Transiting the Panama Canal has to be one of the most exciting events of a world cruise, in our humble opinion. And what makes it even more interesting is doing your homework and reading about the history of this part of the world well before doing the transit. Having said that, we have had the privilege of making this trip through the canal at least thirty times and from both directions.
The Zuiderdam was just entering the Caribbean side of the Panama Canal around the time we woke up. Sometimes we are at the beginning of the line of ships to begin the transit, and we miss the entrance and going under the new bridge. Completed in 2019, the Atlantic Bridge connects the land at this entrance. Prior to that, there was no road, only ferries.
Also new to this side is the Agua Clara Locks and visitor center which was completed in 2016. We have watched the progress on these locks as well as the Pacific locks from day one. It seemed as if the work would never be done. Since we are considered a medium-size ship, we would use the older Gatun Locks. Three sets of chambers raised the ship up to the level of the lake which is almost 100 feet above the level of the Caribbean Sea. Looking through the jungle of trees from our veranda (port side), if there were ships in the new locks, we would be able to see the tops of them. There were none transiting at the time we went through.
We went to the dining room on deck three for our first breakfast in the reserved space for the President's Club members. There were at least 10 of us, which had to help the over-load of guests in the Pinnacle Grill. The best part of breakfast was the offering of Panama Rolls. We each had 1 ½ rolls with the mandarin filling in the center. These were being served on the bow, and the Crow's Nest starting from 6am. We were very happy they still had some for breakfast. Maybe we will be lucky and the bakers will repeat these rolls for Easter Island, Sydney and Singapore…..hint, hint?
Around 10am, we entered the Gatun Lake, which was formed in 1912 by damming the Chagres River. The islands we see in this lake are really the tops of the peaks of the hills. We slowly sailed through the lake which took up to two hours. Several commercial ships passed us going the opposite way adding color to the otherwise drab and overcast skies.
After noontime, we passed by Gamboa, then entered the one way traffic Culebra Cut, an eight mile "ditch" that took some clever engineering to complete. Unstable rock and soil and the extreme heat took its toil on the many laborers back then. Malaria and yellow fever also were huge problems creating a high mortality rate…..a very sad time in history. We also noticed that the Panamanian flags were at half-mast. Could it be because of President Jimmy Carter's funeral in the US? We doubted that, so we did some research online. It turns out that on January 9, 1964, there was a civil outburst between the Panama police and some of the native students over a flag incidence. People were killed on both sides, and the day went down in history as Martyrs Day. And that was the reason for flags at half-mast today.
The Centennial Bridge came into view which opened in 2004. It has replaced the Bridge of the Americas as the carrier of the Pan-American Highway. On a tour we did years ago, we actually traveled across both bridges in one day….pretty cool.
We reached the Pedro Miguel Locks before 2pm. The set of locks here lowered the ship 30.5 feet to smaller Miraflores Lake. There is a parking lot nearby where locals like to come and watch the ships transit. We could hear cheers and welcome to Panama as we sailed out of the locks.
The final set of locks on the Pacific side are Miraflores where the descent is 54 feet. There is a visitor's center where many more well-wishers gathered today to cheer us onward. On the opposite side near Miraflores is the new set of locks named Cocoli Locks, which also opened in 2016. Newly-designed water-saving basins reduced the water volume by a lot.
The Bridge of the Americas spans the entrance to the canal on the Pacific side and was completed in 1962. It is one mile long and 34 feet wide, coming at a cost of 20 million US dollars. We passed under it ahead of schedule and were on our way towards Manta, Ecuador. There will be no stop in Ft. Amador for the city of Panama this time.
Here are some interesting facts about the Panama Canal: This new route took 10 years to complete and saved a ship's voyage over 7800 miles going around the Cape of South America. The new locks have increased the canal's capacity with more than 14,000 containers to pass from sea to sea. More than 100 species of mammals and reptiles thrive in the Gatun Lake area. As many as 500 different birds live in the nature reserves, although during the heat of the day, many are hidden in the forest of trees.
Our cruise director, Kimberly, narrated the entire transit starting from 7am to after 5pm. She did a splendid job, but there were a few problems. First we could barely hear her talking outside on our veranda, where we spent the majority of the day. We remembered from last year when Kimberly first sailed with us on this grand voyage she kicked the volume down a notch because she was talking from the bridge with the Captain, officers, and the local pilots. Not wanting to be a distraction from the navigation point of view, she talked quietly. We did have the option of tuning into the bow camera where her talks came through there. However, there was a slight time delay, and all we could hear was more of an echo. And the last thing we needed was to open our veranda door and heat up the room or invite insects in our room.
Anyway, she was more than thrilled when she spotted a very large crocodile sunning itself on a boat ramp, and the another one on the starboard side earlier. Last year, we asked if she had seen the capybaras that live near the fields near the end of the canal on the Pacific side. At that time, she had not seen them, but today she did. In fact we never saw so many as we did today. Some of the adults were the size of pigs, and at one point, we saw a bunch of babies running with the moms as we passed by. Hard to believe they are the largest rodent in the world and are actually eaten by many natives in this part of the world. An acquired taste we suppose.
By the end of the day, over 1200 photos were taken of the canal transit and some of the wildlife such as frigatebirds, pelicans, terns, osprey, possibly a crested caracara, and a few egrets. The portside crocodile was a perfect subject as well. It took the rest of the afternoon, even with a Lido lunch break, to process the pictures. Only a portion got done, and the rest will wait until tomorrow.
Dinnertime had some nice starters of a shrimp cocktail, calamari frities (fried), and Caesar salads on the small side. One of us had a pork chop, while the other went with the comfort entrée of spaghetti Bolognese with extra sauce and shaved parmesan cheese on the side. Perfect. Panna cotta and a scoop of pineapple sorbet finished the meal. All-in-all, it was a good day. But then, most all of them are.
A little surprise was waiting for us when we came back from dinner. Our travel agency gifted each of us with nifty small folded umbrellas in a case that will fit in most pockets. Very nice and useful. In addition to the umbrellas were two certificates for a successful transiting of the Panama Canal….dated and signed by Captain Friso.
Bill & Mary Ann
