Legacy: Mediterranean 2007

We spent the night anchored off Melilla. From here, we clearly see the entrance to the neighbouring port of Nador. No driftnetters have left there, yesterday or today. The west wind is still blowing fiercely, so much so that it has ripped off one of the blades from our wind-powered generator on the stern. But … Read more

We didn’t have a good night. The westerly winds were strong enough to make a few of the new arrivals – especially some of the journalists – feel somewhat “uncomfortable”. Those of us who have been on the Ranger for days have already been through that ritual and slept like logs. In the morning, the … Read more

At four in the morning, we were awoken by the sound of the Ranger hitting the island’s dock. The effect of the tide and the undertow created by the wind that had picked up during the last few hours inside the island’s tiny port had neutralised the protection of the fenders that had been shifted … Read more

After being away from the Ranger for five weeks, it’s now time to be reinstated onboard and relieve Ricardo Aguilar. One is never too sorry to leave the busy streets of Madrid, and after the small dose of the usual airport torture that any citizen must face in order to calm their nerves and mood, … Read more

Today has been an exciting day. We had a good scare. The little seamount we went to sample turned out to be the most complicated one of all. The lines, nets, ropes and other fishing tackle abandoned here have transformed this seamount into a spider web. And to top it all off, the robot got … Read more

More surprises in this area. We continue investigating the area around Seco de los Olivos. Near the main seamount, there is a group of smaller elevations that almost surround it as if they were a crown. All of them are proving to be quite interesting. Today, we’ve decided to use the ROV to go down … Read more

We continue diving in Almeria in the area of Seco de los Olivos. We have not seen any cetaceans in this area this year, quite the contrary to last year, and we have been here two days with calm seas and excellent visibility. In general, the sightings during the last month and a half can … Read more

Once in Almeria, we’ve made the port of Almerimar our base for operations in order to work in Seco de los Olivos between Punta Entinas and Punta Elena. On the first day, we head out to Seco to see one of the small elevations there are towards the east and to look around the top … Read more

Today we were going to take a look at the seamounts that appear in the charts approximately 20 miles east of Cabo de Gata. According to the charts we have, the three summits are between 180-2000 meters depth and are located atop a small platform at 900 meters, from here they fall to over 2,000 … Read more

On our way to Cartagena to get supplies, do some general cleaning and take care of other things, we stop for a few hours in the island of Las Palomas to take another look at the area. The divers will explore the area near the seamount located south of the small island while the ROV … Read more