2017

We cruised from Florida to Vancouver for about 3 weeks via the Panama Canal. For this Engineer the Canal was the highlight of the trip.

The Original Panama Canal has a series of 3 sets of locks that raise ships 85 feet and lowers them again as they cross Panama between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The canal was opened in 1914 and is an incredible feat of engineering. Water is gravity fed between the central lakes, the locks themselves and out to the oceans. Although there is a new set of locks that are wider to accommodate todays larger ships, we were lucky enough to pass threw the old locks. The lock chambers are 110 feet wide and our ship was 106 feet wide. Control of side to side movement and braking is provided by electric powered “Mules” that run on cog rails along the edge of the lock chambers.