Rhinog Fach - GW/NW-078 SOTA (2021)

Summits on the Air Activation Report

Activation Date: Saturday 16th October, 2021.
Activator(s): Richard M1HAX.
Summit: Rhinog Fach, North Wales, Wales.
Summit ID: SOTA reference GW/NW-078 (6 points).
Summit Height: 712m elevation, 151m prominence.
Summit Location: Lat./Long. 52.82417, -3.98295. Maidenhead Grid IO82at.
Also Activated: GW/NW-017, GW/NW-023, GW/NW-041.
Distance: 18.2km travelled with 1350m of ascent.
Difficulty: SAC Grade T3.^(?)
Elapsed Time: 8hr 5m (incl. operating and other summit(s) on the same hike).
Weather: 11°C, moderate breeze, cloudy.
Radio Equipment: Yaesu FTM100D, MFJ-1714, Zippy 4200mAh 4S LiFePo4.
Callsign Used: MW1HAX/P.
Contacts: 13 (2m FM, 2m C4FM).

Trip Notes

Rhinog Fach, standing at 712 metres, is a rugged and characterful peak within the Rhinogydd range of Snowdonia, North Wales. The name translates as “Little Rhinog,” distinguishing it from its more imposing neighbour Rhinog Fawr (“Great Rhinog”). Despite the diminutive name, this mountain presents a formidable presence with its steep, rocky slopes and challenging terrain. The Rhinogydd as a whole are often described as Snowdonia’s last wilderness, being less frequented than the more popular areas around Snowdon and the Glyderau, and Rhinog Fach embodies this wild character.

This activation formed the third part of my 18.2km circuit on October 16th, 2021, which encompassed four summits: Moelfre, Y Llethr (which I had already activated), Rhinog Fach, and finally Rhinog Fawr.

What made this particular summit especially interesting was its recent reclassification as a Marilyn following a survey by hill measurement expert Myrddyn Phillips. This had resulted in its addition to the Summits on the Air programme’s North Wales region as a newly qualifying summit. While I had missed out on being the first activator (Simon GW4TJC had claimed that honour about two weeks earlier), I was still among the first to operate from this newly-added SOTA summit.

This leg of my journey began from the cairn at the summit of Y Llethr, with an initially steep descent to the northwest on grassy terrain. The path led towards the eastern side of Llyn Hywel, a beautiful mountain lake nestled beneath the imposing eastern face of Rhinog Fach. The contrast between the placid waters of the lake and the rocky, imposing slopes of my next objective made for a striking vista.

During my descent, I encountered a solitary walker heading in the opposite direction along the Cambrian Way long-distance path, a reminder that even on a weekend, this area sees relatively few visitors compared to other parts of Snowdonia.

After skirting Llyn Hywel, the route began to climb the southern slopes of Rhinog Fach, following another drystone wall for quite a distance. The ascent traversed a couple of boulder fields, which added interest and variety to the route, but the terrain never became technically difficult. The path became less distinct in places, but the wall provided a reliable handrail for navigation.

Approaching the summit, the path veered westward briefly before arriving at the end of the drystone wall. The summit area is characterised by scattered rocks and a sense of isolation. I used the wall as a convenient operating position for my Summits on the Air activation, setting up my Yaesu FTM100D with MFJ-1714 antenna.

Being one of the early activators of this ‘new’ SOTA summit added an extra dimension of satisfaction to the operation. I worked as many stations as possible on the 2-metre band, making 13 contacts in total, including three summit-to-summit QSOs. I also made two Yaesu digital voice (C4FM) contacts before concluding the activation.

With my third activation of the day complete, I packed away my equipment and prepared for the final leg of my journey to the neighbouring Rhinog Fawr to the north, which would complete my traverse of this spectacular and less-visited corner of Snowdonia.

Photos

Below are some photographs taken during my activation of Rhinog Fach on Saturday 16th October, 2021.

Walking Route for Rhinog Fach

The interactive map below shows my GPS track taken to the SOTA activation zone for Rhinog Fach. Note that this summit was activated as part of a multi-summit hike and the map below shows the full route taken on the day. The GW/NW-078 summit area is marked on the map with a blue pin icon.

You can download the route shown above as a GPX file suitable for use with most GPS devices. This file is provided for information only, to support your own walk planning and research (it may contain navigation errors, detours and/or safety hazards). The route downloads provided here are governed by the Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.

Station Log

I logged the following 13 amateur radio contacts operating as MW1HAX/P from GW/NW-078 Rhinog Fach on Saturday 16th October, 2021 (all times shown are UTC):

In the notes field I will usually log the other operator’s name and the signal report they provided. In accordance with the Summits on the Air rules, I do not make a log entry where a complete exchange of callsigns and signal reports was unsuccessful.

Additional Information

The following resources may be helpful to walkers, mountaineers and SOTA activators interested in Rhinog Fach:

• Sotl.as Summit Page for GW/NW-078 Rhinog Fach.
• Hill Bagging UK Summit Page for Rhinog Fach.
• Google Maps Page for Rhinog Fach.
• Wikipedia entry for Rhinog Fach.
• 360° Panorama near summit of GW/NW-078 Rhinog Fach.

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