Mapping Mountains – Significant Name Changes – 100m Twmpau and Y Trechol - The Dominant Hills of Wales

Y Faerdre (SH 781 794)

There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the 100m Twmpau and Y Trechol - The Dominant Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop, dominance and status of the hill derived from a Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit survey and LIDAR bwlch analysis conducted by Myrddyn Phillips.

Y Faerdre (SH 781 794)

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

100m Twmpau - Welsh hills at or above 100m and below 200m in height that have 30m minimum drop, with an accompanying sub list entitled the 100m Sub-Twmpau, with the criteria for this sub category being all Welsh hills at or above 100m and below 200m in height with 20m or more and below 30m of drop, with the word Twmpau being an acronym standing for thirty welsh metre prominences and upward. 

100m Twmpau by Myrddyn Phillips

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 additional Welsh P30 hills whose prominence is between one third and half that 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, and the list is now available in its entirety on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

Y Trechol - The Dominant Hills of Wales by Myrddyn Phillips

The hill is adjoined to the Mynydd Hiraethog group of hills, which are situated in the northern part of North Wales (Region A, Sub-Region A2), and it is positioned with the A546 road to its west and the B5115 road to its east, and has the town of Deganwy encircling it on three sides.

The hill appeared in the 100m P30 list on GeoffCrowder’s v-g.me website, under the transposed and invented name of Degannwy Castle Top, with an accompanying note stating; Name from remains of castle.

Degannwy Castle Top

107m

SH782794

115

17

Name from remains of castle.

  

 

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 castle whose remains are situated on the summit of the hill and add the word Top to it.  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.    

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

Since publication of these P30 lists on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website there have been a number of Ordnance Survey maps made available online, some of these are historical such as the series of Six-Inch maps on the National Library of Scotland website, whilst others are current and digitally updated such as the enlarged map on the Geograph website.  One of the historical maps now available is the Ordnance Survey Draft Surveyors map which formed the basis for the first publicly available Ordnance Survey One-Inch ‘Old Series’ map, and it is the Draft Surveyors map coupled with local enquiry and detail on Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer maps that formed the basis for the change in this hill’s listed name.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey Draft Surveyors map

The Draft Surveyors maps consist of the preliminary drawings made by the Ordnance Survey’s surveyors between the 1780s and 1840 and formed the basis for the first publicly available One-Inch map.  They were drawn at scales of six inches to the mile for areas considered of particular military significance and down to two inches to the mile for other areas.  Fair copies were then produced from these preliminary drawings to one inch to the mile and then copper plates were prepared for printing.  The Draft Surveyors maps for the whole of Wales are now available online and they form an important part in the study of Welsh upland place-names as they bridge the time frame between the late 18^th century and the mid-19^th century when the Ordnance Survey produced their first One-Inch maps. 

The summit of this hill has the remains of Castell Deganwy (Degannwy Castle in English) situated on it, and local enquiry as well as research online coupled with detail on Ordnance Survey maps indicates that the hill is also known as The Vardre, this is an obvious anglicisation of a Welsh word, and it is the Draft Surveyors map that gives historical documentation of its original form; Y Faerdre, the meaning of this word is an area of land where crops were grown under the supervision of the steward.  It is appropriate to use the name Y Faerdre as opposed to that of the anglicised form as the Welsh form is prioritised when list compiling.     

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the 100m Twmpau and Y Trechol - The Dominant Hills of Wales is Y Faerdre and this was derived from a number of sources with the original Welsh form being used on the Ordnance Survey Draft Surveyors map, and the anglicised form from local enquiry and the contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map.

The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Mynydd Hiraethog

Name:  Y Faerdre

Previously Listed Name:  Degannwy Castle Top

 

OS 1:50,000 map:  115

Summit Height:  109.0m (converted to OSGM15, Trimble GeoXH 6000)

Summit Grid Reference:  SH 78160 79432 (Trimble GeoXH 6000)

  

Bwlch Height:  30.4m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SH 79280 80334 (LIDAR)

Drop:  78.5m (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)

Dominance:  72.08% (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)

Myrddyn Phillips (October 2016)

Mapping Mountains – Trimble Surveys – Mynydd Hiraethog

16.01.16  Y Faerdre (SH 781 794)

Y Faerdre (SH 781 794)

Y Faerdre takes in land that comprises three tops, two being distinctly appealing in shape, with the third lesser so.  The higher top comprises the ruins of Castell Deganwy, which is now no more than a few rock encrusted remains from the old castle’s wall that is now partly grassed over.

We had planned on visiting a few more P30s during the late afternoon but Alex wanted to visit his Grandfather who’s 90^th birthday it was today, we also had an appointment with a stove and a quite scrumptious cup a soup, and with the rain falling heavier upon an already wet land, the prospect of getting particularly wet did not enthuse us.

As Alex navigated us to a housing estate above the village of Deganwy the rain splattered across the car’s windscreen.  Pulling up we remained stubbornly seated in the car, not wanting to venture out and hoping that the rain would stop for a half hour or so, thus enabling a quick and dry ascent.  No such luck.

A footpath leads between houses on to closely cropped grassy fields where the attractive profile of the two highest points of Y Faerdre shot up in to view; both are relatively steep and well worth a visit.

The field proved wet and as we made our way up it we squashed our way through standing water and mud to get to the lower slopes that lead up to the remains of Castell Deganwy.  The fortification that once stood at the top of this hill was finally destroyed by the Welsh as part of a scorched earth policy under threat of an impending English invasion.

Alex heading toward the summit of Y Faerdre

Once at its top we assessed the summit for its high point and I placed the Trimble down to gather five minutes of data as the rain increased in strength.  Once packed away we descended the hill’s eastern slope and headed up to its near, but slightly lower neighbour.  If the afternoon had been dry I would have Trimbled this top, but rain and cold meant that we admired the view and scampered down to the comforts of the car.

Gathering data from the summit of Y Faerdre

The high point of Y Faerdre from its adjacent but slightly lower top

Before leaving Deganwy I drove down in to the village where Alex directed me to a car park, and he proceeded to set up a stove beside a bridge spanning the railway line.  Within a few minutes the water had boiled and was quickly poured in to two large mugs containing cup a soups.  Seldom have I tasted anything so appetising, it proved absolutely yummy, and kept the chilly, wet conditions at bay for ten minutes or so.

Time for a brew-up

LIDAR image of Y Faerdre (SH 781 794)

Postscript: 

Since the summit survey of this hill full LIDAR coverage is now available.  The LIDAR (Light Detection & Ranging) technique produced highly accurate height and positional data that is now freely available for England and Wales.  Consequently the numerical details for this hill has been analysed using this technique, resulting in the LIDAR height and position for its bwlch being used.

Survey Result:

Y Faerdre (significant name change)

 

Summit Height:  109.0m (converted to OSGM15, Trimble GeoXH 6000)

Summit Grid Reference:  SH 78160 79432 (Trimble GeoXH 6000)

Bwlch Height:  30.4m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SH 79280 80334 (LIDAR)

Drop:  78.5m (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch) 

Dominance:  72.08% (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch)

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