Whales, and the Rock that is Gibraltar

Conditions were good when we set off on the 211 mile trip from Lagos to Gibraltar, the spinnaker was in use and we were making good progress.

We sailed on into the sunset.

Sunset at Sea

Then at about midnight the wind died and we wallowed around for a while before we resorted to the motor

Night Sailing

Eventually as the sun came up, the wind picked up, and we hoisted the sails - then the wind dropped again, and we were back to the motor.  We had our daily work out, repeating this experience at least 6 times!

As the sun got higher in the sky, we noticed the rigging was covered with what seemed to be cobwebs - we didn’t see any spiders, we were at least 40 miles from the nearest land and these cobwebs seemed to be drifting in the air.  

Cobwebs?

During the day the wind picked up again, and 36 hours after we set off we saw whales!  Not only did we see them, they swum up to the boat, had a quick look and headed off again.  We saw three adults and a calf, and think they were Orcas.

As night fell on day two, the wind started to build - by 0200 we were beating into 

a force 8, well reefed down, heading towards the Straights of Gibraltar which looked like the M25 in rush hour, and not enjoying it!  By 0400 we had dropped the sails and the wind was a Force 9 - our options were to continue attempting to tack our way through the shipping lanes (didn’t appeal!) or resort to the Volvo!  Maximum wind gust recorded on our instruments was 57.3kts - very glad we are in an Ovni, not a J-109!

All calmed down to a manageable 30kts as we neared the Rock  and the sun came up - we continued motoring,  as we’d been sailing for 45 hours and it seemed like the easy option.

First view of the Mediterranean Sea

Gibraltar really is very British - with more mopeds and sunshine.  Lots of little tiny alleyways between streets, loads of street cafes and endless opportunities to have full English Breakfasts or Fish and Chips.  Plenty of places to enjoy a pint in the sunshine.

The High Street, Town, Gibraltar

We cycled round the Rock - you can obviously see Spain to the North, and Africa to the South.

Europa Point, view towards Africa

Being the Tourists that we are, we took the Cable Car up to the Top of the Rock - very glad we did, it would have been quite the climb!

The view from the top - we're in the Marina in the centre of the photo, Spain surrounds us.

Top of the Rock - Towards Spain

Towards Africa

The Barbary Apes - they were much more peaceful than I'd expected, and really quite cute ...

Man Meets Ape

Barbary Ape

There are fortifications all over the Rock, showing it's strategic importance throughout history.

We walked back down from the top - taking the very steep steps that were built in order to facilitate communication between those stationed at the top of the rock and those lower down  during the numerous skirmishes over the ownership of the Rock. A very impressive set of stairs.

The stairs and wall that lead most of the way down to town from the top of the Rock

We have enjoyed our few days in Gibraltar, and are now heading for Spain to catch up with a friend near Puerto Banus.