Thanks Pulp Fiction, for the catchy tag line.
It took just over 3 days to cover the 380 miles that separated Ibiza and Gibraltar. It was a great sail and the weather held nicely. In addition to crossing into the Western hemisphere we also had our best one day mileage in the Med, 131 nautical miles in 24 hours. It may not sound like much, and it really isn’t, but by Med sailing standards it’s fantastic.
A big handsome moon lit the way for us at night, and we were treated to gorgeous sunsets every night including the one in this lucky shot. I zoomed in on a black speck later and discovered that it was actually a little dolphin. Unknown to me at the time it had breached at the exact moment that I snapped the shot, one in a million.
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We arrived at the eastern end of the 36-mile strait, our hallway to the Atlantic proper. This is where the Rock of Gibraltar and the Jebel Musa form the mythical Pillars of Hercules. This narrow stretch of water (just 8 miles wide at the skinny bit) is all that separates Europe and Africa, and connects the Mediterranean Sea to the Atlantic Ocean.
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Sailing past the 430 meter rock of Gibraltar was a thrill. It’s one of a handful of earth’s features that are so instantly recognizable.
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A pod of pilot whales led us in. After all this was a big milestone, regular old dolphins just wouldn’t do. We actually thought they were dolphins at first, and once we realized that they were whales couldn’t believe how many there were and how close they were. Take a look and at this picture and you will see what we mean.
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The dolphins were a little late for the party, but eventually arrived on the scene and rounded off our welcoming party. Maybe they didn’t like being out-staged by the whales because they showed up in incredible numbers and stayed with us for at least an hour.
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We stayed at Marina Bay for 15 pounds sterling per night (which at today’s exchange rate is roughly 375 dollars Canadian). It was a super friendly marina, and everyone was really helpful. We were a bit bummed when the guy told us we would have to clear in, but it turned out to be a non event as the marina staff handled that right there at the office without us even knowing about it. We left without saying anything thinking that they had forgotten and maybe we had gotten away with something, but the cheeky monkey must have snuck a stamp in our passports without us even noticing… if only every country worked like that.
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Since we’re on that topic, I can’t say that either of us really figured Gibraltar out. We thought it was a part of the EU but apparently not. They use Pound Sterling, are surrounded by Spain, and the whole place seems to be some kind of cruise ship duty free zone. The history is hectic like all good history should be. Gibraltar has been a British colony for over 300 years, but Spain had it for 242 years before that and thinks they should get it back. Their most recent attempt was by Franco who closed the border between 1969 and 1983. This is nothing new; the rock has been a contested piece of real estate throughout recorded history with no less than 14 recorded sieges. The Dutch, Moors, Phoenicians and Genoese have all squabbled over,and at times, controlled it. They even found some Neanderthal bones in a cave here, which probably means that they stole it from some Cro-Magnons.
It’s hard not to get the feeling that the Gibraltarians there today are a bit tired of it all and just want to be left alone. “Thanks for the fuss everyone, but we think you’re all a bit mad so how about you just jog on and leave us be.” Something like Quebec I guess, but with apes.
The apes are Barbary macaques, apparently the only ones in Europe not in a zoo. They were great, really great. We caught it at the right time of day and had the run of the place. The view up at the top was spectacular, and we got to hang out with our primate pals without anyone else around. A bunch of the little ones were messing around constantly while their bored-looking parents kept an eye on things. Before long I was a part of the game, not really a participant in any way but more like furniture or a human jungle gym. They were running up my leg, hanging from my arms, sitting on my head and before long the sneaky little one was sneakily trying to steal my sunglasses.
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The geeky Ape warden guys (and one girl) rode down with us in the gondola. It was the last one and their shifts were over. They turned out to be nearly as entertaining and, not surprisingly, far more annoying than the apes. They spent the whole time trying to make the Apes out to be these crazy vicious beasts and themselves out to be some kind of Top Gun lion tamers or something. We sort of felt bad for them with their funny outfits and all, so tried to look impressed by all of their ape war stories. I’m pretty sure that this was the group who decided that this sign was the perfect way to portray the animals.
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Legend has it that if the apes leave Gibraltar, it will cease to be British. The legend was taken very seriously by the Poms. So much so that the British Army used to be responsible for their care and feeding. I’m convinced that this bit of history must at least in part explain some of the Ape geeks’ Top Gun attitudes.
We must have shown the appropriate level of awe at their tales because they finally let up. It was the perfect moment to show them our pictures of the apes crawling all over us. One geeky ape warden had a coronary, another had a conniption, and the only one there who didn’t take himself too seriously found it hilarious.
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Gibraltar comes on strong and fades fast. After you check out the view from the rock, visit the apes and their geeky keepers, see St Michaels cave and the Moorish baths, then wander around the old fortified city for a beer at Lord Nelsons, you are pretty much finished. John Lennon and Yoko Ono only stayed an hour, and they got married here. It was an interesting stop though, and I would recommend giving it more than an hour. Two or three days should do it though. We enjoyed ourselves but after a couple of days began watching the weather.
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We were up at 4 AM on October the 8th. Timing is everything when you are trying to sail west through the strait. We were underway with strong easterlies pushing us hard before 5 AM, both very excited to finally get ourselves into the Atlantic for some proper ocean sailing.
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Hi Guys, I have a great slogan for your sale…
Slap Cash for Slap Dash. Hey don’t throw any tomatoes at me. Good Luck.
James – Mind the Gap
Posted by James | 17. Dec, 2011, 9:16 pmIt’s worthy. We (ok maybe not we, just me) love a good pun. Where are you guys now?
Posted by theslapdash | 17. Dec, 2011, 11:21 pmWe have just arrived in Thailand. Not sure of our plans after here. Take care you guys.
Posted by James | 18. Dec, 2011, 9:18 amYou too! You’ll have a blast out there. Check out Northern TL if you get the chance. Amazing. Merry xmas guys!
Posted by theslapdash | 19. Dec, 2011, 1:47 amHi
Posted by Rob Pennington | 15. Dec, 2011, 5:41 amHi back Rob.
Posted by theslapdash | 17. Dec, 2011, 2:48 amGreat recap and great pics but I was waiting for the near death, nervous twitch, light up a stress smoke propane decanting story… You sure made it look interesting on the Facebook photo.
Posted by Lorry Reynish | 13. Dec, 2011, 3:39 pmWe seemed to be the lucky ones. But Seth’s eye has started to twitch with disturbing regularity…
Posted by theslapdash | 17. Dec, 2011, 2:48 amNot to fear Lorry, we’d never leave out a near-death propane story. Stay tuned…
Posted by theslapdash | 17. Dec, 2011, 11:23 pmHmmm, something’s wrong with the currency calculator. According to mine, 15 pounds sterling is a little less than 25 Canadian dollars. Did I miss something here? Loved the photos and your write-up. I seriously miss reading your stuff when you take long breaks.
Rich
Posted by Rich & Becky Johnson | 12. Dec, 2011, 1:11 pmIt was out attempt at a joke. But we’re not really that funny so I can see how you misunderstood. We at the Slapdash do sincerely apologize for the lame joke/exaggeration and will endeavor to raise our current level of comedy standards in the hopes that you might laugh out loud at any of our future attempts. We thank you for your patience.
Posted by theslapdash | 17. Dec, 2011, 11:27 pmwhere are you headed from Gibraltar? Why are you selling ‘Slapdash’?
Great post – thanks for your postings!
Posted by vinny gallagher | 12. Dec, 2011, 4:23 amWe’re in the Canaries Vinny. It’s freaking cold here too! About to cross the Atlantic if the weather will ever smarten up. Yeah the girl (Slappy) is for sale. Sad face. But that was always the plan. We can’t keep her forever and the trip is coming to a close. Throw another sad face in there for good measure. Glad you like the posts. Those will continue right into the next adventure…
Posted by theslapdash | 17. Dec, 2011, 11:29 pmLove the Pulp Fiction reference…I’m just glad you all are in chronological order! Great stuff, have a great crossing!
Posted by Bob | 12. Dec, 2011, 4:01 amWe love the Pulp Fiction. Hey thanks for the Atlantic well wishes. We love those too.
Posted by theslapdash | 17. Dec, 2011, 11:30 pmThanks again guys
Take care
Posted by Brian Chabassol | 11. Dec, 2011, 11:29 pm