Los faros han sido para la navegación nocturna imprescindibles, tanto por seguridad como para establecer la ubicación de la embarcación. Sus códigos de destellos, colores y sombras están detallados en todas las cartas náuticas mundiales.
Dos de estos faros están en las puntas de la Bahía de Algeciras en pleno Estrecho de Gibraltar que es uno de los puntos con más tráfico del mundo, sumando las fuertes corrientes y los continuos temporales. Uno se encuentra en la Punta Carnero, muy cerca de la localidad de Algeciras y el otro el Faro de Punta Europa en Gibraltar.
Lighthouses have been indispensable for night navigation, both for safety and for establishing the location of the vessel. Their codes of flashes, colours and shadows are detailed in all the world's nautical charts.
Two of these lighthouses are at the tips of the Bay of Algeciras in the Strait of Gibraltar, which is one of the busiest points in the world, with strong currents and continuous storms. One is at Punta Carnero, very close to the town of Algeciras and the other is the Punta Europa lighthouse in Gibraltar.
El faro de Punta Europa ha estado guiando a los buques que cruzan el Estrecho desde su construcción en 1841 con la excepción de los años que duró la Segunda Guerra mundial para que los aviones italianos no supieran donde lanzar las bombas. Como anécdota la ciudad española que linda con el Peñón, La línea, fue bombardeada por error en varias ocasiones causando algunas muertes al ser confundida con Gibraltar.
The Punta Europa lighthouse has been guiding ships crossing the Strait since its construction in 1841 with the exception of the years during the Second World War so that Italian planes would not know where to drop their bombs.Anecdotally, the Spanish town bordering the Rock, La Linea, was mistakenly bombed on several occasions causing some deaths when it was mistaken for Gibraltar.
El faro de Punta Europa está construido de forma que recuerda las torres almenaras construidas por toda la costa española por los árabes, usadas para avisar de un peligro mediante la luz de una hoguera en lo alto. Está pintada con la decoración estándar de los faros ingleses. En blanco con una franja roja.
The Punta Europa lighthouse is built in a manner reminiscent of the crenellated towers built all along the Spanish coast by the Arabs, used to warn of danger by the light of an overhead bonfire. It is painted in the standard English lighthouse decoration. In white with a red stripe.
Justo a 23 kilómetros al sur, se encuentra la ciudad de española en África de Ceuta.
Just 23 kilometres to the south is the Spanish-African city of Ceuta.
Alrededor del faro se encuentran viejos fortines de la Segunda Guerra mundial y un poco alejado la casa del farero.
Around the lighthouse there are old forts from the Second World War and a little further away the lighthouse keeper's house.
Mirando la otra punta de la Bahía podríamos ver con ayuda de unos prismáticos el faro de Punta Carnero justo detrás del buque.
Looking across the Bay we could see with the help of binoculars the Punta Carnero lighthouse just behind the ship.
A ocho kilómetros al Oeste encontramos el Faro de Punta Carnero. Desde él, en días despejados se puede ver el faro de Gibraltar justa en la punta Sur.
Eight kilometres to the west we find the Punta Carnero lighthouse. From here, on clear days you can see the lighthouse of Gibraltar just off the southern tip.
El faro de Punta Carnero es algo más pequeño y estrecho y su construcción es de roca arenisca sin pintar. La costa africana se encuentra a tan solo 18 kilómetros.
The Punta Carnero lighthouse is somewhat smaller and narrower and is built of unpainted sandstone. The African coast is only 18 kilometres away.
No es tan alto como el faro de Gibraltar pero al ser de menor diámetro parece mayor. Construido en 1864, seguramente en 1924 pasó por una renovación por tener puesto ese año en la veleta. Actualmente está automatizado completamente y la caseta está deshabitada normalmente.
It is not as tall as the Gibraltar lighthouse but being smaller in diameter it appears larger. Built in 1864, it probably underwent a renovation in 1924 as it had a place that year on the weather vane. It is now fully automated and the lighthouse is normally uninhabited.
He querido fotografiarlo en un día despejado y otro con un temporal para poder disfrutar de la diferencia del paisaje. Seco y húmedo. De las dos maneras el hermoso.
I wanted to photograph it on a clear day and on a stormy day to be able to enjoy the difference in the landscape. Dry and wet. Both ways it is beautiful.
El faro de Punta Carnero está en medio del parque natural de los Alcornocales. Por un lado un gran mirador al Estrecho y por otro una zona verde con una vegetación espesa por la humedad que siempre hay en la zona. Si invirtieran en ello, podrían convertir el faro en una zona recreativa como zona para disfrutar de la naturaleza. El Estrecho es el paso natural más importante de todas las aves migratorias de Europa y este lugar es ideal para los amantes de las aves y de la fotografía.
The Punta Carnero lighthouse is in the middle of the natural park of Los Alcornocales. On the one hand a great viewpoint to the Strait and on the other hand a green area with thick vegetation due to the humidity that is always present in the area. If they invested in it, they could turn the lighthouse into a recreational area to enjoy nature. The Strait is the most important natural passage for all migratory birds in Europe and this place is ideal for bird lovers and photographers.
Aunque parezca que son los faros más al sur de Europa, hay otro muy cerca que es el faro mas meridional del continente, el faro de la Isla de Tarifa, a tan sólo quince kilómetros del continente africano.
Although they may appear to be the southernmost lighthouses in Europe, there is another lighthouse very close by which is the southernmost lighthouse on the continent, the lighthouse on the island of Tarifa, just fifteen kilometres from the African continent.
Actualmente los faros han perdido la importancia que tenían hace unos años atrás, antes que llevasen los buques tanta electrónica avanzada en navegación y alerta, pero para pequeñas embarcaciones y averías siempre estarán ahí con sus guiños de luz en la inmensa oscuridad.
Nowadays lighthouses have lost the importance they had a few years ago, before ships carried so many advanced navigation and warning electronics, but for small boats and breakdowns they will always be there with their winking light in the immense darkness.
Friendly greetings @cuvi. Oh wow, what a romantic escapade with different lighthouses. With each exhibiting their distinctive architectural characters, you can immediately distinguish their specific locations on the islands. On the other hand, if all those lighthouses had similar colors and appearances, I'd most probably get lost both on land and sea, haha 😁. So, aside from their cultural and religious influences, this must be the basic reason why the builders purposely designed different aesthetics on their facades. Please correct me if I'm mistaken.
Just curious. Were all your stunning photographs captured from land? Or were you also on a boat at sea when taking some pictures? It seemed you had to traverse to various coastlines on the islands to be able to catch the perfect visual perspectives of those lighthouses? Kindly enlighten me.
Hello @cuvi what a beautiful sight. The lighthouse seems like some beautiful movie location. The pictures turned out to be so professional.
Keep flourishing and stay awesome.
Thank you very much for your nice comments. Best regards @praditya.
I love lighthouses, not only because they have a simplistic beauty they also serve a very important purpose.
Coincidimos en gustos. Un saludo
We share the same tastes. Best regards @afterglow.
Well done @cuvi! We're happy to inform you that this publication was specially curated and awarded RUNNER-UP in Architecture Brew #48. Congratulations!
Subscribe to Architecture+Design, an OCD incubated community on the Hive blockchain.
I am very happy to have been supported by the Architecture+Design community. Thank you and best regards @aplusd.
Always grateful to you too @cuvi for being one of our beloved community's awesome authors. Best wishes and more power! 😀
Ambos están en parajes increíbles pero la imagen del Faro de Punta Europa sobre el acantilado me ha enamorado. Gracias por compartir las imágenes.