It all started when ...

Published by Lyn on 5 February 2011

When we first moved to France two years ago – back when my French was even worse than it is now – I looked for information on cycling in France so we could do a little weekend trundling about the countryside. Now I’m no tech head or hard-core tourer when it comes to cycling: I just like to ride my bike.

Above: Our eldest learns to ride on a quiet backroad.

I found loads of information out there on cycling in France but it was mostly, as you’d expect, in French – and usually beyond a beginner (though the maps were quite useful). There were a few tourist boards with great sites translated into English – the Loire à vélo site was an excellent example – and some that showed promise; they had little Union Jacks or Stars and Stripes fluttering in the corner, but they often reverted back to French after a few clicks.

I came across a few sites that were OK for a particular region or department, and I occasionally found a really great one, usually run by a passionate cyclist keen to share their local knowledge.

But I couldn’t find an independent, community website with lots of info on different routes and regions, and all types of cycling: daytrips and city pottering, weekend breaks and ideas for longer cycle tours during the holidays. I didn’t necessarily want all this information in one place – somewhere to get started with some basic info and lots of links would do just fine. So the idea for Freewheeling France was born, and although it took a little longer than I’d hoped to materialise, we are slowly getting there.

A big thanks to everyone who has contributed – especially the experts and authors, Francophiles, bloggers and tourers who have donated their time to offer advice or contribute to the site, and to those who have helped out with photos.

Feel free to drop me a line with any feedback or ideas for the site – good mapping, more specific route information and better coverage of the various regions of France are on the agenda, but I’m keen to add other ideas to the list too. The journey’s only just begun.

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