Page 97 - The Rough Guide to Panama (Travel Guide)

The Panama Canal The Panama Canal and CenTral isThmus
GUNA YALA Darién Chepo Isla Contadora 10 0 kilometres San Miguel Isla del Rey The Panama Canal 95

DARIÉN HIGHWAY INTERAMERICANA A r c h i p i é l a g o d e l a s P e r l a s Isla San José The PANAMA CANAL, which runs between Panama City on the Pacific coast and Colón
on the Caribbean, or Atlantic side, is the country’s most recognizable landmark, crucial
to its economy and inextricably entwined with its historical and cultural development.
One of the world’s most important waterways, it has seen around fourteen thousand
every year, a figure which has the potential to double following the Canal’s recent
Cuango Cerro Hope (702m) Isla Pedro González vessels and more than three hundred million tonnes of cargo passing through its locks 2
ambitious expansion, which was inaugurated in 2016 (see box, p.303). A gargantuan
Miramar PANAMÁ P A CIFIC OCEAN feat of engineering, the original Panama Canal, completed in 1914, set the standards
for twentieth-century engineering. At $352 million it was the most expensive project
Costa Arriba Palenque Cerro Jefe (1007m) Tocumen International Airport Archipiélago de las Perlas (see inset) ever undertaken, with the world’s largest earthen dam creating the world’s largest
artificial lake. The most enormous locks ever built contained the greatest amount of
concrete ever used – just over three million cubic metres, the equivalent of sixty Empire
Viento Frío COLÓN Río Pequení PARQUE NACIONAL CHAGRES Río Chagres PN Chagres office Cerro Azul Bridge of the Americas State Buildings – and possessed the largest-ever swing doors. Statistics notwithstanding,

Nombre de Dios Río Nombre de Dios PANAMA CITY Amador Causeway TRANSITING THE CANAL
La Guaira Puerto Lindo Río Boquerón PARQUE NACIONAL CAMINO DE CRUCES Corozal Passenger Terminal (Panama Canal Railway Company) Balboa To fully appreciate the Canal, you need to see it up close. Things may not be quite as you’d
expect – the gargantuan Panamax vessels (the biggest ships the original locks could hold), and
Isla Grande Cerro Bruja (979m) Boquerón Lago Alajuela PN Chagres HQ Chilibre PN Soberanía Paraíso Cocolí Locks the even larger neopanamax, are manoeuvred with surprising delicacy, while the banks of this
vast commercial enterprise are lined with jungle and spotted with unspoilt islands. In a partial
transit, from the tip of the amador Causeway in Panama City to Gamboa (or vice versa), you
Cacique Nuevo Tonosí Portobelo PARQUE NACIONAL DE PORTOBELO Nuevo Vigía Canopy Tower Ecolodge Culebra Cut Arraiján Panamá Pacífico International Airport get to experience the excitement of passing under the impressive Bridge of the americas,
HQ
through the narrow Culebra Cut and being raised and lowered in the lock chambers of both
breathtaking scenery, crossing lago Gatún and weaving among tiny forested islands. You’ll glide
Río Río Gatún AUTOPISTA PANAMÁ COLÓN Gamboa Rainforest Resort Puente Centenario Pedro Miguel Locks Miraflores Locks miraflores and Pedro miguel locks. The full transit from Panama City to Colón takes in the most
Piedra TRANSISTHMIAN HIGHWAY TRANSÍSTMICA NACIONAL SOBERANÍA Rainforest Discovery Centre Gamboa PANAMÁ terminating in Colón, from where it can be up to a two-hour bus journey back to the capital.
past a silent stream of giant ships before passing through the enormous Gatún locks and
Costa Arriba María Chiquita Marine Research & Education Centre Sabanitas PARQUE Western Panama hours can often be a lot longer if you get caught up in one of the frequent log jams in Gatún
although completing a full transit might hold a certain cachet, the advertised eight to nine
CARIBBEAN SEA Isla Isla Galeta Galeta Colón Cristóbal Centro de Visitantes de Agua Clara Panama Canal Railway Isla Barro Colorado take a northbound trip, docking at around 1pm in Gamboa, you can skip the bus transfer back
locks. a partial transit provides enough excitement and interest for most people, and if you
Panama Canal
to the amador Causeway and enjoy a drink at the Gamboa Rainforest Resort (see p.101) before
Tigre
Isla
catching the public bus back to Panama City.
Agua Clara
The cheapest way to see the Canal is to get a job as a line-handler – a person who helps
Islas Brujas
Locks
keep the boat positioned in the locks; it’s a requirement for all transiting cruising vessels to
have four line-handlers. If you’re interested, check out Wpanlinehandler.com.
Gatún
Locks
Río Chagres Piña Gatún Dam Achiote Escobal Lago Gatún INFORMATION AND TOURS
The two companies listed below offer similar trips, charging $195 for the full crossing and $150
for the partial transit, which includes a transfer between the relevant marina on the amador
Fuerte San Lorenzo
Causeway and the boat, bilingual guided commentary, soft drinks, meals and snacks. In the tourist
N
THE PANAMA CANAL AND CENTRAL ISTHMUS HIGHLIGHTS Canal transit Canal locks Rainforest hiking Birdwatching in Soberanía Stay in an Emberá village Spanish colonial forts Archipiélago de las Perlas Costa Abajo Boca del Río Indio COLÓN Miguel de la Borda Río Lagarto Cuipo
season (Dec–april) there are frequent transits and boats can be very crowded; out of season there
are fewer, with a full crossing often only once a month. Various other tour operators offer Canal
given below are subject to change and will need to be confirmed the day before.
Panama Marine Adventures T226 8917,
Canal and Bay Tours T209 2009, Wcanaland
Wpmatours.net. Panama Marine Adventures caters
baytours.com. Two larger craft are used for full transits,
predominantly to foreign tourists. Southbound
while the partial transit sometimes employs the
smaller Isla Morada, a 1912 wooden vessel said to have
partial transits usually leave from the Flamenco
Marina at 9.30am (starting with a bus journey to
been owned by Al Capone. A partial night transit tour is
also available. All tours leave from La Playita, Isla Naos,
Gamboa); northbound partial transits and full
at 8am, and most are northbound; contact the office for
transits usually leave at 7.30am.
dates of the occasional southbound partial transit.
Río Miguel de la Borda
0
Coclé del Norte (30km)
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