Country diary: walkers light up the hills to mend mountains

Great Ridge, Peak District: Momentum builds like a wave, and in a thrilling, spine-shivering moment, a glittering ribbon sparkles into being along the ridge

I reach the top of Mam Tor, out of breath, as the sun is dropping behind the bulk of Kinder Scout and dying in a great flare of scattered orange.

It is quarter past nine on a Tuesday night, but the top of the peak is a throng of activity; dozens of people are milling around the summit and marvelling at the sunset, unfazed by a biting wind. I squint into the east, and can faintly make out the dots of hundreds more people trailing into the distance.