Garth Hill
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| Garth Hill | |
|---|---|
 View of the Garth Mountain |
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| Elevation | 307 m (1007 ft) |
| Location | Cardiff,  Wales |
| Prominence | 211 m |
| OS grid reference | ST103835 |
| Listing | Marilyn |
Garth Hill (usually called Garth Mountain, or The Garth, Mynydd y Garth in Welsh) is a hill located in South Wales.
It can be seen near enough all over the Welsh capital city of Cardiff, and on a sunny, clear day as far as Weston-super-Mare across the Bristol Channel in the South West of England. It lies adjacent to the Taff Vale with the village of Pentyrch on one side and looks down onto the small village of Gwaelod-y-Garth. The Garth has a number of tumuli on its top [1]. These date from the early to middle Bronze Age, around 2000 BC. They are burial sites.
Fine views of Cardiff and the Taff valley are obtained from the prominent crag visible in the picture [2].
A book was written about "Ffynnon Garw" which was made into a film The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain (1995). The location of Ffynnon Garw rather implies it is The Garth; however, the story is fictional. The popular movie has resulted in a stream of visitors climbing to the summit of Garth Mountain to view the location. It is also a popular location for people seeking magic mushrooms.
But the increased number of walkers has caused concerns for conservationists who fear the real treasure of Garth Mountain could be damaged by the myth. They say the Bronze Age burial chamber has nothing to do with the mountain's classification. Now the History Society and the local community council are erecting a notice on the mountain to explain its real historical significance.
The new notice will tell them that the story in the Hugh Grant film is not true - and they could face two years in prison if they disturb the ancient burial mounds on the summit. To set the record straight the Pentyrch History Society and Community Council will leave the information notice up near the summit.
The Garth has a sister hill, the Lesser Garth. The Lesser Garth is of limestone, which is extensively quarried [3] and was formerly mined for iron ore. The valley between the two is eroded in softer Coal Measures, shales in the main, while the Garth itself is formed of the resistant Pennant Sandstone formation. Until the 19th century, the valley was full of small coal mines which fed the ironworks below in the River Taff valley, opposite Taff's Well. There is now little trace of these.
The access road to Pentyrch village, Heol Goch, runs between the main and lesser Garth.
