Canal Tidbits

[BillB48]

Wow, over two months and nary a single post about the Canal... guess there have been other things on peoples minds and cruising was not at the forefront😉.  Although this is anecdotal, every time I happen to look at one of the Canal's webcams it just seemed to me that I wasn't seeing as many ships, however I really didn't try to investigate if what I was seeing was correct.  Turns out my suspicions were correct.  WBUR, Boston reported the Canal's administrator Ricaurte Vasquez said that in January there were around 40 transits per day and presently the daily transits have been only around 25 per day. 

 

I am sure than those of you who have transited the Canal remember seeing the bridge over the Chagres River at Gamboa.  This is the point where the Chagres enters the Canal which is just about halfway through the Canal.  The Bridge was constructed in 1911 at first as a railroad bridge and later a single lane was added for vehicles.  On Tuesday this week (Jun. 24) the bulk carrier Bluebill (656x78) was transiting northbound (Pac to Atl), as she was exiting Gaillard (Culebra) Cut the vessel veered to starboard and took out  a section of the bridge just north of the main span.  At this time there was no word as to the cause.  I have heard through the coconut telegraph the rudder stuck at 20deg starboard, that of course very unofficial, unconfirmed etc.  AIS still has the Bluebill at the Gamboa moorings

 

[CruiserBruce]

Oooopppssss....

[CCWineLover]

Wow!

We had planned to transit the canal on a cruise this December, Miami to Los Angeles, but given the surge in COVID-19 in Florida and California, combined with various quarantines starting to be imposed, we doubt that trip will happen this year. 

Someday in the future - 2022?  2023?  -  we hope to see the canal.  It's still on the bucket list!

Nice pictures.

[Essiesmom]

There's still a bit of activity.  Disney Wonder transitted...   The last couple of days Carnival lines ships have been shuttling tenders into Amador.  Oosterdam, Koningsdam, Grand and Star Princess, Seabourn Sojourn.  They have now taken their poaces back in the anchorage, and Imagination and Inspiration have taken their places.  Miracle is on her way back from Cabo, and Regent Seven Seas Splendor is headed there, too.  EM

[PromenadeDeckWriter]

I finally finished my journal on the HAL board about my Panama Canal transit experiences as a Deafblind passenger. (Three years late but it's done, all 25,000 words of it. But it's there now.)

[BenjiRodney]

We booked a partial canal transit for April 2023 from the Atlantic Side.

[poffles]

On 7/26/2020 at 1:41 PM, PromenadeDeckWriter said:

I finally finished my journal on the HAL board about my Panama Canal transit experiences as a Deafblind passenger. (Three years late but it's done, all 25,000 words of it. But it's there now.)

 

Is 'there' somewhere we can read or is this a personal journal?

[Essiesmom]

1 hour ago, poffles said:

 

Is 'there' somewhere we can read or is this a personal journal?

It's here, on the HAL (Holland America) board:

 

 

[PromenadeDeckWriter]

1 hour ago, Essiesmom said:

It's here, on the HAL (Holland America) board:

 

Thank you for doing that faster than I! 🙂

[BillB48]

Just to close the loop on the damage to the Chagres River Bridge at Gamboa in June... the first video is a portion of the repairs followed by a test run of the first train across since the accident in the second video.  The new span was installed a few days ago.

 

As an aside, the crane in the first video is the Panama Canal Crane Titan.  The Titan started her career with the Kriegsmarine in 1941.  In 1946 she began service with the US Navy and those of you familiar with Long Beach Naval Ship Yard would probably remember "Herman the German" officially known as YD-171.  She was acquired by the Canal in 1994 when Long Beach Shipyard closed and has been known as the Titan since she arrived at the Canal.

 

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[ski ww]

Thanks for posting I have not been watching the canal activities for a long time. 

[Essiesmom]

Unfortunately the cams have been down for a couple of weeks, and we have missed a few transits...  EM

[FionaMG]

I have just started dipping into this forum since DH and I are planning a bucket list Panama Canal cruise for our 35th anniversary in December 2022. He sailed through the canal a number of times back in his younger days as a crew member on the old Sitmar line but I have never been.

 

I am really hoping that Covid will have disappeared sufficiently from the map by that time for our cruise to actually happen.

 

In the meantime and taking up a suggestion I found on here, I arranged for Santa to bring me a copy of David McCullough's The Path Between the Seas for Christmas. I wasn't expecting it to be quite such a hefty tome but I am really looking forward to getting stuck into it. :)

[BillB48]

Stick with it, a good read!

[Essiesmom]

I read it cover to cover, but I sure wish there was a Cliff Notes version...  EM

[BillB48]

On 12/16/2020 at 9:46 AM, Essiesmom said:

Unfortunately the cams have been down for a couple of weeks, and we have missed a few transits...  EM

 

As of this AM they are all back up.

 

[Essiesmom]

They are not coming up for me on Chrome or Edge.  Haven't yet tried my ipad.  EM

 

Correction:  I am now getting them on Edge.  EM

Edited January 7, 2021 by Essiesmom