Getting in a Pickle in Gibraltar

The faithful replica of the schooner 'Pickle' in Gibraltar

OK, so you’ll already have gathered this isn’t about stocking up with jars of Branston from Morrisons, or even with Brinjal Aubergine from the Waitrose shelves at Gibraltar’s new Eroski store.

The Pickle I’m on about is a 73ft twin-masted tall ship, and while she’s not the original topsail schooner that took part in the Battle of Trafalgar and raced to London to break the news of Lord Nelson’s death, she is nonetheless a faithful replica of the famous warship dating from 1799…

Having been sailed from North Wales to Gibraltar by skipper and operator Robin James last autumn, HMS Pickle – rebuilt in 1996 in Russia from the good ship Alevtina & Tuy – took part in the bicentenary celebrations of the Battle of Trafalgar in 2005. She’s wintered in Gibraltar’s swish Ocean Village Marina, where repairs to her damaged sails and rigging caused by last year’s extreme weather conditions in the Irish Sea and Bay of Biscay have been made.

Ocean Village Marina, Gibraltar

And now a permanent fixture at Ocean Village, Pickle’s soft opening to her public took place on 13 April, with a more lavish launch scheduled for later this month.

With daily tours explaining what life on a wooden warship during the Napoleonic Wars was really like, cramped cabins have been removed to create museum space, while historical artefacts have been shipped over from the UK. But “Pickle won’t be an impersonal film set or theme park, she won’t be full of signs saying ‘Don’t touch’, ‘Stay behind this rope’, or ‘No photos allowed’. She’ll be utterly hands-on”, says Robin James.

Although Pickle won’t be ready to take to the high seas this summer, children and adults alike will relish the chance to tour the ship, and to see and touch the weapons, medical instruments and period navigation equipment onboard.

And, as Robin says, “This replica is uncannily similar to the original HMS Pickle which was sunk off southern Spain in 1808. During her short lifetime she was often in Gibraltar, so if ever there was a fitting location for Pickle, this is the place”.

The good ship Pickle is also available for birthday parties, wedding receptions, corporate events, product launches and photo calls that’ll shiver yer timbers.