137 888) 

Pen Aran Hill (SO 137 888)

This was my third hill of the morning and having left a high narrow lane where I had parked for the ascent of Bryn Pant y Drain (SO 178 885), I drove down to the A489 road and the small community of Kerry, where I then headed south and found the minor road that took me up to my next hill of the day, which having made subsequent place-name enquiries is being listed as Pen Aran Hill. 

As with many smaller heighted hills, the upper part of Pen Aran Hill is no more than a relatively high field, albeit a field that gives an extended view.  Prior to visiting I had examined this hill via LIDAR and found two tops separated by 1mm in height, each placed at or beside a perimeter hedge and fence.  I planned on visiting the two tops and survey each. 

LIDAR image of Pen Aran Hill (SO 137 888)

I parked close to a gate giving access to the high field, with another gate directly opposite already open.  I later found that Philip Davies was in the opposite field cutting grass for silage.  Philip is the local farmer and confirmed the field name for where the summit of this hill is situated as the Long Field and the field where he was working as the Big Field, and he knows the hill as Pen Aran Hill.  The Pen Aran part of this name is a composition taken from the Ordnance Survey series of Six-Inch maps, with the composition on contemporary Ordnance Survey maps being Penarron. 

Philip had also cut grass in the Long Field and as I accessed it through a gate, great swathes extended across the upper hill in lines leading to its high point.  It was only a short distance to the first southerly LIDAR summit.  I stopped and quickly assessed the lay of land before continuing to the farther northerly LIDAR summit.  It is the latter that many people recognise as the high point of this hill.  On my way I came to an intermediary top, again I stopped and looked back and tried to assess its height relative to the other two summits.  It seemed that three surveys were necessary to attempt to split these tops. 

Continuing to the farther northerly top I used the Trimble as a hand-held GPS unit to zero in to the ten figure grid reference produced by LIDAR.  This point of the hill has a hedge signifying the field boundary.  The Trimble was soon set up and within a few minutes it was activated to gather data. 

Gathering data at the northerly top of Pen Aran Hill

During data collection I stood below the equipment and spotted a tractor in the opposing field, this was Philip who I later visited.  Once data were gathered and stored I headed back to the intermediary top and again set the Trimble up and collected a second data set.  This top is beside a fence and gives extensive views. 

Gathering data at the central top of Pen Aran Hill

It was only a short distance from here back to the most southerly of the three tops, which like the northerly is beside a mature hedge.  The Trimble was soon set in place gathering its third data set from this hill. 

Gathering data at the southerly top of Pen Aran Hill

The hedge gave way a little lower to a perimeter fence and during data collection I stood and looked out toward what would be my fifth and six hills of the day, each like this one were positioned beside a narrow road leading across their upper ridge.  These two hills are now listed by the same name; Top Field, with the name of the higher of the two positioned at SO 114 890 found from local enquiry and the lower which is positioned at SO 110 879 found from the Tithe map. 

As the Trimble gathered data this proved a lovely place to stand and have the world pass me by.  Compared to earlier in the morning cloud had now built up with the sun casting light and shade with shadows moving across hillsides adding depth to perspective.  I was in no particular rush, but did want to visit Penarron farm which is positioned just below the upper field.  I hoped I could find the local farmer and confirm an appropriate name for this hill and therefore once the Trimble had gathered allotted data I closed it down, packed it away and made my way through the swathes of cut grass back to my car. 

I was soon parked at the entrance to Penarron farm and walking in to the back yard, where Ivor and Rhydian Powell were encouraging three cows in to a trailer.  I volunteered my help and tapped one on its hind quarters, they were soon all safely in, more from the expertise of the two people I had just met rather than from the encouragement that I had given. 

Ivor and Rhydian Powell

I explained my interest in the hill and its name, and Ivor and then Rhydian told me that the adjacent and slightly lower field is known as the Pike and that the upper field where I had been surveying is known as the Long Field.  We spent a number of minutes talking about the hill but they needed to get away with the three cows, before doing so they told me the person who I should go and talk to was Phil who was in the field cutting silage and who had farmed these hills all his adult life. 

Therefore I drove back up the road, parked in the pull-in spot where I had left my car to visit the hill and went through the opposing open gate and down the field where Phil was in his tractor cutting great swathes of grass.  I waited for him to head my way and waved over, he soon stopped and we chatted for ten minutes of so.  Phil told me the names of the two opposing fields, the Pike and the Long Field and the Big Field for where we now were.  I asked him about the name of the hill and he said he knows it as Pen Aran Hill. 

Philip Davies

Before leaving I asked if I could take some photographs and he kindly got out of his tractor and stood in the sun beside it.  I thanked him for his time and waved my goodbyes and walked back up the field to the open gate. 

The day was progressing well with three hills visited and surveyed and one new hill name and three field names documented.  The fourth hill of the day; Cold Weston (SO 141 907); a name given on the Tithe map, required driving back in to Kerry and then a mile or so north-west before heading up the access track to Weston farm where I hoped to find the local farmer to ask permission to park and visit the summit, and hopefully confirm the name of the hill. 

 

Survey Result: 

 

Pen Aran Hill (significant name change)

Summit Height:  368.0m (converted to OSGM15, Trimble GeoXH 6000)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 13710 88852 (Trimble GeoXH 6000) (summit relocation confirmed)  

Bwlch Height:  324.6m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 13561 88411 (LIDAR)

Drop:  43.4m (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)

Dominance:  11.79% (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)

 

 

For further details please consult the Trimble Survey Spreadsheet