SHE has spent all summer pushing herself to the limits in the wilds of Europe and now, ambitious cyclist Annal Lupton is on her way home.

But the 29-year-old athletics enthusiast hasn't come to the end of her adventure just yet - the 2,000 mile ride home is set to take three weeks.

Here, she tells the Guide in an email to friends and family about the closing stages of her journey.

"I'm in Les Vosges, a beautiful little place in eastern France, adjacent to Alsace.

"It's got mountains (as I discovered yesterday... I thought I'd left long uphill slogs when I left the Alps, but was I wrong), nice flat valleys, waterfalls and endless trails in the thick forests which are perfect for running. In short, it's lovely.

"Les Vosges is the last place I wanted to make sure I saw in France.

"From now on, I'm taking a direct line home(ish), via Reims to Calais, then up through good old Blighty to home.

"The weather's getting colder and wetter, so the prospect of cracking on home is quite appealing.

"I'm no stranger to cycling in the rain (I live in Manchester for goodness sake), but it's not much fun day after day.

"A week ago I got a surprise when I awoke to frost on my tent!

"That's the first and last time I camp at 1,000 meters at the end of September.

"Since I emailed last time I've done a lot. After a lovely weeks R&R with the parents in Switzerland I came second in the marathon des Alpages and won a heap of money, what a great surprise that was!

"Then I rode to Lake Geneva and south through the French Alps (on a route called the Tour des Grandes Alpes) to Menton on the Mediterranean.

"That was a really special eight days of quiet roads and stunning scenery, and the mountains were quite big too - the Col du Galibier, Col d'Izoard (my favourite), Col de la Bonnette (at 2860 metres the highest road in Europe apparently), amongst others.

"I also did the Col d'Iseran, but I might as well have been up Winter Hill as it was cloudy and wet and I couldn't see a thing.

"Then I took a train back to Switzerland for a weekend to see John run in the World Trophy, which was a great experience, and I was third female in the open race.

"Then a train back to where I left off and I continued riding along the south coast of France to Cannes then inland through hot and arid Provence to Mont Ventoux.

"Ventoux is a bit of a cyclists' mecca and it would have been rude not to have rode up it. "I've not seen so many cyclists in one place since my employer, Manchester Met University were giving out free bike gear down Oxford Road.

"After Ventoux I swerved back to the Alps via Grenoble. "Last week I did a 10k uphill race near Annecy and when the organisers discovered I'd cycled from Manchester they were so pleased I'd come to do their little local race, they showered me with gifts, cake, wine and fondue.

"They put me up in a school for two nights and I can safely say a gym mat for a bed beats a thermorest hands down!

"Now I'm ready for the straight run home, I hope it'll take just under 2 weeks.

"One benefit of the colder weather is my panniers are lighter because I'm wearing practically all my clothes! Another bonus is when I get home I'll really appreciate my house and central heating.

"Things I'm looking forward to (apart from seeing everyone again which I can't wait to do): having a kettle to brew up with, having more than one little pan to cook in, seeing roadsigns in English, having a shower in my own shower again and sleeping in my own bed again.

"Most of all I'm looking forward to seeing John and hearing all the jokes he's been storing up for five months, having a brew with my mum and dad, seeing how much my nephew's grown (and how much my expectant sister has too), going for a walk with my brother, going for a run and a ride with my running and cycling buddies in familiar places where I won't get lost, seeing all my mates and catching up with their various pregnancies, house-moves and job-moves.

Oh and boring everyone to tears about my trip, of course! Things I won't miss: falling asleep and waking up to the sound of rain on my tent, getting lost, being told in a patronising manner that I can't cycle up that road because it goes over mountains, campsites without a rain shelter and innaccurate directions from well-intentioned people.

"But there's lots I will miss: the freedom, the independence, the fresh air, seeing new places every day, the feeling I get crossing from valley to valley and seeing the landscape change over the course of a day on the bike, the utter generosity and warmth of complete strangers that I've encountered throughout, the serendipitous nature of the whole trip and knowing each day that there will be little surprises waiting for me.

"Just before I left home in early May I was experiencing doubts about whether I could do this trip and my mum said to me 'Well love, it'll be an achievement if you just cycle as far as Folkestone'.

"Folkestone now seems like a very long time ago.

"I remember once trying to explain to my colleague Geoff, why I use a turbo trainer (like a treadmill but for the bike) - 'So you pedal hard and get nowhere?' was his characteristic no-nonsense - but accurate - response.

"Well, I feel like this summer I've pedalled hard and got somewhere, to lots of places in fact.

"I've seen such a lot, met so many people and learnt a great deal about myself. And I'm very glad I've done it.

"Okay, time to ride. I hope everyone is really well and I look forward to seeing you all very soon."