Mapping Mountains – Significant Name Changes – Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales

 

Caer Wedyn (SJ 095 047) 

There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the 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 LIDAR analysis and a Trimble GeoXH 6000 survey conducted by Myrddyn Phillips. 

The summit of Caer Wedyn (SJ 095 047)

The criteria for the list that this name change 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. 

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

The hill is adjoined to the Carnedd Wen group of hills which are situated in the south-eastern part of North Wales (Region A, Sub-Region A4), and it has a minor road to its north-west and its south and the B4389 road to its east, and has the small town of Llanfair Caereinion towards the north north-east. 

The hill appeared in the original Welsh 300m P30 list published on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website, under the invented and transposed name of Bryn Ty-bwnc, with an accompanying note stating; Name from buildings to the North-East.

Bryn Ty-bwnc

318m

SJ096047

136

215

Name from buildings to the North-East

 

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 and as in this instance transpose the name of an old derelict farm house and add the word Bryn.  This is not a practice that I now advocate as with time and inclination place-name data can be improved either by asking local people or by examining historic documents, through this form of research an appropriate name for the hill can usually be found. 

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

This was one of a number of hills visited in the company of Alex Cameron during a day’s hill bagging.  When leaving the summit the sound of a quad bike appeared in an adjacent field and it quickly disappeared over the brow of the hill.  However, it thankfully reappeared and I flagged it down. 

The local farmer on the quad bike was Glyn Evans and we chatted for ten minutes or so.  It is Glyn’s field where the summit of this hill is situated and he told me that the hill doesn’t have an individual name, but the upper field where the summit is situated is known as Caer Wedyn after the name of the old landowning farm.  Glyn surmised that the older name for the hill may have been Tŷ Bwnc after the old derelict farm house, but he told us that he had no evidence to substantiate this. 

Glyn Evans

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales is Caer Wedyn, and this was derived from local enquiry. 

 

The full details for the hill are: 

Group:  Carnedd Wen 

Name:  Caer Wedyn 

Previously Listed Name:  Bryn Ty-bwnc 

OS 1:50,000 map:  136

Summit Height:  318.9m (converted to OSGM15, Trimble GeoXH 6000) 

Summit Grid Reference:  SJ 09555 04796 (Trimble GeoXH 6000) 

Bwlch Height:  274.0m (LIDAR) 

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SJ 07037 04695 (LIDAR) 

Drop:  44.9m (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch) 

 

Myrddyn Phillips (March 2021)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mapping Mountains – Trimble Surveys – Carnedd Wen

 

15.09.20  Caer Wedyn (SJ 095 047) 

Caer Wedyn (SJ 095 047)

Re-visiting hills can trigger memories that transport you back in time.  When repeating multiple ascents of the Welsh 2,000ft’ers I was left with a strong feeling of the hills being there like old friends.  This is a feeling also commonly expressed by other people.  However, the strong bond formed from multiple ascents is different compared to a hill visited on just two or three occasions.  The memory of ascent route and view is strongly imprinted from a hill that has been visited on numerous occasions, whilst an imprint still exists from a hill that may have only been visited once before, but this imprint is by no means as strong.  However, it is still there, lingering almost as an afterthought.  And for the next hill on our day’s schedule this was the exact feeling triggered when we left the car and walked toward the gate that gave access to an old track leading to what is now the ruin of Tŷ-bwnc. 

I’d visited this hill once before in October 2011 and remember the ascent vividly.  Perhaps it was because of the deep blue sky that pervaded the scene on that occasion, and this.  Then I was on my own, now I was in the good company of Alex, but even with company, the triggered memory flooded back.  

Alex heading up the old track

I could remember the earthen and rutted track leading toward the old house, now ruined and overgrown.  The track then wound its way past the ruin of Tŷ-bwnc toward the summit of the hill, and even though I now knew that a covered reservoir compound was near the high point, the surprise of finding this on my first visit was shared with the surprise on this visit for how high and protected the compound is. 

The remains of Tŷ-bwnc; now ruined and overgrown

Prior to our visit I’d LIDARed this hill’s bwlch, but relied upon judgement for its summit position as LIDAR does not yet cover its high point.  This high point is just to the west of the compound, placed amongst fern with mature trees close by.  It is a beautiful scene, albeit one that is shared with the intervention of the high protected fence of the compound.  Such summits, with their peaceful scenes are to be savoured, and again the memories from my previous visit were triggered, and although the details from this visit nine years ago were distant, the lingering afterthought was still there. 

LIDAR bwlch image for Caer Wedyn

As the Trimble did its stuff gathering its allotted data, I sat with Alex and soaked in the view to the north-west.  Once data were gathered and stored I closed the equipment down, had one last look at the summit and re-joined Alex just as the motorised sound of a quad bike wafted up the hill from the field to our north.  This progressively got louder until the quad bike appeared and headed toward an adjacent field with me running after it.  It didn’t stop, and I thought the chance to make place-name enquiries with someone who was obviously a local farmer had been missed.  However, as we walked toward the compound the quad bike reappeared and I dashed off to flag it down. 

Gathering data at the summit of Caer Wedyn

The local farmer on the quad bike was Glyn Evans and we chatted for ten minutes or so.  Glyn told me that the hill doesn’t have an individual name, but the upper field where the summit is situated is known as Caer Wedyn after the name of the old landowning farm. 

Glyn Evans

Once I’d written all the information Glyn had given me, I thanked him and we waved our goodbyes.  Alex and I then sauntered down the remainder of the old track back to the access gate and the lane leading to my car.  This was the sixth hill of the morning, but with seven remaining to visit we couldn’t linger too long as another hill beckoned. 

 

Survey Result:

 

Caer Wedyn (significant name change)

Summit Height:  318.9m (converted to OSGM15, Trimble GeoXH 6000)

Summit Grid Reference:  SJ 09555 04796 (Trimble GeoXH 6000)

Bwlch Height:  274.0m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SJ 07037 04695 (LIDAR)

Drop:  44.9m (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)

Dominance:  14.08% (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)

 

 

For further details please consult the Trimble Survey Spreadsheet