Day 65: Gibraltar

Our next stop on this 117 day journey is the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar. Located in the Strait of Gibraltar where the Mediterranean Sea exits into the Atlantic Ocean, Gibraltar was established as a permanent watchtower in the year 1160. Follow the links for the fascinating history of this area.

We met our pilot in the early morning as we entered the Bay of Gibraltar and were soon docked at the pier with the imposing Rock of Gibraltar as our backdrop. The morning champaign toast for arriving in a new area soon followed. Check another one off the list.

Today’s adventure would consist of a cable car ride to the top of the Rock and then exploring the vast Gibraltar Nature Reserve before making the way down to the city below. We caught a bus to the base of the cable car station just before it opened so we were on the 1st morning car to make the 6 minute, 1300ft ride to the top observation platform. The view was amazing and well worth the ride. As Sue was still fighting the “respiratory crud” she’s been dealing with all week, she decided to ride the cable car back down rather than attempting the strenuous hike required to go down on foot. At the bottom of the hill, she was lucky enough to sweet talk a tour operator, that had clients still exploring the Rock, to give her a ride back to the ship. Score one for resourceful Sue!

While Sue was recuperating back on the ship, Dan set out on an to explore the nature reserve with the famous, ever present Barbary Apes in attendance. Crossing the Skywalk, up to O’Hara’s gun battery, down the famous and formidable Mediterranean Steps, St Michaels Cave, Suspension Bridge, numerous gun emplacements and trails the total hike covered 8 miles and still didn’t see 1/2 the sites available in the reserve. Because the time constraints Dan ended his exploration early and made his way down the rock, through the town and back to the ship. We will need to come back and explore more thoroughly.

Random photos may be truncated. Click on photo to see full view.