Walk on: Ramblers celebrate 80th anniversary of Peak District mass trespass

George Haigh, who was 16 when gamekeepers tried to stop hundreds of walkers getting on to Kinder Scout in Derbyshire, said he was “very proud” to be back at the foot of the mountain.

Mr Haigh, now 96, said he still remembers the day the armed keepers scuffled with ramblers.

Five of those arrested on the day were later jailed.

“It’s a long time ago but I’m very proud to be in this position,” said Mr Haigh. “This is a wonderful day. I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.”

John Bunting, 94, from Sheffield, was 14 when he went to the mass trespass on his bike.

“We were young men fighting for our country but when the war was over we couldn’t walk on it,” he said.

“The rich and powerful and the aristocracy – they just wanted to murder the wildlife for a few years and keep us off for the rest of the time.”

Yesterday’s event in Edale started a week of celebrations to mark the Mass Trespass, which is now seen as a landmark event in the push for public access to open land.

This eventually saw national parks established in England and Wales in the 1950s, starting with the Peak District in 1951.

Broadcaster Stuart Maconie told those who gathered at the foot of Kinder Scout yesterday: “The right to walk on these mountains is an inalienable right of everybody in this country.

“These do not belong to anyone, or rather they belong to us all.”

Singer Mike Harding then sang the song Manchester Rambler with a full choir before the group headed up Kinder Scout.