Mirafloras Locks

Day 8 of 15 Panama Canal…Our Fascinating Crossing of the Panama Canal, from the Atlantic to the Pacific

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Friday April 28, 2023

Day 8 of 15…..Welcome to the Panama Canal. The whole purpose of the trip. Traveling from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean, going through 3 sets of locks.

Arrival 6am……..Departure 6pm.

PANAMA CANAL SCHEDULE

Gatun Locks ……6am

Pedro Miguel Locks…..1:30pm

Miraflores Locks……3pm

Finally, the day has come….. Traveling through the Panama Canal on our ship “Radiance of the Seas”. We have been waiting for this a long time. We have been waiting over nite in the Limon Bay area that is the holding area for all ships ready to travel through. First the tolls must be paid before they can proceed. The information we received was that our ships tolls for passing through were over $400,000. Yes, that right, “Four Hundred Thousand Dollars”….. Wow, lots of money. The fees are figured according to the type of ship it is. For Cruise ships, it is figured by length, width, draft of the ship (feet below water) and count of passengers and crew. Also, there are other charges, namely how many mules that are used. They are attached to each side of the ship to guide it through. Those are just a few of the charges that I remember. Now the commercial ships are charged differently as they have cargo. Every ship has a different formula set by the Panama Canal Authority. We started cruising toward the mouth of the Canal. Ahead of us was the first of 3 bridges that cross the canal. t is

The Atlantic Bridge crossing the Panama Canal on the Atlantic side entrance..

It is the Atlantic Bridge. It is the newest bridge finished in 2019. It is 4 lanes carrying traffic pedestrians and bicycles. Right after entering the channel, the canal splits in two. In 2016 another lock system was finished to serve the larger ships. It is called the Panama Expansion Project. We are now approaching the Gatun Locks. This will be a series of 3 locks stepping up. In total the locks will be lifting us up 85 feet to cross Panama and then lowering us at the other end to the Pacific side.

Gatun Locks in the Distance
Looking Back at the mouth of the Canal with the Atlantic Bridge crossing over. A ship has crossed from the Pacific and is entering the Atlantic. So impressive.
The Pilot Boat coming up along side us.

We now will be entering the locks. There are 2 locks side by side. Traffic is going each way, just like a road. As we enter, the Mules will be attached by very heavy cables. They will attach 2 mules on each corner of the ship Totaling 8 all together. They are used to control side by side movement and breaking control. The ship engines will actually be the power to pull the ship through.

The mules, coming to attach to our ship.
The doors are closed, and the water has risen. You can see the Mules double set of rails on each side. as well as how much higher we are now.
We are now through the 1st set if locks, the Gatun Locks.

The Mules are mini locomotives on broad gauge railroad tracks. They travel the entire length of the locks. At the end, they detach the cables, and the track turns and runs alongside the 1st set all the way back to the starting point at the other end. We had to wait a little bit for the first lock to lower its water level to our height. The water in the locks work by gravity. I still haven’t totally figured it out. Soon the huge gates open and we slowly enter. The gates close and the water starts to come in and raises us. When we reach the level to equal to lock #2, the doors open and we proceeded to the 2nd level, Then the same thing for the 3rd level. We have now risen 85 ft.

We are now up on Gatun Lake. It is a beautiful cruise with small mountains and forests all around. We passed the dam. Gatun Lake is manmade. Instead of cutting the mountains all the way down, they had decided it would be easier to flood the area with this manmade lake and install the locks to raise the ships the 85 ft and then lower them back down at the other end by another series of locks.

The Gatun Dam, formed to make the lake.
The Panama Canal Authority kept a close watch on us.

We cruised on for quite a while among the beautiful mountains and rolling hills. It was so beautiful and unspoiled by civilization. The water was a beautiful blue. Finally, we approached an area that had been blasted out. Then we went under the 2nd of the 3 bridges we cross under.

These areas were blasted away to allow this channel to be built.
Centennial Bridge, opened in 2004

The Centennial Bridge was built to take the major portion of the traffic away from the Pan American highway. We will go under that bridge that carry’s that highway after the next set of Locks. This bridge is 6 lanes wide. We are now heading to the Pedro Miguel Locks. As we approached, you could see the large ships that have been crossing on the new canal next to us. It was opened in 2016 and was called the Panama Canal Expansion Project. The canal is wider and deeper, the locks are also wider, longer and deeper. This canal accommodates the newer larger ships that are being built today.

A ship in the Panama Canal Expansion Canal.
The Pedro Miguel Locks….

We have entered the Pedro Miguel Locks now. This has only 1 lock. We will now begin our decent to reach the level of the Pacific Ocean. The descent in this lock will only be 31 ft.

This is where we sat most of the day. It is the very back of the ship. The Windjammer Buffet is right next to it. We can fill our plates and come out her to eat. THE BEST SEATS IN TOWN
Pedro Miguel Locks in the background, entering Miraflores Locks
We have entered the first lock. The water level was lowered to match the next lock. The doors opened and we are entering the next level. Notice double lock doors, not only are they a safety factor, but also if 1 set needs repair the 2nd set is all they need.
Their is not much space, the mules travel right in front of the doors.
We are in the 2nd lock. Notice the lock doors are the only “sidewalks” to the other side. When a door is going to open. A bell rings and then the rails fold down automatically against the doors.
We are now in the second lock. We are lowering to meet the Pacific Level. Notice the ship in the background. He has just entered.
IMAX Theater that we visited the day before. This is the backside.

As we were going through the Miraflores Locks, I looked to the right and recognized the Imax Theater that we had been to the day before on the bus trip. We weren’t told about the viewing area. We were taken in the front and out the front. I was excited to see this side, so I took a picture of the building and the viewing area with all the tourists. Several days later I was looking at Google Maps. I always like to put things into perspective on the map. I found the Imax and clicked on it……..Lo and Behold, there was a picture of the back of our boat going through the locks. While I took one of them, they were taking one of me……..Who could it be, We will never know. It could have been a local or anyone who was on a vacation from anywhere in the world really. I’m so glad they posted it on Maps. But I surely love it. I was standing at that railing near the top. That is part of the open dining area that we sat at most of the day.

Our ship, “The Radiance of the Seas” passing through Miraflores Lock. Taken by a Vistor from the Imax viewing center. Found this on Google Maps several days later when clicking on the Miraflores Locks. Now how ironic and amazing is that.
Leaving Miraflores Locks. The Mules have unhooked at this point. Notice the channel opens up larger, the Mules follow around a circle here and head back to the other end of the Locks.

We have now left the last lock. Miraflores consists of 2 locks. The first on lowers you 54 ft. The second lock can lower the ship anywhere from 31ft to 64.5 depending on the tides. Pacific have much more extreme tides than the Atlantic has. We are now heading out to the deep sea of the Pacific. We have spent most of the day on the back open lunch area. It has been amazing. The perfect place to see this all unfold before us. It felt like we were part of something phenomenal. We love this boat for this reason. Such beautiful views any time of the day or evening. If your hungry the Windjammer Buffet is open just steps away. So so Grand. Living like a King and Queen.

Passing under the last Bridge. “The Bridge of the Americas” Completed in 1962.
Panama City in the background…..In the fog…..Like a Mystery
Heading out to the deep sea of the Pacific. We passed many ships anchored waiting their turn to cross to the Atlantic.

We have completed our trip through the Panama Canal. What a Wonderful Day it has been. Evening is fast approaching. We will of course eat another meal and see Conmelia and Shane again. We will check out what is happening in the Centrum for Entertainment, and finally find our way to bed. Much to our Surprise, Conmelia had a Surprise for us. She put it in a take-out container. No one could see because this was their private stash for the workers. We were never served Grapes and Strawberries. We sort of feel like royalty. Now we have two days at sea to enjoy the ship and rest up for our next adventure. On day 11 we will arrive a Huatulco Mexico. This will be another eventful Adventure. So now we are cruising North on the Pacific side……..This is AMAZING……GOOD NITE ALL…..