Between a port and refinery, cold beer and tapas

Here’s a little gem in southern Spain, the bar in the Hotel Bahia on the outskirts of Algeciras just across from Gibraltar. It’s right on the beach, it’s open all year round and it’s a great little place for pre-lunch beers and tapas. It’s also sandwiched between Spain’s largest commercial port and a refinery, but don’t let that put you off.

OK, I can forgive you for not wanting to eat with port cranes on one side and chimney stacks on the other. But actually, the view’s pretty stunning. First you have the Rock of Gibraltar directly opposite. Then you have the constant comings and goings of some of the world’s largest merchant ships. I’ve spent many years writing about the maritime industry for a London newspaper called Lloyd’s List, so I like ships. In fact, I confess I’m a bit of maritime anorak. On Sunday we saw container vessels, tankers, bulk carriers and passenger ferries. If, like me, you like ships, then you could pick worse spots in which to have a beer.

If you look left, you’ll see the refinery. But in between is a lovely stretch of beach and, behind this, a pristine area of sand dunes and salt marshes, rich in wildlife and an important staging post for migrating birds of all types and sizes. Sometimes the marshes are smeared with splashes of pink as flocks of flamingos catch their breath before continuing north or south. It’s quite spectacular and I wish I had a photo to show you.

It’s one of the weird things about this part of the world. There’s a lot of heavy industry here, a lot of pollution of different types. But it’s also an area rich in biological diversity, both on land and at sea. The Strait of Gibraltar is among the busiest maritime chokepoints in the world. Every year, 100,000 ships sail through this narrow waterway separating Europe from Africa, the Atlantic from the Mediterranean. But even here there is room for nature’s spectacular sights.

Last year I heard a speech by a conservation expert in Cordoba, Spain, describing this region as a hotspot not for pollution, but for conservation. “People go to Mexico and Alaska to see whales,” said Andrés Alcántara, director of institutional relations at the Mediterranean section of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, a leading international conservation organisation. “Don’t they realise we have them on our doorstep in the Strait of Gibraltar?”

The Strait is a major migratory route for all types of cetaceans. Not only that, but we have resident pods of pilot whales and even orcas. Now that’s something special. By chance, a few days after the talk I received an email from Steve Warren, a marine photographer who runs Ocean Optics & Mavericks Diving in London, where he teaches underwater photography. Steve, a member of the Gibraltar-based 888 Sub Aqua Club, sent me this wonderful picture by Mark Koekemoer of fellow diver Andrew Pugsley swimming over pilot whales while filming a documentary for the Gibraltar Broadcasting Corporation in the Strait of Gibraltar. It’s beautiful shot that rammed home the uniqueness of this region and why we should do our utmost to protect it.

But anyway, I digress. On Sunday we popped in to the bar for a beer and a few tapas. Not many people I know come to this place. Most end up in Casa Bernardo, a seafood restaurant next door and a place I’ll write about some other day. Bernardo’s does amazing shellfish and is well worth a visit, but if all you’re after is a snack and quick drink, try across the road. In the summer this place is heaving and lively. I like it best in the autumn and winter, when it’s quieter. On Sunday it was warm in the sun, but not overbearingly so. Below us on the beach, people strolled and walked their dogs. Some even braved the sea for a quick dip. The beers were ice cold and the roe salad tapas, in particular, delicious.