On the hunt for ancient trees

TV presenter James Wong and tree hunter Rob McBride go in search of an old Yew tree high over Llangollen

Tree hunter Rob McBride from Ellesmere has been filming ancient trees on the Shropshire/Wales border with a team from BBC One's Countryfile programme to highlight their historical importance.

To get to some of the more unusual specimens, Rob and presenter James Wong found themselves abseiling down a rock face at Llangollen.

Rob is a volunteer for The Woodland Trust , which is half way through a five-year project called the Ancient Tree Hunt.

The Trust wants to set up a database in which they aim to find and log 100,000 ancient trees - with the help from the public.

As part of their hunt, Rob and James went to Dinbren Uchaf near Llangollen in an area known as the Panorama, to measure a yew tree that is hundreds of years old.

The Pontfadog Oak, near Chirk, is 1,100 years old

Later they visited an historic tree, the so-called 'Oak at the gate of the dead', which got its name as it has been standing on the site since the Battle of Crogen in 1165 which saw Owain Gwynedd, a prince who ruled over a large part of north Wales, defeat the forces of Henry II.

Its Welsh name is Adwy'r Beddau, 'the pass of the graves' because the English soldiers who died in the battle are said to have been buried nearby by their Welsh counterparts near Offa's Dyke path in the Ceiriog Valley.

The Countryfile programme highlights the battle of Crogen and the oak tree, pointing out that unlike historic buildings that have played a part in history, trees aren't afforded the same protection.

Countryfile, BBC One, Sunday, 6 September, 7pm