Mapping Mountains – Hill Reclassifications – Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales

 

Middletown Hill (SJ 298 130) – Sub-Trichant addition

There has been a retrospective confirmation of an addition to the list of Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill derived from a Trimble GeoXH 6000 survey conducted by Myrddyn Phillips. 

Middletwon Hill (SJ 298 130) with Moel y Golfa beyond

The criteria for the list that this addition applies to are:

Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales – Welsh hills at or above 300m and below 400m in height that have 30m minimum drop, with an accompanying sub list entitled the Sub-Trichant, with the criteria for this sub category being all Welsh hills at or above 300m and below 400m in height with 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is authored by Myrddyn Phillips with the Introduction to the list and the renaming of it appearing on Mapping Mountains on the 13^th May 2017, and the Introduction to the Mapping Mountains publication of the list appearing on the 1^st January 2022. 

Y Trichant - The 300m Hills of Wales by Myrddyn Phillips

The name the hill is listed by is Middletown Hill, and it is adjoined to the Stiperstones group of hills, which are situated in the north-eastern part of South Wales (Region B, Sub-Region B2), and it is positioned with a minor road to its north-west and the A458 road to its south-east, and has the town of Y Trallwng (Welshpool) towards the south-west.

When the original 300m height band of Welsh P30 hills were published on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website, this hill was not included in the accompanying Hills to be surveyed sub list, as it was considered not to meet the criteria then used for this sub category. 

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

After the sub list was standardised, and interpolated heights and drop values also included the details for this hill were re-evaluated and it was listed with an estimated c 25m of drop, based on the 307m summit spot height that appears on the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map and an estimated c 282m bwlch height, based on interpolation of 5m contouring between 280m – 285m.  However, it was not until the survey with the Trimble GeoXH 6000 that the details for this hill could be accurately re-assessed. 

The Trimble GeoXH 6000 gathering data at the summit of Middletown Hill

The Trimble GeoXH 6000 gathering data at the bwlch of Middletown Hill

Therefore, the retrospective confirmation of the addition of this hill to Sub-Trichant status is due to a Trimble GeoXH 6000 survey, resulting in a 306.9m summit height and a 280.5m bwlch height, with these values giving this hill 26.3m of drop, which is sufficient for it to be classified as a Sub-Trichant. 

 

The full details for the hill are: 

Group:  Stiperstones 

Name:  Middletown Hill 

OS 1:50,000 map:  126

Summit Height:  306.9m (converted to OSGM15)                                                           

Summit Grid Reference:  SJ 29869 13016 

Bwlch Height:  280.5m (converted to OSGM15) 

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SJ 30065 13115 

Drop:  26.3m 

 

Myrddyn Phillips (March 2025)