Yvonne Pardo / Article and images
E-Bikes Gibraltar
Pedaling up hills at the same time as enjoying
sweeping views of the Straits behind, and then in
front of you, is quite the phenomenon. I can say from
personal experience - and one of relatively low fit-
ness - riding an electric bike up the Rock made me
feel like I had super powers. Or at least a pair of
bionic legs. Arriving at O’Hara’s Battery, the Rock’s
highest point, with Africa looking closer than ever
after a week of westerly winds, I felt miles away
from the busy town below.
Cycling has always been an excellent way to nav-
igate Gibraltar’s often traffic-laden streets. However
much of it is reduced to sea level; bike rides up the
Rock are not for the faint-hearted.
Nevertheless, the Upper Rock Nature Reserve
now covers over a third of Gibraltar’s total surface
area. For a place that desperately lacks open space,
this is quite an expansive figure. In 2013 the Reserve
was extended to include new areas in an attempt to
further protect the natural habitat of Gibraltar’s front
running tourist attraction - the Barbary apes - and
also preserve the rare species of flora and fauna that
form part of the Rock’s unique biodiversity. Wild ol-
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