Mapping Mountains – Significant Name Changes – 200m Twmpau and Y Trechol - The Dominant Hills of Wales

Coed Hyrddyn (SJ 200 439)

There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the 200m Twmpau and Y Trechol - The Dominant Hills of Wales, with the summit height, drop and status of the hill being confirmed by a Leica GS15 survey which took place on the 7^th February 2013, with a subsequent Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit survey taking place on the 5^th May 2018.

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

200m Twmpau – All Welsh hills at or above 200m and below 300m in height that have 30m minimum drop, with the word Twmpau being an acronym standing for thirty welsh metre prominences and upward. 

Y Trechol – The Dominant Hills of Wales – Welsh P30 hills whose prominence equal or exceed half that of their absolute height.  With the criteria for Lesser Dominant status being those addition Welsh P30 hills whose prominence is 33% or more and below 50% of their absolute height.  The list is authored by Myrddyn Phillips with the Introduction to the start of the Mapping Mountains publication of this list appearing on the 3^rd December 2015.

The hill is adjoined to the Moel y Gamelin range of hills which are situated in the north-easterly part of North Wales (Region A, Sub-Region A2), and it overlooks the A 542 road and the Eglwyseg River to its east and the A 5 road, Llangollen Canal and the Afon Dyfrdwy (River Dee) to its south, and has the town of Llangollen to its south south-east. 

Coed Hyrddyn (SJ 200 439)

The hill originally appeared in the 200m P30 list on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website under the invented name of Moel Tan-y-coed with an accompanying note stating; Name from buildings to the South-West. 

Moel Tan-y-coed

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Name from buildings to the South-West

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.  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.

The danger of hill list compilers inventing names for hills and their inappropriate perpetuation is evidenced above, as this is a name I invented many years ago for this hill and it now appears on the National Library of Scotland website

The land where the summit of this hill is situated is now owned by The Nation Trust and when I first visited this hill I came across a sign at the start of one of the paths leading to its high point which names the hill as Velvet Hill Coed Hyrddyn.  This information was forwarded to Geoff Crowther who updated the Welsh 200m P30 list accordingly.

The National Trust sign at the start of the central eastern approach to the hill

Velvet Hill Coed Hyrddyn

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Clem/Yeaman listed as 231m

The name of Velvet Hill seems to be a relatively recent addition as the name of Coed Hyrddyn is substantiated by a number of Ordnance Survey maps predating the contemporary 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer series, and some of these are presented below.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey Six-Inch map published in 1880

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

When recently visiting this hill with friends and conducting the Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit survey I met Jonathon Davies, the son of the local farmer and whose family work from the Abbey Farm which is situated below the hill to its north-east.  Jonathon’s family have farmed this land since 1934 and he confirmed that the hill is known by both names; Velvet Hill and Coed Hyrddyn, and for the purposes of listing it is the Welsh name that is being prioritised as it has older evidence of use, is known as such locally and also appears on contemporary Ordnance Survey maps and named as such by the present land owner.   

Jonathon Davies (centre) with young son Jan Celyn Davies and colleague Edward Jones 

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the 200m Twmpau and Y Trechol - The Dominant Hills of Wales is Coed Hyrddyn, and this name was derived from The National Trust, historical and contemporary Ordnance Survey maps and local enquiry.

The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Moel y Gamelin

Name:  Coed Hyrddyn

Previously Listed Name:  Moel Tan y Coed

 

Summit Height:  232.4m (converted to OSGM15)

OS 1:50,000 map:  117

Summit Grid Reference:  SJ 20029 43943 

 

Drop:  102.0m (converted to OSGM15)

Dominance:  43.89%

For details on the summit survey of Coed Hyrddyn

Myrddyn Phillips (July 2018)

Mapping Mountains – Trimble Surveys – Moel y Gamelin

05.05.18  Coed Hyrddyn (SJ 200 439)

Coed Hyrddyn (SJ 200 439)

Coed Hyrddyn nestles between two relatively busy A roads and a river and canal, it feels as if the hill has been squeezed in to the landscape as it is dominated by higher hills in all directions, and yet it is relatively prominent for its height and commands extensive views, it can be combined with adjacent hills or as in today, it can be the sole objective making an enjoyable few hours in warm sunshine with good friends.

Lou had set me the objective of a small walk near Llangollen on good paths that would last between 2-3 hours and Coed Hyrddyn seemed the obvious chose.  I’d visited the hill on two previous occasions, the first in December 2003 when I combined a number of hills in a good winter walk, and the second along with John, Graham and Mark when we surveyed the hill for Hump status in February 2013.  On both visits the weather proved somewhat cold with early frost and sleet showers respectively, today the hill was bathed in early summer sunshine.

We started the walk from beside the Motor Museum next to the Llangollen Canal and walked the short distance back up the road to a track on the left which is also a public footpath and heads north toward Abaty Glyn y Groes (Valle Crucis Abbey).

Setting off toward the hill

The land sparkled with summer growth with green fields running with new born lambs and a radiant blue sky above, nearing the Abbey Farm I stopped and chatted with Jonathon Davies and Edward Jones who were working in the adjacent field, and made place-name enquiries, afterward we continued toward the farm and the Abbey.

The Abbey is now under the care of Cadw and was built in 1201 by the Prince of Powys Fadog; Madog ap Gruffydd Maelor.  It fell in to disrepair after the dissolution of the monasteries in 1537, and it still commands attention with its west end entrance striking skyward.

The west entrance to the Abbey

Beyond the Abbey we crossed the A 542 road and used a foot stile to gain the lower slopes of Coed Hyrddyn, these we followed around the hill’s base on a narrow path that led steeply up its northern flank.  To the west and across the River Eglwyseg, Moel y Gamelin dominated the view, almost pyramidal it looked down on all near hills, whilst across to the east Castell Dinas Bran rose in a great lump of a hill.

Heading up the northern flank of Coed Hyrddyn

Moel y Gamelin

Abaty Glyn y Groes and Castell Dinas Bran

The summit ridge of Coed Hyrddyn has a number of rounded and grassed tops with a good path between and the early summer warmth had brought walkers out on to the hill, with a small group standing beside the high point as we made our way toward it.

Heading for the summit

The summit of Coed Hirddyn consists of a small grassed area and as the Trimble gathered its customary five minutes of data I sat with Lou, Debs and Huw and looked out to the west and bathed in the tranquillity and warmth that the day had brought.

Gathering data at the summit of Coed Hyrddyn

After packing the Trimble away we continued on the good path down toward the car park at the southern end of the hill, past stunted gorse bushes as a steam train chugged up the valley below whistling as it went.

Heading down

Once off the hill we sat beside the canal and river with glasses of cider, fizzy water and an ice cream before leisurely walking on the canal tow path back to the car. 

It had been a good way to spend a few hours in the sunshine on a beautiful small heighted hill in another lovely area of the country that I love.

Survey Result:

Coed Hyrddyn (significant name change)

Summit Height:  232.6m (converted to OSGM15, Trimble GeoXH 6000)  232.4m (converted to OSGM15, Leica GS15)

Summit Grid Reference:  SJ 20028 43944 (Trimble GeoXH 6000)  SJ 20029 43943 (Leica GS15)

Bwlch Height:  130.4m (LIDAR)  130.4m (converted to OSGM15, Leica GS15)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SJ 20049 44655 and SJ 20051 44657 (LIDAR)

Drop:  102.2m (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)  102.0m (Leica GS15)

Dominance:  43.89%

For further details please consult the Trimble Survey Spreadsheet