19 April 2013; Panama Canal; Panama.

 Late evening we left the windy area behind and we had very quiet weather sailing towards Panama. The 140 year ball was a resounding success and with the hour back everybody could still get a goodnights sleep for the Panama transit. We had been ordered to be at the Cristobal breakwater at 0500 to line up in the convoy but somewhere a muddle must have occurred as at 3.30 we were advised to drop back and arrive 30 minutes later. I wished they had done that last night and I could have stayed in bed those 30 minutes longer. So we slowed down and I was going to fear that it was going to be a very long transit as a delay in lining up the convoy normally means that there is a slow boat in the convoy which holds everything back. In accordance with the new ETA I drifted at 05.30 through the breakwaters at Cristobal and then the whole clearance circus started. Boarding Agent, Ships agent, Fumigation officer, Panama Canal Technician, Ships Chandler, Narrator and eventually also the first Pilot. With him on the bridge we could slowly move towards the first locks. The other two pilots joined just before we entered those.

There was a certain amount of confusion going on among the schedulers of the canal but eventually we got our locking times. To my amazement while we were ordered to come in later, we were ordered to go through the locks earlier. I was all in favor of that. The faster we go through the canal the less speed I have to make on the other side. Shortly after the first locks the whole story came out. One ship destined for the North bound convoy was still at the anchorage at Balboa (most likely the money had not gone through) and a second ship, ahead of us was going to the Gatun Lake anchorage, waiting for orders. The rest of the ships in the northbound convoy were fairly fast ones and that meant that by 10 am the last one of that convoy had cleared Gamboa already. So the southbound convoy could sail through without much delay. Thus also S12Z (that was us) could sail through the canal with the considerable speed of 12 knots. That brought us to the Pedro Miguel locks as 11.20. Two hours ahead of schedule. Things were looking good.

Then in a bright moment of planning the Canal decided that a small yacht should go into the locks with us and in front of us. So I had to lay the ship against the centre wall and wait for this yacht to pass by. I had to repeat that same maneuver again in the last locks, the Miraflores. This time we had to wait for the container ship ahead of us to clear. She was kept at the locks because they were maneuvering some ships at Balboa harbor and they blocked the canal while doing so. As the pilot was not releasing the locomotives from that container ship, we could not move into the locks. Well, we could as I do not need the locomotives for that, but we were not allowed. There is a rule that says that all locomotives need to be made fast before a ship is more than 50% inside the locks. (That was a new one for me as well)

Those two waiting moments cost us some time and that meant we were not looking at a record transit that might have happened otherwise. Still we had a speedy transit today, as by 15.00 hrs we cleared the sea buoy at Balboa Roads. It does not deprive the guests from any Panama Canal time by going faster as the views remain the same. We can only save time while are going through Gatun Lake and if you do that with 13 knots instead of 6, then you save those two to three hours. Hence our early exit today.

The weather was nearly perfect today. Not much wind in the locks which helped my life and dry weather until we came to the last locks, when a little sprinkle came down. Normally the weather changes once past the continental divide and with the start of the rainy season on the door step, a good downpour could have been expected, but it was just a little bit. Tomorrow we have a full day at sea with a leisurely sail along the Coast of Panama and Costa Rica. Not much wind is expected until further up the coast when passing Nicaragua and Tehantepec.