We set off early in the chill of the morning. The skies were bright blue showing the promise of a good ride south to Gibraltar, at least for the start. We had to pass over the mountains of Parque Natural Sierra de Grazalema. Anytime at those elevation changes you have to be prepared for a weather change. We rode along the small roads to the south of Seville. There aren’t any bridges to the south. You had to take a small car ferry across the Guadalquivir. It is the only navigable river in Spain. This river was used by Christopher Columbus, Magellan, and so many others exploring the new world from Spain.
As we got to the mountains of course it clouded up but nothing more than a heavy mist. Not even enough for rain gear. At one point we pulled into a coffee shop to let the worst pass over us. But there is never anything wrong with stopping and having an espresso in Spain. We found a nice hotel but without much around. The closest thing is a Carl’s Jr. at the mall. So a hamburger it was. They also had beer for sale which was a welcome treat.
The next morning we headed south towards the southernmost point of continental Europe. Motorized vehicles weren’t allowed to the southern point so we didn’t bother to go either. It was still a wonderful ride back and forth over the mountain between Algeciras and this point south. On the way back we stopped at Carlos Morocco ferry. He is known for getting the best prices for ferry tickets to Morocco and super nice to deal with. We waited about 10 minutes. We ate a cookie from the tray as we were next in line. In 10 minutes we had our open ended ferry crossing, over and return, booked. We even received a parting gift from them. They were giving away a sleeve of chocolate-filled cookies and a bottle of wine. We’d be enjoying these our first night in Morocco. From there we rode road around the port and towards Gibraltar, which is a territory of the United Kingdom. The UK took this territory years ago. They wanted to monitor activities through the narrow point between Spain and Morocco. It has been contested, under siege, fought over and refortified as a military establishment for years. It still remains under the rule of the United Kingdom though. Passage through customs was easy with only a passport check and stamp. We were excited as this is one of the only stamps we have ever received from the United Kingdom. It was so busy. There was so much traffic. We basically rode through the town on the west circle around. We then rode the coast road and tunnels to the east back to the border. There is an extensive tunnel and cave system now built into the rock. I would think this was for protection. Some of the old large cannons still exist. A quick couple stops for immigration, and we were out.
We stopped at a nice little market on the way back to the hotel. It was a Lidl. We bought some groceries for our evening meal. In the morning I went down to get the motorcycle ready to leave for the ferry. Our little motorcycle had grown into a fleet of 10, the others all with Polish license plates. We went up to breakfast and there they all were. A mixture of different type motorcycle riders and all on a tour. But unlike the riders from Poland we met in Botswana, this tour group didn’t want to chat at all. I am joining my first tour this coming year. I hope the mates with me on this one don’t behave like that.
Arriving at the ferry port and with plenty of time we are ushered to a solitary position. Next, we had to wait in line while we cleared customs. As a motorcycle rider I’m not used to doing that. We usually run to the front. Then we got to the front of a third line to wait for the ferry. The time for departure came and went and still no ferry. After about an hour and a half of waiting we boarded a different ferry. It was going to the same ferry port. It had the steepest ramp I had ever ridden up on a ferry. I think we also ended up being the only motorcycle on this ferry, which is a first. The guide took us to our spot and within 2 minutes had it strapped down securely. We headed upstairs and found some seats near the windows. Once underway we had to find immigration. You can get stamped into Morocco on the boat to save time. We left the port and moved into the straits of Gibraltar. The rock was on the left, which is the UK. Spain was on the right.
We got off the ferry in Tanger Med. We unstrapped the bike and waited for the okay to ride off. we were first off the ferry. Yikes!! I just let the bike roll down the steep slippery ramp in first gear. The main objective was trying not to tip over. A definite pucker moment. We spent the next 30 minutes getting money from the ATM. Then we got our SIM cards. We laughed with the insurance agent. He was so nice and even invited me into the office with him. Some people we had just met in a caravan from Brazil showed up at the window at the same time. I called out to my Brazilian friends and the agent invited them in to the party also.
The sun was starting to fade to the west. We found a hotel in about an hour. We got something to eat and tucked in for the night.
Our Moroccan adventure now begins.
Alsalam ealaykum, السلام عليكم, Peace be upon you.
2WANDRRs
2WANDRRs 
Spanish roads are amongst the best touring roads in Europe. Largely empty, well engineered and there’s always a village around the corner for coffee. Morocco, on the other hand we found the roads to be very good or absolutely horrendous. Sometimes we found the really good ones didn’t really have an excuse to be there but we didn’t complain. In some places the children are more annoying than Siberian mosquitos or Scottish midges!
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