Mapping Mountains – Trimble Surveys – Fforest Glud

01.06.21  Trefaesyfed (SO 211 609)

LIDAR image of Trefaesyfed (SO 211 609)

Having visited and surveyed Nyth Grug (SO 170 606) and Mynd (SO 181 592) with the added diversion to the base of the Water-breaks-its-neck waterfall, I drove the short distance to Maesyfed (New Radnor), parked in the centre of the slumbering little village and asked a man who was out tending the front of his house the best way to the old castle.  He gave directions and soon Linda was heading up the near path leading toward the church with me contentedly following behind. 

The church in New Radnor

We followed a secondary path beside grave stones up toward where we hoped to gain access to the castle grounds.  However, our route just led to a wired fence, turning around we descended the short distance back to the main path and continued toward the church. 

Follow the path to the kissing gate and the old castle is beyond

Before heading up to the old castle we visited the church and sat in its cooling realm, it was peaceful except for the calling of a bird which squawked loudly from outside.  The person who gave us directions told us to follow the path beyond the church to a kissing gate and as we walked around the front of the church there it was; up ahead. 

Trefaesyfed - the old castle in New Rdanor

Beyond the kissing gate long grass and flowers meandered in the breeze, all ground led steeply up to an extensive area where once the castle was situated, with the remains now incorporating an impressive Norman motte.  As we crested the upper part of the steep ground two people came in to view.  Each sitting beside the other on the escarpment edge, reading books in the sunshine, it was similar to a scene from the Hay Literary Festival. 

Gathering data at the summit of Trefaesyfed

Prior to our visit I had analysed this hill via LIDAR, but even without the aid of LIDAR the high point of the castle’s remains would have been easy to pinpoint and now standing on its top I checked the co-ordinates produced by LIDAR and to within a metre they matched what the Trimble was showing. 

C'mon Phillips, I've had enough of these hills, I'm off to the pub

As the Trimble gathered data I sat with Linda just a few metres from the equipment on the steep summit bank, listening to the beeps as it gathered its individual datum points.  Once the allotted data were gathered and stored, I closed the equipment down, took a few photographs and we headed steeply down past the church to the awaiting car.  The day was rounded off with a good meal sitting in the sun in the beer garden at the back of the Severn Arms pub in Pen-y-bont, this proved a good ending to an excellent day. 

 

Survey Result: 

 

Trefaesyfed

Summit Height:  274.4m (converted to OSGM15, Trimble GeoXH 6000 survey) 

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 21157 60984 (Trimble GeoXH 6000 survey) 

Bwlch Height:  267.2m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 21030 61031 (LIDAR)

Drop:  7.3m (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)

Dominance:  2.64% (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)

 

 

For further details please consult the Trimble Survey Spreadsheet