Gibraltar

We berthed at Marina Bay which is a bit rough n ready as marinas go but fine. The only problem was the swell running through the marina which could be a major problem if it got too windy. But it didn't, so it was ok.

We were moored next door to a permanent resident who worked in Gib. It seems quite q few people live on boats in the marina and work there full time. There is a lot of them employed in construction which is rampant there. We needed provisions so we got directions from next door and walked to Morrisons. Bloody hell ! Don't ever complain about the prices in your local Morrisons, this was extortion. Everything was at least a third more than UK prices, except for booze. Bacardi £8.45 a litre. " We'll have a bit of that" says Susan. We lugged our purchases back to the boat and had a non alcoholice shandy to recover. That is our staple recovery or just in port drink. I like it cos I dont feel sleepy after it. I make up for it later with the real stuff. We were still concerned about the bilges slowly filling with water, then spewing it out every so often as the bilges are on automatic. Where was it coming from. There are quite a few holes in the bottom of a boat. Most of them controlled with a seacock ( like a stopcock ) that either allows water in or other stuff ( like loo waste ) out. Was it one of them ? Or the log impeller which screws thru' the bottom of the hull and reads the speed of the boat. Or did we have a leak in the fresh water tank ? Only one way to check that one. The taste test. First get a nice cup of oily manky water out the bilge, stick your finger in and try to decide. Is it salty or not ? If no its the water tank, if yes, hows it entering the boat. We couldn't decide if it was salty or not....after numerous tastes.....mmmm! Right then, work back thru the boat. We eventually found it. The stern gland, which encases the prop shaft as it goes back thru' the boat was dripping constantly, hence filling the bilges. We turned the greaser about ten times which is used to grease the stern gland, and it eventually stopped. I rang Derek back in Hamble and explained the situation and he said it would just start again when we set off Basically they are supposed to drip when the engine is running to keep the prop cool, but not when it is off. Which is what our problem was. "It probably needs tightened up " said Derek, but the guy that came to do it said it was fine just to pack more grease in. I wasn't convince but I don't think he could be bothered.

Anyway, we had to see Gib. Up the cable car ( £9 each ! ) to the top of the rock and see the barbary apes. They are excellent but not to be messed with. An american guy had something nicked out of his rucksack when he turned his back on one and there is no chance of getting it back. They are vicious looking buggers. The views from the top are awesome, with Morocco in the distance across the Straits. We found the whole place fascinating and surprisingly clean after all the reports we had that it was dirty. We didn't find that at all. We went to the pub that night to watch England play Germany in the world cup. Oh dear 1-4, totally outclassed, even tho' we were robbed of a goal. The following night we had drinks with a very nice Kiwi couple, Val and Gary, who were a couple of boats along from us.It really is great meeting all nationalities and trading experiences and info with them. Oh I didn't mention, we also fitted a new pump in the aft heads ( loo ), another first for us. Well done us, we didn't have to pay anyone ! We were given a display of take of and landing practice by a squadron of british Tornado jets on the very nearby runway. I think they were celebrating our new loo pump fitting.

At 0900 we left our berth in Gib and fuelled up. We did not need that much ( about 130 lts ) but at 78p/l I wasn't going to miss out. Then we set off around Europa Point into the med. The P&O ship Oceana, which we have been on, was berthed as we left. " I've been ill on that ship" I reminded Susan. Next stop Fuengirola.