Panama Canal
Jessica and students:
We settled on Gnomad for the gnome's name.
He is settling in aboard Carina (see photo with our
binnacle compass and the turk's head of the steering wheel). He decided to
check the position of Carina on the GPS (see photo of
Gnomad
and GPS). This position is our anchorage, called La Playita, at the
very end of the Panama Canal at Flamenco Island just below Flamenco Signal
Station and lighthouse where the Panama Canal authority overlooks and directs
the dozens of deep draft vessels - container ships, car carriers, "reefer" or
refrigerated ships carrying fruits and veggies, etc. that come and go each day
transiting the canal.
The Panama Canal connects the Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean. The
official site is:
http://www.pancanal.com/eng/index.html
There are webcams on this site which allow you to watch the vessel traffic in
the locks.
http://www.pancanal.com/eng/multimedia/index.html
The last photo (click
here) is taken with us aboard a sailboat (Zephyrus) that is moored at the
Balboa Yacht Club. Balboa was the first European to discover the Pacific by
crossing the isthmus of Panama. Behind us is the Bridge of the Americas which
crosses the Panama Canal just south of the Miraflores Locks, connecting North
America to South America. (Gnomad is in South America.)
Best regards,
Captain Philip and (Admiral) Leslie with Jake the cat
SV Carina
La Playita, Panamá City, Republic of Panamá