The Eighth Wonder: The Panama Canal

Panama City, Panama

Panama City, Panama

We left Texas on July 17, 2019 for another of our backpacking trips.  This time, we wanted to see the beautiful country of Panama and while there, take a little cruise through the Panama Canal.
Our backpacks were stuffed full of clothing to accommodate two different climates:  Panamanian heat and afterwards, Andean cold of Ecuador.

Squeezing into a canal

Panama Canal launch

We have a bucket list; perhaps you do, too. 
Crossing 50 miles from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean via the Panama Canal was on that list.  Here are a few notes that amazed us about this goal.  Wayfarers can pay $125.00 for half day tours through two of the three locks, which takes about 6 hours (lunch included).  Or, you can select our 12 hour cruise, pass through all three locks, and with lunch included, pay $180.00 each.   We were blessed with a perfectly hot and cloudless day!

Did You Know?
* August 15, 1914 - the first vessel passed from the Atlantic to the Pacific, but with little fanfare   
   because WWI had begun two weeks earlier on July 28, 1914
* The three locks function as water lifts, raising ships from sea level of the Atlantic or Pacific to the
   level of Gutun Lake. 
* The ships travel through the Continental Divide!
* Types of vessels that use the locks:  Bulk and car carriers, tankers, passenger,  & liquefied
   petroleum and national gas carriers - your makeup and bulk ingredients are on these ships.
* Every vessel must hire and schedule in advance a tug boat to guide them through the locks-
   no tug boat, no go!
* Every vessel from any country in the world must fly a courtesy Panamanian flag for 50 miles
* Every vessel's captain relinquishes his post to a Panamanian Canal captain who guides the
   ship through the canal.
* 13,000-14,000 vessels pass through the canal each year
* Cost:  from under 50 feet=$800.00 to cruise ships=$375,600
   but think of the savings if that same cruise ship sails from New York to San Francisco
   around Cape Horn adding 7,872 extra miles. 
* The average canal toll is $150,000
* The cheapest toll was paid in 1928 by Richard Halliburton, who swam the 50 miles
* Trips around the Southern tip of Chili can take up to 3 months longer to connect oceans
* It takes ships an average of 8-10 hours to travel through the canal
* All tolls for the Panama Canal must be paid in cash
* The canal takes in about 2B a year and $800M a year for Panama's General Treasury
* The most fascinating point of interest involves the wooden crosses that are posted along the sides
   of Gatun Lake.  With all the fabulous technology that is required to transit carriers of various sizes
    through the canal, this technology is not available on Lake Gatun, a large artificial lake carrying
    ships for 21 miles of their 50-mile long canal journey.  The ships use the wooden crosses
    for directional guidance, aligning them up with their gauges to assure safe passage when passing
    oncoming carriers.  The crosses still guide today. 

Panama Canal

It was a very long, very hot day but worth it for the one time that we will ever traverse this canal.  We visited with some fascinating trippers from Russia, the Netherlands, Canada, Central America, Asia and Europe on this 50 mile journey. 

Once our ship arrived in Colon, Panama on the Caribbean coast, we caught a bus and traveled 2 hours back to Panama City along with 40 other tired cruisers. 

We will spend a few more days in Panama City, Panama then travel to Ecuador.  More to follow...



Thank you for traveling with us.
Keep Looking Up,
J:m and L:inda