Warning: Mynydd y Cwm NW-076

It’s gone! It’s not there at all! Completely vanished!

No not the summit, the water tank which is an obvious landmark on the route to the summit. The path and summit is still there of course :wink:

I watched Roger MW0IDX’x video and made sure I knew what the path off the track looked like. But with the water tank as a reference it would be hard to go wrong. So you can imagine my surprise when we ( me and Brian G4ZRP ) reached a joint in the paths and no water tank. We realised that going downhill was bad so we turned back. Now I already thought I’d recognised the path on the way into the forest but without the water tank wasn’t convinced. But after some arguments we agreed to follow this and it led to the summit.

The cairn is still there as is the length of coax. Also are the remains of a burnt tent, a varnished wooden cross with plaque in memory of the crew of a Halifax which crashed in 1947 and another home made cross. And flies. Hundreds and thousands of them.

The pair of us managed to qualify the hill but I would pay very close attention to the video to make sure you can recognise the path without the water tank. Of course if I’d have taken the GPS I’d have a route to share. But who takes a GPS up such a silly little hill?

Andy
M0FMF

Just take a 1:25000 OS map. And a Jimmy if available.

In reply to MM0FMF:
Time for a new video I think :wink:

Thanks for the QSO,

73
Roger MW0IDX & Brian MW0YDX

In reply to MM0FMF:

"But who takes a GPS up such a silly little hill? "

Er … me. I’m rubbish at navigating in forests. Thanks for the tip. I won’t be looking out for it next month on the final day’s walk down to Prestatyn.

73, Richard

I’ve done some quick Googling about any Halifax crashes and Mynydd y Cwm with regards to the varnished cross and plaque now installed at the summit cairn. I found this article which may be of interest to anyone climbing(*) this hill.

The simple wooden cross in that photo is alongside the summit cairn now and not part of it. The varnished cross is not shown. Looking at the Geograph website dated 4/5/2009 doesn’t show any crosses and neither do Tom M1EYP’s photos of the summit. Of course neither Brian nor myself took any photos, we struggled to get our 4 contacts and along with the flies, we were glad to pack up and start the trek home. In fact without Roger MW0IDX rallying the troops we’d still be up there calling!

Andy
M0FMF

  • I think using the word climbing to describe the almost flat walk in to Mynydd y Cwm is the kind of spin and distortion of the truth that should allow me to claim an MP’s generous expenses! :wink:

In reply to MM0FMF:

"But who takes a GPS up such a silly little hill? "

Me too sorry to say Andy, even small hills can give you a lost feeling sometimes.

I use the Etrex paper trail & waypoints to ensure I can get down.

Really sorry I missed you up there ,you were so late I had my Tea and then you were up and gone by the time I got back in shack. glad you qualified!

I admit it felt eerie on this summit when we went up last year,I think it was the dark forest pathway.

Well done on getting all 3 in the day

73

Tony

In reply to G4ERP:

“But who takes a GPS up such a silly little hill?”

Er … me. I’m rubbish at navigating in forests.

Ditto - don’t mention Waun Fach! The problem is that my GPS doesn’t always work in the trees (the basic yellow Etrex - the sort INKy loses). Maybe I need to upgrade.

73, Gerald

In reply to G4OIG:
The problem is that my GPS doesn’t

always work in the trees (the basic yellow Etrex - the sort INKy
loses). Maybe I need to upgrade.

73, Gerald

Funny, that - my Silva compass and OS map combination always works in trees!

Sometimes the compass gets a bit hissy on the Cuillin, though…still, you can always see what you are falling off in the Cuillin!

73

Brian G8ADD

In reply to G4OIG:

You won’t regret it. The difference in sensitivity between my old Summit and the Vista HCX is amazing. It was worth the money just for the peace of mind in the wooded bits - let alone the other enhancements.

Ah. So you also fell foul of the “not as map” tracks in the forest. I can recommend either the route up the grassy / brackeny slopes N of the forest to Pen y Gadair Fawr or the walk round the ridge from Gospel Pass via Lord Hereford’s thingy - in fact any other route than via the forest.

Whichever route you take though, you’ll need waterproof footwear.

73, Richard

In reply to G4ERP:

Thanks for the recommendation Richard - maybe that will need to wait for Christmas, but with activations in GM looming large, I think that it will become an absolute necessity. As for “not as map” tracks, they abound everywhere, not just in forests… as Paul and I know very well!

73 and best wishes for the ODP,

Gerald

In reply to G4OIG:

Thanks. I did 40 miles last weekend without any problems so I think I’m just about ready.

(edit) Apart from a couple of NASTY insect bites. How can something so small pack such a punch?

Peter M0COP has very kindly agreed to meet me half way to re-stock supplies of food etc. Now all I need is some decent WX - and if anyone fancies saying “hi” en route that would be great.

73, Richard

In reply to G4OIG:

Quote":As for “not as map” tracks, they abound everywhere, not just in forests… "

Be warned, if walking in the Cairngorms, that Explorer 403 (1:25000 - 2004 revision) is the greatest work of fiction in published literature.
Yet again, walking a possible route for our walking festival (not SOTA unfortunately), I reached a non-existent footbridge over a non-existent ford with a non-existent track leading to non-existent access to the hillside. The flies and the following rainstorm were both very real though!!!

Barry GM4TOE

In reply to GM4TOE:

Walking with the SATmap has been quite an eye-opener. It is surprising how frequently the desire-lines for paths are nowhere near the mapped PRoW.

73

Richard
G3CWI

In reply to G3CWI:

The pernicious habit of the Forestry Commission workers of ploughing right over PROWs for new plantations often leads to them being re-established in new positions.

73

Brian G8ADD

In reply to GM4TOE:

Be warned, if walking in the Cairngorms, that Explorer 403 (1:25000 -
2004 revision) is the greatest work of fiction in published

Got that teeshirt as long ago as 1968 - I see things haven’t improved then.

At least nowadays in Scotland you don’t have to worry about a GOML with a shotgun coming over on his quad bike to take unreasonable exception to your presence on his land… well in theory you don’t!

73, Gerald

In reply to G8ADD:

Unless I’ve seen another walker’s recent photos or waypoints I take many paths on maps as “wishful thinking till proved correct” :wink:

On Mynydd y Cwm the left hand fork and path isn’t shown as such on the 1:25000. It’s shown as a firebreak in the forest. From experience of bashing up them on Law Kneiss, Innerdouny Hill etc. firebreaks are horrible wet boggy ground with waist deep vegetation. Not the nice easy walking this was!

Also for those who didn’t know, That nice Mr. Gates’ version of Google maps now offers full OS 1:25000 coverage of the UK for free. Still not as good as Memory Map or Anquet but useful anyway.

The Garmin H series GPS units are significantly more sensitive than the previous models. My Vista HCx will work inside most buildings away from windows and never has problems maintaining lock in forests etc. Which is a big change from the older Garmin units that really did need a good view of the sky.

Andy
M0FMF

In reply to MM0FMF:

Also for those who didn’t know, That nice Mr. Gates’ version of Google maps now offers full OS 1:25000 coverage of the UK for free. Still not as good as Memory Map or Anquet but useful anyway.

Thanks for that one Andy. The resolution is so much better than Get a Map… perhaps the OS ought to take note!

73, Gerald

In reply to G4OIG:

Actually, I think you’ll find the source is the OS. Check out:

It’s a great shame they haven’t included the contour data.

So, to get back to the main topic. I’ve got SJ076769 entered as a waypoint between the parking spot and the summit. On the return journey I intend branching NE at that point to rejoin the ODP. Is that correct please?

73, Richard

In reply to G4ERP:

Actually, I think you’ll find the source is the OS.

I wasn’t questioning this Richard - they do give a licence number on the website. It is just that you can’t actually zoom in on the Get-a-Map site, so when there are a lot of contours running close together, it is impossible to read the heights. The print out isn’t much better either.

73, Gerald

P.S. Tom will no doubt tell me to not be so tight and go and buy a map! :slight_smile:

In reply to G4OIG:

One useful resource for you if you don’t have it already:

http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/maps/

You can zoom in quite well on that one, but at the highest resolution you lose the contours!

73

Brian G8ADD