The third and final section of the Panama Canal is descending through Pedro Miguel and Miraflores locks and then navigating through the exit channel into the Pacific Ocean, passing under the Bridge of the Americas and passing the amazing skyline of Panama City. An excellent end to a spectacular day.
The Panama Canal is really 3 separate sections, with the middle being the transit through the man-made Gatun Lake and Culebra Cut. Navigating through Gatun Lake is a scenic 15 mile passage through a fresh water lake with numerous islands, which were the hills before the land was flooded. This is followed by the 8 mile Culebra Cut, which is the section of canal that was excavated through the Continental Divide.
Having been through the Panama Canal more than 20 times, you would think I would be bored, but no. I’m usually the first one out on deck and at the other end the last one to leave. This is an engineering marvel and is a spectacular sight, when provided the opportunity to see the Canal in action. This post will cover the arrival and transit up the 3-stage Gatun Locks, which raises the ship 85’ from sea level to the man-made Gatun Lake.
Panama Canal – 05:00 to 16:30
Yet another eagerly awaited day, as the Panama Canal transit is most definitely another of the highlights of this 2015 World Cruise. Since this is transit 20+ for me, you would think it would be passé, but no, I was probably first one up and definitely the first on deck at Deck # 11 Fwd. Still dark and still approaching the breakwater, but there I was, claiming my piece of the railing, camera at the ready to capture another few hundred digital memories, to add to the already vast collection. Due to the number of photographs I will do a few blog posts to cover the transit.
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