Mapping Mountains – Trimble Surveys – Mynydd Epynt

30.12.18  Cefn Merthyr Cynog (SN 976 383), Cefn Trum yr Hwch (SN 991 401), Cefn Bach (SO 004 387), Cefn Bach (SO 002 372, previously Trimbled), Gaer Fach (SO 009 366, previously Trimbled) and Corun Fanolau (SO 015 361, previously Trimbled) 

Misted grey drizzled December days can have their compensation when on the hill, as there is a beauty to walking in the mist with its delicate and quiet movement.  Today was one such day.

Setting off from the damp surrounds of Merthyr Cynog two farm dogs quickly scampered ahead and would remain with us until the summit of our first hill of the day; Cefn Merthyr Cynog.  As we made steady progress up a muddied track the hill lay ahead with its upper part obscured by a greyness that enclosed the surrounding land.

The two dogs were from the local farm and spent much of their time rounding up sheep, whilst we zeroed in to the summit of this first hill with the aid of the ten figure grid reference produced by LIDAR analysis conducted by one of my two companions on the walk. 

As the Trimble gathered its first data set of the day a wind battered red flag flapped on the opposing side of a barb wired fence, near to it was a sign proclaiming this to be a military firing range, but between Christmas and New Year these hills are free of gunfire which gives an opportunity to visit hills that otherwise are out of bounds for the remainder of the year.

Gathering data at the summit of Cefn Merthyr Cynog

Beyond the red flag a small conifer plantation, rectangle in shape, stood steadfast on the hillside, these are one of the landmarks of present day Epynt and can be seen from many miles away.

As we continued beyond the summit on the open hill a farm vehicle sped past on the near road, disappearing in to its blanket of grey.  It was this road we then joined and it took us down to the Ysgir Fawr, which gently flowed down to the lower southern lands past the boundary fence with its adjacent red flag.  It seems nature has few boundaries whilst that of man is an utter contrast.

The route down toward the Ysgir Fawr

The Ysgir Fawr

The paved road continued beyond the stream, with our route now taking us uphill.  The road seemed pristine with its wide tarmac cut through and laid upon the open hill side, it led us back into the mist toward the summit of our second hill of the day; Cefn Trum yr Hwch.

The paved road leading toward the summit of Cefn Trum yr Hwch

Just before the summit a farm vehicle appeared coming up the road and swinging right toward the high point of the hill, I waved toward it and it stopped and as I approached I smiled and said ‘hello Austin’, it was Austin Davies who I had visited many years ago making place-name enquires for the Epynt, Austin had given me many names of hills and features that have never appeared on any Ordnance Survey map and as we chatted my two colleagues joined us, one had a map with the names Austin had given transposed on it, and he spent many minutes going through these names with Austin, checking their position and listening to their pronunciation.

Waving Austin off we continued to the summit where the second Trimble data set of the day was gathered.  It was now downhill toward a minor road where a few metres in to a rough grassed bog lay the critical bwlch of Corun Fanolau, whose summit I had surveyed three years ago.

Gathering data at the summit of Cefn Trum yr Hwch

Gathering data at the critical bwlch of Corun Fanolau

As the Trimble gathered its data, drizzle pushed across the hills from the west, the pattern of weather with the ebb and flow of mist and gentle drizzle was now set for the day, and although not constant it brought dampened conditions and a chilled feeling if stationary for any length of time.

Ahead lay the Cefn Bach ridge which consists of two 391m map heighted summits, the southern of which was Trimbled three years ago, and it was now the turn of the northerly summit.  Gates led across the grazing fields, all manicured green and yet dulled by the afternoon’s monochrome stillness.

Gathering data at the northerly of the two Cefn Bach summits

Just two hills remained; Gaer Fach and Corun Fanolau, both had previously been surveyed and therefore I packed the Trimble away in my rucksack.  Both are fine hills, the first with the remains of an ancient Iron Age hillfort and the second with a series of small crags below its high point.

It felt refreshing not to have to Trimble these summits, a freedom of sort, and beyond was welcome downhill past the old farm house of Fanolau to a steep track leading to the minor road where a car was waiting.

       

Survey Result:

Cefn Merthyr Cynog

Summit Height:  408.5m (converted to OSGM15, Trimble GeoXH 6000)

Summit Grid Reference:  SN 97601 38378 (Trimble GeoXH 6000)

Bwlch Height:  376.1m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SN 96738 39406 (LIDAR)

Drop:  32.4m (Trimble GeoCH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)

Dominance:  7.93% (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)

Cefn Trum yr Hwch

Summit Height:  432.5m (converted to OSGM15, Trimble GeoXH 6000)

Summit Grid Reference:  SN 99171 40169 (Trimble GeoXH 6000)

Bwlch Height:  394.6m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SN 98341 43330 (LIDAR)

Drop:  37.9m (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)

Dominance:  8.76% (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)

Cefn Bach

Summit Height:  389.4m (converted to OSGM15) (Trimble GeoXH 6000) (390m Sub-Pedwar deletion) (twin summit status with Cefn Bach positioned at SO 00293 37291 confirmed with 389.391m and 389.392m respectively, with 1mm difference the Trimble is unable to split these tops)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 00470 38742 (Trimble GeoXH 6000)

Bwlch Height:  368.9m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 00075 38322 (LIDAR)

Drop:  20.5m (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch) (non-prioritised drop for listing purposes)

Dominance:  5.26% (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)

Cefn Bach

Summit Height:  389.4m (converted to OSGM15, previously Trimbled) (390m Sub-Pedwar deletion confirmed) (twin summit status with Cefn Bach positioned at SO 00470 38742 confirmed with 389.392m and 389.391m respectively, with 1mm difference the Trimble is unable to split these tops)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 00293 37291

Bwlch Height:  335.0m (converted to OSGM15, previously Trimbled)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 00287 36949

Drop:  54.4m (prioritised drop for listing purposes)

Dominance:  13.98%

Gaer Fach (significant name change)

Summit Height:  413.3m (converted to OSGM15, from previous Trimble GeoXH 6000 survey)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 00915 36622

Bwlch Height:  377.4m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 01225 36448 (LIDAR)

Drop:  35.9m (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)

Dominance:  8.68% (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)

Corun Fanolau (significant name change)

Summit Height:  423.2m (converted to OSGM15, previously Trimbled)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 01525 36160

Bwlch Height:  326.7m (converted to OSGM15)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SN 99991 39512

Drop:  96.5m

Dominance:  22.81%

For details on the survey of Gaer Fach, Corun Fanolau and Cefn Bach

For further details please consult the Trimble Survey Spreadsheet

Mapping Mountains – Significant Name Changes – Y Pedwarau - The 400m Hills of Wales

Gaer Fach (SO 009 366)

There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau, and the following details are in respect of a hill that was surveyed with the Trimble GeoXH 6000 on the 18^th August 2015.

The criteria for the list that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau - These are the Welsh hills at and above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop.  The list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams, and the introduction to the Mapping Mountains publication of this list appeared on the 30th January 2017.

The hill is a part of the Mynydd Epynt range, which is a group of hills situated in the south-eastern part of mid and west Wales.  The hill is positioned between the small communities of Merthyr Cynog to the west north-west and Lower Chapel to the east south-east.

Gaer Fach (SO 009 366)

The hill appeared in the 400m P30 list on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website under the partly invented name Pen Gaer Fach, with an accompanying note stating; Name from summit hillfort.  During my early hill listing I thought it appropriate to either invent a name for a hill, or use a name that appeared near to the summit of the hill on Ordnance Survey maps of the day.  My preference was to use farm names and put Pen, Bryn or Moel in front of them or as in this instance, use the name of the summit hillfort and add the word Pen.  This is not a practice that I now advocate as with research either conducted locally or historically an appropriate name for the hill can usually be found.

Pen Gaer Fach

415m

SO009366

160

188

Name from summit hillfort

  

As an appropriate name for this hill already exists on contemporary Ordnance Survey maps; Gaer Fach, the invented and prefixed word of Pen is wholly unnecessary and therefore the name this hill is now listed by in Y Pedwarau is Gaer Fach.  

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

Please note, the current Ordnance Survey enlarged map hosted on the Geograph website gives the composition of this name as Caer fach, in this instance it is appropriate to use Gaer with a ‘G’ and Fach with a capital ‘F’.

Extract from the current Ordnance Survey enlarged map on the Geograph website with inappropriate composition

  

The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Mynydd Epynt

Name:  Gaer Fach

Previously Listed Name:  Pen Gaer Fach 

Summit Height:  413.3m (converted to OSGM15)

OS 1:50,000 map:  160

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 00915 36622 

 

Drop:  35.9m (Trimble summit and LIDAR bwlch)

For details on the survey of Gaer Fach

Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (August 2016)

Mapping Mountains – Trimble Surveys – Mynydd Epynt

18.08.15  Gaer Fach (SO 009 366), Corun Fanolau (SO 015 361) and Cefn Bach (SO 002 372)  

Corun Fanolau (SO 015 361)

The southern ridges of Mynydd Epynt extend for miles and their land that is open to the public gives a tremendous feeling of openness and tranquillity.  However, their northern and central lands are now off limits for most of the year due to the Military Artillery Firing Range.  It was the southern part of the Clepyn Melyn / Drum Ddu ridge that I hoped to visit later in the afternoon.  I say ‘hoped’ as I had been surveying Regional bylchau for most of the day and had just extracted myself from a prolonged period in an 8ft-10ft high Maize crop which was growing in one of the fields that needed surveying.

I parked just off the narrow lane that crests this southern ridge as it makes its way from two miles south of Upper Chapel over and into the Ysgir Fawr valley.  The mid to late afternoon light was beautiful when I set off down the track toward the house of Ffynnon-oer, and the freshness of colour would only get more sublime as the walk progressed.

The narrow lane that crests this southern ridge splits the hills I planned on visiting with the twin 391m map heighted summits of Cefn Bach to its north and the Pedwarau of Gaer Fach and Corun Fanolau to its south. 

As I headed south on the track to the house an old dog barked and wagged its rear end toward me, an indicator that it wanted companionship rather than a show of hostility, I stroked its head and peered into its old eyes, they had a comforting look to them and as I said goodbye I opened a gate and headed on a good path toward the southern and higher flank of Gaer Fach.

The ancient earthen embankment that this hill’s name suggests is part of the hill is now only a semblance of its original construction, but as with most ancient hill forts their positioning is part of their appeal, and Gaer Fach looks out extensively to the higher hills of south Wales.

Today its summit consisted of medium length grass that partly submerged the Trimble as I placed it on what I judged to be the high point of the hill.  To my south-east my next hill; Corun Fanolau had an eloquent shape as its upper section rounded up to its freshly white painted trig pillar.  Further north the distinctive block shaped conifer plantations of the Military Epynt land were on show, it was near to part of this land that I hoped to visit before daylight turned to dusk.

Gathering data at the summit of Gaer Fach

The distinctive summits of the Bannau Brycheiniog

Once the Trimble had gathered its customary five minutes of data I wandered down the south-east flank of Gaer Fach and connected up with the good path that continued from the house of Ffynnon-oer.  This path passed over the critical bwlch of Gaer Fach, and the current Ordnance Survey map spots a place just on the west side of the intervening hedge for their spot height, when I arrived I looked at the land either side of the hedge from the convenience of standing as high as I could on a gate, by doing so I thought land on the eastern side to be higher, and when I started to assess the land from on my knees, land further east away from the intervening hedge seemed higher still.  I nearly set the Trimble up there and then, but closed it down and decided to head up to the summit of Corun Fanolau which enabled me to get a view back down onto the area of this bwlch, this also gave me a further chance to assess the lay of land on my descent from the summit of Corun Fanolau.

Looking down on the connecting bwlch between Gaer Fach (centre of photo) and Corun Fanolau, with the block shaped conifer plantations of the Military Epynt in the background

Corun Fanolau is a rather beautifully shaped hill which has a small quarried section just below its trig.  I found land about three metres from the base of the trig to be the highest and placed the Trimble down and stood back to soak in the view, this takes in most of the south Walian giants and looks out on more Pedwarau as they bathed in late afternoon light.

Gathering data at the summit of Corun Fanolau

Another view of the Bannau Brycheiniog

By now I thought that all of the surveys planned for the day had a chance of being completed, but I still had three more to do on this walk and I then wanted to examine the bwlch of Banc y Celyn (summit at SO 047 464).  This latter bwlch may involve venturing onto Military land and there were another three surveys to be conducted to ascertain where the critical bwlch for this hill was positioned.  Because of this I could not linger.

I quickly packed the Trimble away and left the summit of Corun Fanolau and walked down to the connecting bwlch with Gaer Fach, the point I chose as that of the critical bwlch was where I had also placed the Trimble beforehand, this was a few metres east of the intervening hedge and beside a small flat runnel of stone.

Gathering data from the critical bwlch of Gaer Fach

The summit of Corun Fanolau standing above the bwlch connecting it to Gaer Fach

The southerly top of Cefn Bach

Once the bwlch survey had been completed I walked past the house and the friendly old dog barked its welcome and came for another stroke, by now the occupants had arrived back home as their van was parked outside, I continued down the track past their house and clambered over a fence and into the field where the critical bwlch of Cefn Bach is situated, within a couple of minutes I had assessed the lay of land and chosen the spot for Trimble placement and it was in place collecting its allotted five minutes of data.

Gathering data at the critical bwlch of Cefn Bach

All that remained was a walk up the field to a gate, past my car and through another gate and onto the continuation of the path northward toward the southerly of the two 391m map heighted summits that is given for the high point of Cefn Bach.  Unfortunately I did not have enough time to continue north and survey its second summit as the bwlch of Banc y Celyn still remained to investigate.

As I neared the southerly top I spent a number of minutes assessing the land for its high point as there are two distinct contenders, I eventually decided what one was higher and set the Trimble up.  As it collected data I stood and looked out toward Gaer Fach and a lovely landscape of rolling hill ridges and valley bottoms, a beautiful place to end the day’s summit surveying on.  

Gathering data from the southerly top of Cefn Bach

After the Trimble was packed away I scampered back down the grassed path and within a few minutes I was back at the car sorting my gear out for my last surveys of the day; the bwlch of Banc y Celyn.

Survey Result:

Gaer Fach (significant name change)

Summit Height:  413.3m (converted to OSGM15, Trimble GeoXH 6000)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 00915 36622 (Trimble GeoXH 6000)

Bwlch Height:  377.4m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 01225 36448 (LIDAR)

Drop:  35.9m (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)

Dominance:  8.68% (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)

Corun Fanolau (significant name change)

Summit Height:  423.2m (converted to OSGM15)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 01525 36160

Bwlch Height:  326.7m (converted to OSGM15) (from subsequent Trimble GeoXH 6000 survey)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SN 99991 39512

Drop:  96.5m

Dominance:  22.81%

Cefn Bach

Summit Height:  389.4m (converted to OSGM15) (390m Sub-Pedwar deletion confirmed) (twin summit status with Cefn Bach positioned at SO 00470 38742 confirmed with 389.392m and 389.391m respectively, with 1mm difference the Trimble is unable to split these tops) 

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 00293 37291

Bwlch Height:  335.0m (converted to OSGM15)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 00287 36949

Drop:  54.4m (prioritised drop for listing purposes)

Dominance:  13.98%

For details on the bwlch survey of Corun Fanolau 

For further details please consult the Trimble survey spreadsheet click {here}