It's a wintry night and I'm perched on a Welsh mountaintop, about 500 metres above sea level, somewhere near Llanidloes. Darkness fell some time ago, and it took the last remnants of the day's limited warmth with it: the temperature has now dropped to the wrong side of zero.

I walked a few miles to find this spot, trudging through the Cambrians to find a vantage point that looks just right. In the day, the view was amazing: I could see all the way down a wide valley of bogs. But now I can't even see my thickly gloved hand in front of my face.