Rock of Gibraltar, British Territory

What an absolutely fabulous day!  I highly recommend doing the Rock.  It was a 1.5-hour drive to get to Gibraltar and a 30-minute lineup at the Border Crossing from Spain into England.  Once we crossed the border we looked for a parking lot but we weren't having a lot of luck.  Darren decided to start driving up the mountain where we came to a stop because only tour vehicles could pass the last gate.  Darren dropped us off and found parking 400 meters down the mountain.  There is a lookout where he dropped us and we had some photo opportunities.  You can see Morocco across the water approximately 14 km away.  There are just under 30,000 Gibraltarians that live on this barren piece of land and rock.  There is no natural water source, they de-salinize their water.  There is no agriculture or natural resources.  It is 7 square kilometers.  

Darren walked back up the mountain to all of us and we purchased our entry into the Gibraltar Nature Reserve which was only 18 Euro per adult.  This is a bargain considering everything that there is to do and what you can see. Garth and Sandra our friends that were with us considered the tour for 45 Euro each but it was only 1.5 hours. We were on the Rock for over 7 hours. There is so much to do.  We were told that there is 9 km of walking and it is all uphill. We actually walked 15 km because we took in all of the sites. Not going to lie, some of the roads are straight up. It is a deadly workout.

The views are stupendous along the way.  The first thing we saw was the monkies walking down the Charles V ancient wall.  Dax had run down to the Apes Den to check it out and the older crew said if it was good then we would go down as well.  The monkeys were so entertaining that we did not need to.  We learned today that what goes down must come up so we did not do anything without checking out the gradient of the hill that we would have to walk back up. 

The monkeys of Gibraltar are thought to have slipped through an underground tunnel from Morocco to Gibraltar.  That is one theory.  The Macaque monkey is from Africa.  They could have slipped over on a boat I thought but they predate human existence in that area.  This dude to the left is having a great snooze.

The monkeys were numerous in three spots in Gibraltar.  We spent a long time observing them.  Some posers liked to watch you take photos of them.

 The second site where we saw numerous monkeys was right at the far end of the Gibraltar walk before going into all of the tunnels and caves.  They are pretty darn cute and fun to watch and be around.  You have to be careful as they can be aggressive and it you have something that they want then they will try and take it.  Dax put his hand in his pocket and immediately a monkey thought that Dax was going to feed him which you are not supposed to do and the monkey latched onto Dax's leg.

The first site we got to was the Great Seige Tunnels of the 1700s.  This was very interesting and can take over an hour but 30 minutes was enough for us.  The incline was extremely steep going all the way down so Dax ran down to the end and back again to check it out. You can take another 45 minutes to finish the tour.

We saw a Lime Kiln next which was interesting because I did not know that lime needed a kiln.

The City Under Seige Exhibit was next and it was set up in an old ruin.

Dax and I decided to go to the WWII Tunnels which was down and back up again.  We had to wear hard hats and you can do an audio tour if you wish. 

The underground tunnels were approximately another km or more of walking.  These tunnels were used during Napoleonic times and throughout WWII for strategic purposes.

The Moorish Castle is just below the WWII tunnels and it dates back to the 1300's.  We both were fine just looking at it from above and did not feel the need to go and see it.  Not with the amount of extreme walking and climbing that we were doing that day.  It was destroyed and then rebuilt at a later date.  If it was an authentic 1300's castle then we would have used the energy to walk down and then back up again to see it.  Look at me, I am becoming a Castle snob.

Dax and I spedwalk to catch up with the other 3 because they chose to just take their time going straight up the mountain road.  

We walked to the Gondola Tower where we saw monkeys hitching a ride.  We stopped to buy some water and take in the views.

At the gondola ride area, I heard a girl scream and a male monkey jumped on her back.  She was trying to get him off and that is when I got my picture in. The monkey stole her backpack and she fought to get it back. I was laughing so hard that I missed some picture opportunities. 

 A monkey was eating a bag of chips and a monkey fight broke out.  There was a wee baby that we watched for quite a while as it played on the spiral staircase, it was adorable.  We stayed and watched the monkeys for quite a while.  I have to mention the breathtaking views.  We were at the top of Gibraltar at this point.

This due was sitting on the railing watching two girls eating through the glass window.

This was an adorable shot.

We continued to the Skywalk which I was not going to do but I changed my mind. It is a glass floor balcony that sticks out on the side of the mountain.  Gibraltar is a sheer cliff at this point and it is straight down the side of the mountain to the ocean which is almost 1500 feet or 1/2 of a kilometre to the bottom.  It was a very scary feeling but I did not want to pass it up.

The monkeys were at the Skywalk as well. When I walked up the stairs to the Skywalk there were monkeys on both sides of the stairs.  A Mom and Dad were grooming their little one.  They do a lot of that.

The Saint Michael's Cave was a showstopper.  These are some of the largest and longest stalactites and stalagmites that I have ever seen.  The cave was beautiful and there was a rock formation formed by Mother Nature that looked just like an angel.  

To the right is The Angel of St. Michael's Cave.  

At the end of this, there is a huge cavern with seating for 400 to watch a 7-minute light show choreographed with operatic music. Super cool experience.  They also hold concerts there throughout the year.

Below is what they call a pillar and this is when the stalactite meets a stalagmite.

In the theatre of St. Michael's Cave to the right.  There is also another naturally formed pillar in the center of the seating.

Dax ran an extra 230 meters down to the suspension bridge but I did not want to walk back up after such a long day of walking.  The 4 older people of the group began our long walk down the mountain and Dax quickly caught up with us.

We continued to walk down the mountain and to our car but I did have an opportunity to take some shots of the setting sun.  We finished up with Gibraltar at the right time.

Setting sun over Morocco in the distance.

I had not done enough research and did not even know that we would be walking so far.  I was unprepared and I did not have any water with me, Dah! Make sure you bring water with you because the only place you can buy it is at the Cable Car Restaurant and at St Michael's Cave but it was already closed when we got there. We watched the last light show and it was at 6 pm.  They need to add some vending machines that stock water throughout the roads for stupid people such as myself.

You also have to bring your passports for Border Control. The last time we tried to get to Gibraltar was in 2010. We got to the Border and realized how stupid we were because we had forgotten them back at our timeshare, Dah!

The Rock of Gibraltar was an amazing experience and I highly recommend it and would do it again.