Photography: Frits Meyst
Text: Jillian Macdonald

We follow the country roads through golden sunflower and wheat fields, through small villages and vineyards, past exquisite chateaux that sprawl amongst the trees with pride and a tad of prejudice. This region was once home to French kings, a reminder of courtly lifestyles in 15th and 16th century aristocracy. Loire a Velo is a new concept in France: a carefully developed and signposted route made up of minor roads where traffic is at a minimum. The traffic here consists predominantly of cyclists who have come to enjoy the many pathways that wind their way around one of Europe's last untamed rivers.

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