11^th September 2010

Gop Hill and Graig Fawr, North Wales

Leaders: Sheila and Peter Mason

 

We drove through a torrential shower to the meeting place in Trelawnyd Car Park where 13 members gathered. We sheltered twice from further showers before emerging onto the side of Gop Hill where we found Marjoram, Origanum vulgare flourishing amongst a colony of Creeping Thistle, Cirsium arvense. In spite of the rain, Harebells, Campanula rotundifolia , Tormentil, Potentilla erecta and Eyebright, Euphrasia nemorosa (white form) were in good shape, and Fairy Flax, Linum carthaticum, Thyme, Thymus polytricus and Lady’s Bedstraw, Galium verum were still showing their end of season flowers. A small quarry-side had a fine array of Rock Rose, Helianthemum nummularium in its second flowering. We had arranged this visit to look at the Autumn Lady’s Tresses, Spiranthes spiralis which grows in profusion here. 2007 and 2008 had the hillside white with the flowers; 2009 gave a much more meagre display and on the 2010 recce the week before we found some 50 plants. But the season was early this year and by the time of our visit most blooms were over, and we found only a few with the white flowers all the way up the spiralling stem – just enough to provide photos. Darwin made an extensive study of this flower to examine the pollination mechanism when bees visited them ( a short description was provided for members to read) – he doesn’t appear to have enquired why they grow in such a tight spiral!

 

The Spiranthes spiralis trail took us to the entrance gate onto the Gop cairn itself, the second largest man-made mound in Britain after Silbury, 14 metres high and 250 metres above sea level. Like the hill it is all limestone, presumably quarried nearby in Neolithic or Bronze Age times, although no archaeological finds have dated it securely. An almost impenetrable sloe forest guards the entrance and the mound itself is home to a wide variety of flora. We found Carline Thistle, Carlina vulgaris, Musk Thistle, Carduus nutans, two Stonecrops, Sedum acre, Sedum anglicum, Red Valerian, Centrathus ruber, Salad Burnett, Sanguisorba minor, Parsley Piert, Aphanes arvensis and a particularly fine specimen of Ploughman’s Spikenard, Inula conyzae. One or two Spiranthes grew right on the summit.

 

As it was temporarily dry and sunny we ate an early lunch on the top of the mound with splendid views across the Clwyd estuary towards Snowdonia and across the Dee estuary to Wirral. Golden Grove, an Elizabethan mansion, was bathed in sunshine across the valley to the north. We watched the next downpour approaching along the Clwyd valley and descended rapidly to the entrance, but were thoroughly soaked by the time the rain stopped.

 

Some of the party went to look at the Gop Rock Shelter and Caves where Neolithic human remains and Pleistocene mammal debris had been found. The limestone cliffs there hosted many plants including Maidenhair Spleenwort, Asplenium trichomanes and Rock Rose in profusion. 

 

The cavers rejoined the others who had sheltered in the forest by the cairn and we all proceeded along the Millennium Path through the trees, finding Wood Avens, Geum urbanum, Lesser Burdock, Arcticum minus, and a variety of ferns and mosses. We emerged from the forest and followed the path back to Trelawnyd, noting Agrimony, Agrimonis eupatoria and Pellitory-of-the-Wall, Parietaria judaica  on the way.

 

At Trelawnyd 4 members left to return home, while 9 drove on to Graig Fawr, a National Trust site and again a limestone hill. It was rather late in the season for this site, but we found Red Bartsia, Odontites vernus, good displays of Travellers’ Joy, Clematis vitalba in fruit, Common Mallow, Malva sylvestris and a plant of Lesser Meadow Rue, Thalictrum alpinum in a limestone crevice. There were  good patches of Rays Knotgrass, Polygonum oxyspermum along the path. Several interesting grasses were found, including Yellow Oat Grass, Trisetum flavescens, Heath Grass, Danthonia decumbens and Crested Hair Grass, Koeleria macrantha. The weather was fine and from the summit there were magnificent views along the Welsh coast.

 

The party dispersed, only to meet again at the nearby Jacksons Garden Centre for tea. We’d had just enough sunshine to see how beautiful the countryside is and to make up for the rain. Several members felt they would like to return there and explore further. To quote Renoir: “The beauty remains, the pain passes.” 

 

 

A gap in the rain	Parsley-piert	Autumn Ladies-tresses	Musk Thistle	Musk Thistle

  

Gop Hill	party on Gop Hill flank	Carline Thistle	Salad Burnet	hedgerow fruits

                                                                        

Graig Fawr	Hoary Rockrose & Thyme	Musk Thistle	Golden Oat-grass	last Rockrose of summer