My mum was in need of a holiday; I am currently living one long one. She was talking enviously of a friend's bike trip; I wanted something active to do. Oh Comely was publishing the Wheels issue; we decided to cycle the Atlantic Coast of France.

I didn't have a bicycle - I hadn't even been on one for months. I borrowed one from a friend and my cousin lent the two of us a tent. We bought a book and booked a ferry. We said goodbye to Berkhamsted, and we were off. 

We followed the Eurovelo Route 1, otherwise known as La Velodyssee. It took us from Roscoff all the way to the French Frontier. We cycled down Hydrangea-lined canals, beside sunflower fields and wild flower meadows, through 'ville fleuries' along 'voie vertes', all the way to the sea.

From there we followed the coast, past oyster farms and fishermen's ports, past rocky coves, wide sandy beaches and vast dunes until we were in France no more. 

We saw all sorts of bikes, from tandems to recumbents and even a unicycle. I made it my mission to perfect the cyclist's nod of acknowledgment and felt encouraged by the sense of camaraderie along the cycle paths. Although it wasn’t difficult, never having done anything like it before made it feel like a challenge. 

Thankfully, everything being in kilometres made it seem like we travelled distances much quicker than had it been in miles. I grew to love the feeling of being constantly on the move. Not least for the joyous sense of freewheeling down hills but also for a much larger sense of freedom: observing the changing scenery through the passing of the day; witnessing the morning mists rise from the water as the day began to warm; experiencing the heat as the sun rose high in the sky, and then watching it set again as we put up our tent for the night. 

It wasn't always beautiful but it was always very French. Sometimes it wasn't easy to find the way but it was mostly very flat. There might not have been a single boat along the canal but I did see my first ever otter. I got a sock caught in the gear shift but I didn't even get a single puncture.

I would highly recommend it to any first time cycle holidayer. In fact I enjoyed it so much I'm carrying on...

Photos: Olivia Wilson