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

Top Field (SO 114 890) 

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 detail on contemporary maps produced from Ordnance Survey data and a Trimble GeoXH 6000 survey conducted by Myrddyn Phillips. 

Top Field (SO 114 890)

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 Cilfaesty group of hills, which are situated in Mid and West Wales (Region B, Sub-Region B1), and it is positioned with minor roads to its west, south and east and the A483 road farther to its north-west, and has the town of Y Drenewydd (Newtown) towards the north.                     

The hill appeared in the original 300m Welsh P30 list on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website under the transposed name of Blackhill, which is a prominent name adjoined to a farm that appears on the contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map.

Blackhill

384m

SO114891

136

214

 

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 transpose the name of a farm and use it for that of the hill.  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

After visiting the summit of this hill I called at the large chicken shed adjoined to Blackhill farm where I met a young man operating a forklift.  I enquired about the hill which was just behind us and explained my interest in its name.  He couldn’t help but said that his boss was due back soon and he could give him a ring if I wanted.  Yes please was my reply!  I then spent a few minutes on the phone talking to Prosser James; the farmer from Blackhill who told me he did not know an individual name for the hill but its upper field where the summit is situated is known as Top Field. 

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

 

The full details for the hill are: 

Group:  Cilfaesty 

Name:  Top Field 

Previously Listed Name:  Blackhill 

OS 1:50,000 map:  136

Summit Height:  382.5m (converted to OSGM15, Trimble GeoXH 6000)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 11407 89077 (Trimble GeoXH 6000) 

Bwlch Height:  c 312m (interpolation) 

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 10743 87070 (interpolation) 

Drop:  c 70m (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and interpolated bwlch) 

Myrddyn Phillips (October 2021)

 

  

Mapping Mountains – Trimble Surveys – Cilfaesty

 

14.07.21  Top Field (SO 114 890) 

Top Field (SO 114 890)

If wanting an easy, quick ascent of this hill it can be accomplished in no more than five minutes as a narrow road follows the crest of the ridge and passes its summit just to its east.  Such lanes don’t have many options to park, however for this particular hill there is adequate space to park directly opposite a double gate and fence that gives access to the upper field where the summit of the hill is positioned. 

Just below the summit is a large chicken barn adjoined to Blackhill farm, once over the double gate and fence it is only a short distance past an enclosed covered water reservoir on closely cropped grass to the summit of the hill.  The high point is adjacent to another enclosed patch of land, which may be connected with the water reservoir. 

Gathering data at the summit of Top Field

When I visited all was quiet except for the occasional hum of a forklift working at the chicken compound, otherwise I had the hill to myself.  I positioned the Trimble on the highest part of land outside of the second compound about a metre from the perimeter fence.  On the opposite side of the fence in the enclosed section were copious amounts of thistles which were higher than the fence, otherwise I would have positioned the equipment on a convenient fence post to give it elevation above its immediate surrounds.  For this survey my rucksack was used as an improvised tripod which would have to suffice, as it has done for hundreds of surveys over recent years. 

If not for the thistles the Trimble would be positioned on the fence post

Once the Trimble was gathering data I stood a few metres away from it and looked down on Newtown in the valley below.  This was my fifth of seven planned hills during the day, and my last; Trehafren Hill (SO 100 910) stared back at me from the confines of Newtown surrounded by housing estates.  It looked a fine small hill to end the day’s bagging and surveying expedition on. 

The Trimble set-up position at the summit of Top Field

After allotted data were gathered and stored I closed the equipment down, took a few photographs and packed it away and retraced the few metres back to my car and then drove the short distance to the large chicken shed where I met a young man operating the forklift.  I enquired about the hill which was just behind us and explained my interest in its name.  He couldn’t help but said that his boss was due back soon and he could give him a ring if I wanted.  Yes please was my reply!  I then spent a few minutes on the phone talking to Prosser James; the farmer from Blackhill who told me he did not know an individual name for the hill but its upper field where the summit is situated is known as Top Field.  Thanking him for his time and happy with another hill visited and surveyed, and another name documented I drove back to the narrow lane and continued south-west on the same ridge to a sub hill that the Tithe map also names as Top Field (SO 110 879), this was going to be my sixth hill of the day and I wanted to visit it and Trehafren Hill before the warm conditions increased to such an extent that it made any form of hill walking uncomfortable. 

 

Survey Result: 

 

Top Field (significant name change)

Summit Height:  382.5m (converted to OSGM15, Trimble GeoXH 6000)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 11407 89077 (Trimble GeoXH 6000)  

Bwlch Height:  c 312m (interpolation)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 10743 87070 (interpolation)

Drop:  c 70m (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and interpolated bwlch)

Dominance:  18.43% (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and interpolated bwlch)

 

 

For further details please consult the Trimble Survey Spreadsheet