Ann Wilson was born in Barrow in Furness in 1950, the middle child of five and the only girl. She attended Our Lady's Secondary School for girls in Barrow and later studied Science with the Open University. Cycling did not figure prominently in her life until her mid-50s when she completed a ride from Carlisle to Ipswich. This turned out to be the precursor to her round-the-world cycling trip and a lasting love of cycle touring. Since that first long journey she has cycled from Canada to Mexico along the Pacific Coast, Morocco to Paris, Munich to Tblisi, Talinn to Amsterdam and from Houston Texas to the Atlantic and along the coast of Montenegro to Albania Ann has two children, a daughter who lives in her home town of Ulverston and a son who teaches in Japan. Before retiring she worked in the telecommunications industry.