January 8, 2023
Hi all, today the Panama Canal crossing is on our schedule. Around 6:30 this morning we arrived at the first set of locks on the Atlantic side. These Locks are named the Gatun locks, raising our ship by 30 meter to get us into Gatun Lake. This man made lake is home to over 100 species of mammals and reptiles and over 500 different birds who live on the many islands and along the lake shores. The next set of locks lowers us 9.3 meter to Miraflores Lake. Thee final set of locks get us into the Pacific ocean. The whole transit through the canal takes a little over 8 hours. During the canal transit we are continuously updated with facts, history and details on the canal over the on-board speaker system.
The transits goes at a slow pace as the speed of the ships is regulated. During the transit it is a good time to put your feet up and try to spot any Crocs on the lake shores. A few facts about the canal, it took 10 years to build the canal. In 2016 an expansion more than doubled the capacity of the canal. This allowed ships with over 13998 containers to pass through the canal. After taking in the passage of the canal for most of the day we anchored on the outskirts of Panama City around 5:30 PM. The night view from the boat towards Panama City is very scenic.
” Travel is… Getting to know yourself by facing new experiences”
by – Sofie Couwenberg.
Cheers
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