Canal patrol
A dredging area
A frigate
Powerful tug
Could be a pilot boat
Panama headquarters
Huge cranes used to service the gates of the locks
Takes a lot of power to lift the gates
The train runs here
Connecting islands to the shoreline
Prison that houses Manuel Noriega
The canal narrows upon leaving the lake
Resident vultures
Danger sign on the canal bank
Nice waiter with afternoon treats
A waterfall along the canal
Excavation work is never-ending
Rain soaked the deck of the bow
Culebra Cut
Gold Hill, but did it contain gold? Unfortunately, no.
Arriving to the Pedro Miguel Locks
Going under the Centennial Bridge
The newest bridge spanning the canal
Here comes the tug
Canal buildings
If we turned right, we would have headed to the new locks
Soaring overhead
Greater egret
Pedro Miguel Locks
Vulture always on the hunt
Two canal workers rowing to us with the rope
The rope hauls the line to the locomotive
Locomotive that centers the ship in the canal
Double set of gates
A crane
We were lowered to sail to the next set of locks
Frigate, pirate of the sea
Two lanes for two ships
Facility at Pedro Miguel
Field where the canal workers compete throwing the lines through the bullseye
The ball needs to go through the small bullseye – big competition here
Gates are closed
Once the water is drained, we can advance
Flag was half-mast because a famous Panamanian recently died
Pedro Miguel (1913)
The new canal is many feet higher than the old one
Bridge of the Americas
MSC arriving to the new locks on the Pacific side
Locomotive (mule) centering the ship
More frigates on this side of the canal
Watching from the bow
A tug precedes a ship in the next lock
There goes the huge container ship
Locomotives are attached to both sides of the ship
Notice the cables attached to the ship
Pedro Miguel
Built in 1913
Spillway near Pedro Miguel
Leaving the locks
Close-up of the spillway
Lowering to the next stretch
MSC was slow in exiting the new locks
Another rain shower emptied the deck
An osprey catching a fish
Line-up of mules
The restaurant at Miraflores
High rise in Panama City
Once we are lowered, these gates will open
The moon with a frigate
A juvenile pelican
Looking for food in the locks
The osprey is an accomplished hunter
We were lucky to see it
Bird of prey
Graceful in flight
We saw only one
When the gates are closed, workers can cross from side to side
Female frigate
Great view of the January moon
Miraflores building
An adult pelican
Greater egret
Posing for us
Ready to fly
Pelican in flight
