Panama Canal and Barro Colorado Island, Panama
Long before anyone thought of building a path between the seas, Panama was already the crossroads of the western hemisphere: goods from then-exotic places passed across the narrow isthmus. Our Middle American adventure began last night right here, in that same isthmus. Fifty miles in length, from the deep waters of the Atlantic to the deeper waters of the Pacific, the canal has an average of 14,000 vessels transit each year. We crossed the Gatun locks, entered Gatun Lake and headed towards the “Barro Colorado Nature Monument”.
Early this morning we were split into groups to visit the biological station owned by the Smithsonian Institute in Panama. Also known as “BCI”, Barro Colorado Island is one of the most intensively studied areas in the tropics. Walking through its trails or taking a Zodiac ride along its shore, gave us the opportunity to discover the wonders of the tropical rain forest. Led through the network of trails on the island by expert guides and researchers who were more than happy to share their expertise and knowledge with us, we were rewarded with sightings of howler monkeys, white–throated capuchin monkeys, agoutis, coatis, and wonderful and unknown species of plants and birds. At the same time our senses were overwhelmed with new sounds, smells and odors.
Back on board we got great views of huge and small ships crossing the canal, they seemed to come out of the forest into the open waters of the channel. Later this afternoon we moved towards the Pacific end of the Panama Canal. Across Culebra Cut or Gaillard Cut into the Pedro Miguel and Miraflores locks, we ended our transit of one of the wonders of the modern world: the Panama Canal.
Long before anyone thought of building a path between the seas, Panama was already the crossroads of the western hemisphere: goods from then-exotic places passed across the narrow isthmus. Our Middle American adventure began last night right here, in that same isthmus. Fifty miles in length, from the deep waters of the Atlantic to the deeper waters of the Pacific, the canal has an average of 14,000 vessels transit each year. We crossed the Gatun locks, entered Gatun Lake and headed towards the “Barro Colorado Nature Monument”.
Early this morning we were split into groups to visit the biological station owned by the Smithsonian Institute in Panama. Also known as “BCI”, Barro Colorado Island is one of the most intensively studied areas in the tropics. Walking through its trails or taking a Zodiac ride along its shore, gave us the opportunity to discover the wonders of the tropical rain forest. Led through the network of trails on the island by expert guides and researchers who were more than happy to share their expertise and knowledge with us, we were rewarded with sightings of howler monkeys, white–throated capuchin monkeys, agoutis, coatis, and wonderful and unknown species of plants and birds. At the same time our senses were overwhelmed with new sounds, smells and odors.
Back on board we got great views of huge and small ships crossing the canal, they seemed to come out of the forest into the open waters of the channel. Later this afternoon we moved towards the Pacific end of the Panama Canal. Across Culebra Cut or Gaillard Cut into the Pedro Miguel and Miraflores locks, we ended our transit of one of the wonders of the modern world: the Panama Canal.
