Mark, Nick, Sakura, and I were unfortunately unable to swim the Strait of Gibraltar. We did not receive permission from the Moroccan embassy in time, but regardless the weather would likely not have permitted a crossing either way. We still enjoyed our time on the sailboat and did some great coastal swims in the Mediterranean Sea. The first afternoon when we arrived we did a very short swim on the East side of Gibraltar just to get wet. We were greeted by warm waters and two curious sun fish, or mola mola. We got some great pictures of these slow, docile, and not-so-cute creatures with Sakura’s underwater camera. The next morning we did a 2 mile swim along the coast of Algeciras and landed on a beach in Spain. The water was a beautiful deep blue, and again we spotted another sun fish. Following that swim we sailed to Ceuta, a Spanish colony technically in Africa, so now I’ve been to Africa! Captain Scott steered the boat most of the way. Once in Africa, we swam half a mile in one of their ocean-side salt-water pools then went out for a late Spanish dinner.

The next morning we set sail back to Gibraltar, to attempt a Swim Around the Rock, an 11.5 K swim around the entire peninsula of Gibraltar. We set out just north of their on-the-water runway (cool pictures of that too!), and swam south through tankers and past sea walls. Sadly, the already somewhat choppy and windy conditions worsened as we neared the tip of the rock, where a pretty lighthouse sits, and the raw, untreated sewage of all the residents of Gibraltar is released into the sea. After smelling Gibraltarian poo, attempting to swallow as little as possible, and staring at a lighthouse and murky brown water with pieces of tissue paper floating around for over 40 minutes, we realized we were no longer making progress and the tide was increasing against us. The picture above shows just how far off shore we were pushed by the current, and our pace indicates how rough the swim was. We called it a day, boarded the boat, and showered off the poo. Until the end, it was a beautiful swim, and despite the rough conditions I enjoyed myself. It was about as bad as the Hudson at MIMS during some parts, but I was much happier. I also discovered a new fuel courtesy of my swim buddies - Milky Ways! Easy to chew and get down, the chocolately taste was a wonderful contrast to the salty Mediterranean.

Overall, we had a great time in Gibraltar. We were all disappointed the Strait of Gibraltar did not work out, but I suppose now we all have an excuse to return!