‘We’re really going to fit through there?’ – that’s what was on the mind of every passenger aboard the ship. This was back in 1995 – not an iPad, iPhone or digital camera in sight. At the time, this cruise ship was one of the largest vessels that could fit through the canal – and it was truly a feat of engineering to witness. The entire process took almost a full day, with a Canal Pilot boarding the ship to assist, and key events announced to passengers over the speaker system.
The process of going through the canal is fascinating – check out the graphic below – and you can read more about it here. We did the trip in reverse order from what’s shown here.
We arrived at the Miraflores Locks around 8:30 am and cleared them in about an hour – we then cleared the Pedro Miguel Locks in about 45 minutes. You could feel and see the 100,000+ ton ship rising and lowering as we cleared the various locks.
It was even exciting for the crew, who gathered for a front-row seat.
There were maybe a few mere feet of space between the side of the ship and the canal – a tight squeeze!
Once we got through the first sets of locks, we navigated the Gaillard Cut into Gatun Lake, getting to the Gatun Locks around 1:30 pm and clearing those in about 90 minutes. After that, we were able to leave the narrows behind and continue sailing to Columbia. This 50-mile canal saved us approximately 8,000 miles of sailing time around South America. One of the more unique things I’ve experienced to date! And the cocktail of the day aboard ship? Panama Mule Punch!
