Voyage 2007-2008: Chapter 4

The crew of SV Jule III were asked to help Wolfgang and Denise of SV Moony in their transit of the Panama Canal. We were excited and a bit worried. Ann's health was still bouncing around a bit, but she wanted to go and so got a flight through Expedia. Our departure date was dependent on Moony's transit date which is a story in itself. First Denise made a call to the admeasurements people to get Moony measured. They were then given a piece of paper to take to the bank and paid a bunch of money (in USD). The bank then contacted the ACP (Canal people) and Denise then called to get a date. Our date was 22 March.

We arrived in Panama City on 20 March and saw the friendly faces of Denise and Wolfgang waiting for us. They arranged the cab ride to the bus station (a very crowded bus station due to Semana Santa) and then the trip to Colon. The ride was pleasant but a little like 'Romancing the Stone'. The lady next to us was taking care of a loro (baby parrot). The loro had no feathers but still was cute. We had a little difficulty telling the bus driver where we wanted to go but when Wolfgang said "Panama Canal Yacht Club", he understood. Wolfgang and Denise spent a bunch of time reconfiguring Moony so that we would be comfortable for the next seven days. They succeeded!

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21 Mar 2008, Transiting the Panama Canal: Checking Out Colon, 09 20.948 N/ 079 54.195 W

Today is Good Friday and everything is closed. However, We were lucky enough to find Joesph, a local cab driver, who gave us the grand tour of Colon and the surrounding area. Joesph cautioned us not to walk the streets by ourselves as much of Central America is terrorized by teen gangs. He told us of an Australian that was shot less than than 0.5 km from the Yacht Club. Many parts of Colon are quite run down. Joseph indicates that this area is quite profitable for the Country but little of it finds its way back to Colon.

One of the points of interest was the local prison. The picture does not do it justice! It looks like a really bad place. He indicated that it was the responsibility of the family to feed the inmates. No family, no food? Who knows. Then, Joseph took us to Shelter Harbor where the latest Jame Bond movie was being filmed. We did not see 007 but we saw a lot of stunt setups. We heard that all of the cruisers in the harbor were offered USD 100 per day to stay at anchor for the filming. Many cruisers made $ 1,400-1,700 for this engagement.

Next we headed for the Panama Canal at the Gatun locks. A Panamax (ship with one or more maximum dimensions [length, breadth, draft] for the canal) cruise ship was transiting North as we visited the Visitor's Center. It was amazing to see see this behemoth drop 30 meters in such a short distance. It was quite a show. They had an announcer talking to the folks on the cruise ship. Most talked back. a few were too shy. We will be going through these locks in a couple of days. Not bad.

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23 Mar 2008, Transiting the Panama Canal: Heading for Gatun Locks, 09 15.446 N/ 079 54.032 W

We are ready! It is time to say goodbye to the Panama Yacht Club and head for the anchorage at the 'flats'. The marina was basic but comfortable and had the uncanny ability accommodate cruisers looking for a slip. The restaurant and bar were great as the booze was cheap and the food was good. However, the incinerator was close by so we often got black goop on the boat each morning.

Moony is ready decorated with her tires, fenders, and brave crew. Wolfgang and Bob worked the long 1" lines so that they would not bind during the line handling. Now we know why Wolfgang carries those two big spools of rope around. The trip to the 'flats' took about 10 minutes but we were worried. The day before Wolfgang, Bob, and Ann took the dinghy to the 'flats' and had to avoid a sunken sailboat. Today there was no sign of the boat and we did not remember its location. No bumps. That is a good thing.

We had to anchor to wait for the adviser and also to wait for our last linesman, Ike. He was the skipper of a British boat (sorry, but I forgot the name) and volunteered to help us transit the Canal. He arrived about 5 minutes after we dropped the hook. We had met Ike a couple of times at the restaurant and he seemed like a nice guy. He would go through the Canal in a couple of weeks so this transit would be good practice.

Here comes the Adviser! The pilot boat is more accustomed to transfer pilots on large vessels so we were a bit concerned that they might bump into us. No worries. The boats didn't even touch. Not bad. Denise and Ann were down below cooking for Moony's large crew which had now grown to 6. Quite a few for a 37' sailing vessel.

We were lucky. Our Adviser, Orlando, was experienced with small vessels and commanded respect from his peers. Our transit through the Gatun locks was scheduled for 1900, then 2000, then 1940. Finally we were directed to head for the first chamber. A small freighter, a 70' ketch, and Moony rafted with a 40' Hunter named Compass Rose. 'Our' freighter was having problems and requested a second tug so we had to heave to . The freighter behind us was not happy and was getting closer and closer. He finally blasted the danger signal at us. It appeared we were going to be the 'meat' in a ship sandwich.. Orlando became annoyed and directed the other freighter to stop headway and wiat his turn. It worked.

Sadly, we have no pictures of the locking as it was very dark while we transited the three chambers. A little 'oops' by Bob was quickly corrected by more manpower on the line. The 70' ketch was also struggling. An of course, it started to rain a lot. After the first 'oops', everything went like clockwork. We left the Gatun locks around 2130 and headed for the mooring balls for small vessels. When we arrived, we found the mooring to be 8' in diameter. We were directed to tie the springs to the mooring and tie the bows and sterns of the boats together. Actually worked pretty well.

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