Gibraltar is a place of contrasts; history vies with the modern life at every corner. Many people consider that the brash Main Street with its duty-free shops is all that Gibraltar has to offer, yet with the minimum amount of effort, an interesting history awaits.

Even the weather can be different in Gibraltar compared to the surrounding mainland of Spain. Often, Gib makes her own weather. This is especially true if the Levanter decides to blow. The Levanter is a moist, warm, easterly breeze, and as it starts a so-called "Banner Cloud" streams away from the top of the Rock, as it is affectionately called.

Once the Levanter gets really blowing, it can make it impossible for yachts coming from the west to pass through the Straits of Gibraltar into the Mediterranean. The wind can build to force 8 or 9, or even more, and the seas, especially when the tide is ebbing, can be wicked.

The problem is exacerbated by the Traffic Separation Scheme. Any power-driven vessels over 20 meters are obliged to follow the African coast, and there is no shelter. If you are actually sailing, or if you are less than 20 meters, you can pass inshore of the scheme. If you hug the coast off Tarifa, you will find shelter for most of the passage.

My advice, if you are bound eastward and cannot legally pass inshore when a full Levanter is blowing, is to anchor close to the shore to the northwest of Tarifa and wait. In our experience, the Levanter rarely blows for more than three days. We have, on more than one occasion, taken a real bashing trying to beat our way through the Straits against a Levanter.

A fair share of history

For such a small place, Gibraltar has more than its fair share of history. The Rock has been inhabited – or at least visited – since Neanderthal times.

Gibraltar is changing rapidly. It is still quintessentially British, although more and more, you hear Spanish spoken on the streets.

The Brits and the Spanish have been at odds over Gibraltar for more than 300 years. A joint Anglo-Dutch force took the Rock by force in 1704, and British sovereignty was granted by the Spanish, "in perpetuity," under the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713. The Spanish have been trying to renege on that agreement ever since.

Over the years the Spanish have had a few goes at trying to oust the British from the Rock. The most prolonged attack was the so-called Great Siege of 1779. This lasted almost four years.

During this siege, Sgt. Major Ince is credited with coming up with the idea of tunnelling through the limestone rock to situate guns overlooking the Spanish positions, which were more or less where today’s airport is located. One of his colleagues, Lt. Koehler, designed and built a gun-carriage that allowed the cannons to shoot down onto the enemy. Until then, cannons had never had to shoot below the horizontal.

Today, you can visit the tunnels and see the guns used in the Great Siege. It is amazing to see how much tunnelling was achieved using only hand-tools.

In 1969, Franco tried his own version of the Great Siege, and he closed the frontier. Although he did not bombard the Rock like his predecessors, he hoped to starve Gibraltar into submission. He even made it difficult to fly into or out of Gibraltar. They were not allowed to fly over Spanish airspace, which increased the length of the flight more than somewhat. Ships, and indeed yachts too, were not allowed into any Spanish port if they declared they were arriving from Gibraltar.

The border stayed completely closed until 1983, when it re-opened to pedestrians only. It was to be two more years before it was fully opened again to vehicles.

Of course, neither the Brits nor the Spaniards were the first settlers. The Phoenicians were there in about 950 BC, and the name they gave to the Rock was Calpe. That name lasted for more than 1,500 years, until a gentleman from what is present day Morocco sailed across with a Berber army in the year 711 AD, and declared himself the new owner of the Rock. His name was Tariq ibn Ziyad. He was obviously not a very modest chap, as he named the Rock "Gabal-Al-Tarik" – the Mountain of Tarik. Over the years this name has slowly become corrupted to give us the present day Gibraltar.

The Moors stayed in Gibraltar for almost 600 years. The remains of one of their castles, built in 1160, can still be seen today. There were numerous skirmishes between Muslim sects and between Muslims and Christians, but Gibraltar stayed in Muslim control until 1309, when the Spanish laid siege to Gibraltar and ousted them.

Control of the Med

From the moment that ships were invented, the strategic importance of the Rock was recognized. Whoever held Gibraltar effectively controlled access into and out of the Mediterranean Sea.

By 1805, the Royal Navy had realized this and had begun to build the dockyard in Gibraltar before Nelson arrived to fight the Battle of Trafalgar. Before the battle had even begun, Nelson had ordered a blockade of the Straits, to prevent Spanish reinforcements arriving from the east.

By the time World War II began, the dockyard and fortifications of Gibraltar were completed. Taking a leaf from Sergeant Major Ince’s book, the army dug literally miles of tunnels through the Rock, connecting the main places of strategic importance. St Michael’s Cavern was fitted out as a military hospital, and underground dumps for fuel and ammunition were built.

For many years these tunnels were still regarded as secret and off limits. They were opened to the public for the first time just four years ago. They are worth a visit.

Must-see: ‘Barbary apes’

No visit to Gibraltar would be complete without a visit to the so-called "Barbary Apes." Although they are called apes, they are really monkeys. It is a little confusing though, since normally monkeys have tails, but these do not. In any event, they are the only non-human primates living in the wild in all of Europe.

Nobody knows for sure from where they came. There are three conflicting stories.

l There is fossil evidence suggesting that they lived in Europe long ago and so these could be the last survivors of this group.

l The least likely story is that they crossed from their native Africa through a lost tunnel that crosses beneath the Straits.

l The least appealing story is that the British troops stationed there in the 18th century imported them to use as "interesting" targets to hone their shooting skills.

However they arrived, they are an integral part of Gibraltar and her history. A superstition has arisen that if ever the apes leave Gibraltar, then the British will lose control of the Rock. During World War II, Churchill took this myth seriously enough to import an extra stock of Barbary Apes from Morocco, to make sure that some would survive, whatever happened.

You can visit the apes’ den either by walking up through the Nature Reserve, take the cable railway to the middle stop, or catch one of the plethora of tour buses that visit the den every day. Be careful though; they are wild animals and they can and do bite, as well as snatch things from unsuspecting tourists.

Duty-free delights

The other thing for which Gibraltar is renowned is the duty-free shopping. Main Street is almost a clone of Front Street in Philipsburg, St Maarten, or of Charlotte Amalie in St Thomas. In all three cases there are dozens of shops offering a mind-boggling choice of cameras, electronic equipment, watches and other delights. Few of the items on offer are priced; you have to ask the price and haggle.

In Gib, there are bargains to be had with fuel, booze and tobacco, but not much else. If you are thinking of buying any high-cost items, do your homework and get a clear idea of what is a fair price before you begin haggling. Finally, for any electronic gear, make sure you get a full warranty. Often when you get home you find there is no warranty card in the box and you cannot register the product for warranty.

Fuel, though, is still a bargain. It is certainly the cheapest you will find in the Mediterranean. There are three fuel stations beside each other in the bay to the south of the airport runway. The Shell dock has been there forever, but when I visited recently, the staff seemed little interested in giving me information or indeed in dealing with transient vessels. With having a choice of two other companies, it is not a problem. Both Cepsa and BP have about 3.6 meters of water at low tide on their docks, and about 4.4 meters at high. (Contact for Cepsa is +350 200 48494 and for BP is +350 200 72261.)

For taking large quantities of fuel, or for vessels too large to dock on the fuel quays, arrange delivery to a berth in the commercial port. To do this, you will almost certainly have to use the services of an agent, both to secure the berth and organize the fuel. I have used the services of MH Bland on many occasions, and have had no reason to try others. Bland is a multi-faceted operation, involving not only the yacht agency service, but also commercial shipping and tour operations. (www.mhbland.com , +350 200 77075)

Find an agent to get a berth

Getting a berth in Gibraltar is quite difficult at the moment. The commercial port has recently been privatized, and it is not much interested in yachts. To get a berth in the commercial port, you will need the services of an agent.

Even with the help of an agent it is not easy and the conditions are quite stringent. You will be required to keep a 24-hour bridge watch on the VHF and will be under three hours notice to move.

There used to be three marinas in Gibraltar but now there are just two. The old original marina, Sheppard’s, sold. Where the marina used to be there is now a man-made island that is home to a large casino. The good news is that its chandlery is still going strong, just outside the Ocean Village complex, and is as good as ever. They can haul small boats, up to about 25 tons on the North Mole and they have a repair facility on Coaling Island, near Queensway Quay Marina. (www.sheppard.gi, +350 200 75148)

Marina Bay Marina, immediately south of the airport is now part of the Ocean Village development. It has begun to sell off berths and has plans to build houses along the main pier, so I suspect that transient berths are likely to become ever more restricted. For the moment though, they are a best bet for finding a berth. (www.marinabay.gi, +350 200 73300, VHF 71 or 73)

The only other marina is Queensway Quay Marina inside the commercial harbor. Previously, it was known as Gun Wharf and it had the reputation of being the rolliest marina in the entire known universe. It is situated almost exactly east of the entrance between the South and the Detached Moles. We can attest to the fact that the slightest west wind made it most uncomfortable, becoming untenable in stronger winds. Despite various floating wave-breakers that were tried, in our experience over several visits, it was never a happy place to be.

The good news is that a solid quay has been built across the entrance so waves can no longer get into the marina. The bad news is the quay is covered with houses, and berths are sold to each house.

So now, whilst it is true that the waves and swell cannot get in, it has also severely restricted access to big boats. They are not keen on vessels over 30 meters coming into the marina now. If you are smaller than that, and they have space, it would be a good place to be, away from the noise of the airport and close to town. (www.queenswayquay.com , +350 200 44700, VHF 71)

It used to be that you could anchor just to the north of the runway if there were no berths and use the dinghy to go shopping. This has now been stopped, and you cannot anchor anywhere in Gibraltar’s waters without express permission of the Port Control – VHF 16 or 12. Officers are unlikely to grant permission, unless you are waiting for bunkers.

If you find a berth in either of the marinas, you can go directly there for clearance. In the "old days" there was a small, rickety dock that you had to tie up to for clearance. Thankfully, that dock has gone and the marinas will help you with the paperwork. If you berth in the commercial port, it is most likely that you have an agent, so that person will take care of the clearance for you.

If the marinas are full and you are not able to get a berth in the commercial port, the only alternative – if you want to visit Gibraltar – is to anchor off La Linea. There is a long, curved breakwater a little to the north of the airport runway. This more or less runs along the border and it gives good shelter.

Developers are building what looks like a large marina off La Linea, just the other side of the Spanish border. It is supposed to be open for business by March, but looking at the state of it at the moment, I would guess it is a year or two off completion, assuming that the credit-crunch has not stopped it entirely.

It is planned to have more than 600 berths, so hopefully that will ease the berthing situation when it eventually opens.

I would personally not be tempted to take the dinghy into Gibraltar from the La Linea anchorage, or at least not without permission. It is best to walk into Gibraltar. It is a painless process to enter, but do not forget your passport.

Morrisons supermarket a find

There is a large, well-stocked Morrisons supermarket about half a mile from Marina Bay. To find it, go toward the ferry port and then follow the signs to the "Superstore." It is open every day, all day. It is a great place to stock up at reasonable prices. They are reluctant to deliver to the boat, but will help you organize a taxi to get where the boat is berthed.

If you are anchored off La Linea, I am unsure as to how Spanish Customs would treat a car-full of groceries passing into Spain. We have never had any problems driving out with reasonable quantities of food or other items, but a car-load of provisions for a large yacht might be a problem. If you want or need to do this, I would at least talk with an agent before you try it, and get a feel for the current mood of Customs. Conditions do change. We were there in the ‘70s when the land border was completely closed. We have crossed some days when nobody appears much interested in anything and the cars are simply waved through.

Other times we have seen them meticulously inspect each and every car passing back into Spain, causing literally hours of delay. You never can tell.

People seem to either love or hate Gibraltar. Those who are most vociferous in declaring their dislike seem to be the ones who have not ventured beyond the "delights" of Main Street.

Whilst I would never choose to live there, I do enjoy short visits. I get a strong sense of the history of the Rock, and I enjoy visiting the various sites that have played such an important role in the history of Gibraltar, and indeed of Britain herself.

Capt. John Campbell has been yacht captain for more than 20 years and a sailor all his life. He has recently settled ashore. For more, visit www.seascribe.eu . Comments on this story are welcome at editorial@the-triton.com .