We tried to leave Gibraltar last Wednesday but after 2 hours of battling against the wind, we decided to return and sit it out. This took nearly another week! For the whole of the week, a dark cloud remained hanging over the Rock and with it came cold winds and hardly any sunshine. However, we could see Spain the other side of the breakwater and the sun always shone there. So, we got our bikes out again and cycled across the airport runway in seek of some heat and, by chance, to find a Carrefour supermarket as Chris has worked out that they sell lager for only 34p pint. As you will know, Chris isn't usually a lager drinker but at 34p a pint, he has found that his taste buds are acquiring the taste!

At last, the weather changed and we set off for an overnight passage to Almerimar. It was an excellent journey with a warm breeze to help us along and the sunshine was waiting for us again. The marina was really nice and spacious with good shops, a supermarket close by and a live aboard community who stay there for the winter. All this was surrounded by low-rise, ornate Spanish apartments with the Sierra Nevada mountains behind. We also learnt that this is where most of western Europe is supplied it's winter salad from - vast areas of land between the coast and the mountains are covered in highly organised 'polly tents'.

One of the strangest sights we saw however was a vending machine outside the chandlers that sold live fishing bait! For just a couple of euros, you could have an assortment of wrigglers in all shapes and sizes - nice. The whole of Spain and Portugal seem to be obsessed with fishing so I suppose it makes sense.

The plan was to spend a couple of nights in Almerimar before continuing on our journey but it was such a nice place that Dave and Elaine decided that that was where they were going to stop for the winter rather than continue to France with us. So, after being together for nearly three months there were lots of hugs and wishes of good luck, before we headed off for another overnight passage to Cartagena.