2012-3 Panama Canal
Hello
All,
Our next port of call was our target destination on our cruise—the Panama Canal. The Canal is the result of a saga of human ingenuity and courage that goes back to the early XVI Century when the Spaniards arrived on the Isthmus of Panama. The Isthmus of Panama, also historically known as the Isthmus of Darien, is the narrow strip of land that lies between the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, linking North and South America. Since then, the idea of building a route that would join the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans was conceived. The first firm effort to build an all-water route through Panama began with the French in 1880, but financial troubles and diseases made the initiative fail.
After its independence in 1903, Panama negotiated an agreement with the United States for the construction of the canal, which the U.S. finished on August 15, 1914, and then the U.S. managed the waterway until 1999. The canal is in one of the narrowest points of the Isthmus. At noon on December 31, 1999, Panama took over full operation, administration and maintenance of the canal, in compliance with Torrijos-Carter Treaties negotiated with the United States in 1977.
Since its opening in 1914, more than one million ships from all over the world have transited the Panama Canal. The historic millionth mark was reached on September 4, 2010.
The inter-oceanic waterway uses a system of locks with two lanes that operate as water elevators and raise the ships from sea level to the level of Gatun Lake, approximately 85 feet above sea level, to allow the crossing through the Continental Divide, and then lowers the ships to sea level on the other side of the Isthmus. The water used to raise and lower the vessels in each set of locks is obtained from Gatun Lake by gravity and poured into the locks through a main culvert system that extends under the locks’ chambers from the sidewalls and the center wall. Gatun Lake was created, and covers an area of 163 square miles, to supply the locks at both ends of the canal with water. The overall length of the canal is approximately 48 miles. The current locks are 110 feet wide. A third wider lane of locks is currently under construction and is due to open in 2015.
Vessels transiting the Panama Canal are charged dependent upon their size and weight. A typical private yacht would pay $1,000 to $2,000 for passage. A large commercial ship could pay $200,000 or higher! Even so, they save money by passing through the canal rather than going all the way around South America. By cutting through, they save two weeks of transit time and up to $1 million! Here’s a bit of trivia for you. Many years ago, the canal authorities charged a swimmer 36 cents to pass through.
It was early in the morning when we approached the entrance to the canal. The canal pilot boarded our ship followed by officials and inspectors. Shortly thereafter we were lining up for our approach to the Gatun Locks. It was warm and humid. Looking out over the jungle the air seemed so thick that we felt like we could cut it with a knife.
Our next port of call was our target destination on our cruise—the Panama Canal. The Canal is the result of a saga of human ingenuity and courage that goes back to the early XVI Century when the Spaniards arrived on the Isthmus of Panama. The Isthmus of Panama, also historically known as the Isthmus of Darien, is the narrow strip of land that lies between the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, linking North and South America. Since then, the idea of building a route that would join the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans was conceived. The first firm effort to build an all-water route through Panama began with the French in 1880, but financial troubles and diseases made the initiative fail.
After its independence in 1903, Panama negotiated an agreement with the United States for the construction of the canal, which the U.S. finished on August 15, 1914, and then the U.S. managed the waterway until 1999. The canal is in one of the narrowest points of the Isthmus. At noon on December 31, 1999, Panama took over full operation, administration and maintenance of the canal, in compliance with Torrijos-Carter Treaties negotiated with the United States in 1977.
Since its opening in 1914, more than one million ships from all over the world have transited the Panama Canal. The historic millionth mark was reached on September 4, 2010.
The inter-oceanic waterway uses a system of locks with two lanes that operate as water elevators and raise the ships from sea level to the level of Gatun Lake, approximately 85 feet above sea level, to allow the crossing through the Continental Divide, and then lowers the ships to sea level on the other side of the Isthmus. The water used to raise and lower the vessels in each set of locks is obtained from Gatun Lake by gravity and poured into the locks through a main culvert system that extends under the locks’ chambers from the sidewalls and the center wall. Gatun Lake was created, and covers an area of 163 square miles, to supply the locks at both ends of the canal with water. The overall length of the canal is approximately 48 miles. The current locks are 110 feet wide. A third wider lane of locks is currently under construction and is due to open in 2015.
Vessels transiting the Panama Canal are charged dependent upon their size and weight. A typical private yacht would pay $1,000 to $2,000 for passage. A large commercial ship could pay $200,000 or higher! Even so, they save money by passing through the canal rather than going all the way around South America. By cutting through, they save two weeks of transit time and up to $1 million! Here’s a bit of trivia for you. Many years ago, the canal authorities charged a swimmer 36 cents to pass through.
It was early in the morning when we approached the entrance to the canal. The canal pilot boarded our ship followed by officials and inspectors. Shortly thereafter we were lining up for our approach to the Gatun Locks. It was warm and humid. Looking out over the jungle the air seemed so thick that we felt like we could cut it with a knife.
Tug
boats cruised along with us to ensure our position in lining up for the locks.
Crocodiles
and Cayman were active along the canal shoreline. Fresh water fish from Gatun
Lake get caught in the locks and then are flushed out each time locks open. When
they hit the salt water approach to the locks it shocks them. This makes them
easy prey for predators. In the following photo a small croc is cruising along
looking for breakfast.
Some
of the jungle trees were flowering. With the heat and humidity, coupled with
the 12-month growing season, the jungle canopy was dense.
We
slowly cruised along the approach for about a half hour before reaching the
first lock. At the lock we secured four “mules” for each end of the ship. They
guided us into the lock. We were surprised to learn that the mules don’t pull
ships through the locks. The ships use their own power to transit locks. The
mules keep the ships aligned within the locks. This is important, as most of
the large ships only have about a foot clearance from the side walls of the
locks.
Each mule has two cables attached to the ship. The mule drivers can tighten or release the cables as needed. There is a single Canal Official that boards a ship and radios instructions to the eight mule drivers controlling the ship’s position. It was a fascinating operation to watch. The mules themselves run on rack tracks with a broad 5-foot gauge to which they are geared. Traction is by electric power, supplied through a third rail laid below the surface. In the following photo you can see a mule, the driver, and the two cables going to the ship.
Each mule has two cables attached to the ship. The mule drivers can tighten or release the cables as needed. There is a single Canal Official that boards a ship and radios instructions to the eight mule drivers controlling the ship’s position. It was a fascinating operation to watch. The mules themselves run on rack tracks with a broad 5-foot gauge to which they are geared. Traction is by electric power, supplied through a third rail laid below the surface. In the following photo you can see a mule, the driver, and the two cables going to the ship.
For
a little more perspective the following photo was taken from our stateroom balcony
looking down at the two mules on the aft side of our ship. You can also see a
third mule on the return track going to pick up another ship.
In
this photo you can see a container ship preparing to enter the lock chamber on
the right. And, you can see that two mules on the port bow of the ship are hooked
to it. Note the incline the mules are climbing.
Looking
back in the following photo from the second lock you can see another ship in
the channel in the distance approaching the locks. The ship on the left is
waiting for the left lock chamber to drain and open. You can also see the front
mules attached to the container ship on the right as it enters the lock chamber.
Again, note the incline the mules have to climb between each lock. They climb
up the ramp as the tanker enters the lock, adjusting cable tension all the way.
Once the tanker is in the lock and the gates are closed the ship will start to
rise as the lock is flooded. The mules must adjust cable tension throughout
this process. The process is repeated for each lock chamber.
Here
we have entered the second lock chamber and the lock gates are closing behind
us. When the gates are closed the first lock chamber in our lane will be
drained allowing for the next ship to enter the first lock chamber.
This
is a mule making the climb between lock chambers.
In
this photo our ship is moving into the third lock chamber that will lift us up
to the level of Gatun Lake. The light in the tower on the right puts a beam out
towards the lake.
Here
is a closer shot of the light. As you can see the sun broke through the clouds
occasionally.
Now
we are moving into Gatun Lake. The two forward mules on our side of the ship have
retrieved their lines and one has already moved onto the return track to pick
up another ship. A tug boat is waiting to greet us on the lake.
It
is hard to grasp the size of this operation. Remember, each lock chamber is
110’ wide and 1,000’ in length. The canal never shuts down operating day and
night 365 days a year. Although we have been through many different locks in
different places, this one was unique in itself. It was an awesome experience.
Once safely into Gatun Lake a boat picked up the official canal personnel that had boarded our ship to assist in getting us through the locks.
Once safely into Gatun Lake a boat picked up the official canal personnel that had boarded our ship to assist in getting us through the locks.
On
the lake we could see numerous ships waiting in the que for their time slot to
go through the locks to the Caribbean Sea where we had just come from.
It
was also quite obvious that the weather was constantly changing as rain squalls
moved through the area during our brief visit. Talk about high humidity!!
How
many of you know what type of ships the two funny looking ones on the left in
the following photo are? They are both empty. Okay we won’t keep you guessing.
They are new automobile haulers. When full of automobiles they will be weighted
down to the water line.
Without
a doubt Gatun Lake is massive. The lake was created between 1907 and 1913 by
the building of Gatun Dam across the Charges River. At the time it was created,
Gatun Lake was the largest man-made lake in the world, and the dam was the
largest dam on earth. As the lake rose the water surrounded numerous mountains
resulting in jungle island habitats. Our next adventure will take us on a tour
through these beautiful islands in a small tour boat. We’ll share with you
these experiences in our next little blurb.
Until next time,
Dave & Barb
The Traveling Browns
Until next time,
Dave & Barb
The Traveling Browns