Written by Jon:

We set off from Menorca with the goal of getting to Gibraltar by the end of September and we made it with a few days to spare.

Our last crossing from Motril to Gibraltar was uneventful if a little frustrating in the lack of wind. Keeping an eye on the weather forecast we picked an afternoon departure in in the hope of arriving 12 hours later in Gibraltar and, according to the forecast we’d sail about 80% of the way. The reality was somewhat different and we ended up motoring most of the way, with only about 4 hours of sailing in the middle of the night.

But! While the sailing wasn’t great, we were escorted by dolphins for almost the entire journey. As there was no wind, the sea was flat and we spotted the pod shortly after we left Motril. Deciding that we weren’t in a rush we just motored over to them to take some photos. We were amazed to find a huge pod, with well over 50 dolphins. Over the next hour we followed them as they played, jumped and chased fish.

We figured we should continue with our trip and moved on without them. But, over the next 10 hours they decided to follow us to Gibraltar. During the night we could hear and see them jumping and swimming beside us, occasionally disappearing for 15 minutes to do there own thing before returning to our bow.

Shortly after lunchtime we arrived in the busy port of Gibraltar, with the rock rising up from the sea and topped with clouds. Entry into the marina was easy and we were tied up by 1pm. After popping into the marina office to officially check in and clear customs (Teo made our customs Q flag out of yellow paper) we headed out to Pizza Express to treat ourselves to lunch.

We’ll be in Gibraltar until at least the 3rd, when Jon’s dad arrives to help with our next passage down to Lanzarote, which, weather permitting, should take about five days. Until then we continue to work on the boat, Teo’s school lessons, exploring the town and rock. Oh and even taking a trip to the top of the mast to change a lightbulb!