Panama Canal Miraflores Timelapse

One of the interesting sites in Central America is the the Panama Canal one of the greatest engineering marvels in the world. At 50 miles long from the Atlantic to the Pacific, it is cut through the most narrow and least elevated section along continental divide that runs from Canada to Patagonia. The locks raise the ships 315 feet so they can cross the man made Lake Gatun before they are dropped back down on the other side of the continent. A staggering 52 million gallons of fresh water is released to the ocean with the passage of each ship. The Miraflores locks are the closest to Panama city and have an excellent museum and observation deck from which to appreciate the process.

The average toll through the Canal, which depends upon the weight, is $65,000 USD. The highest paid was by a Maersk container ship at $250,000 USD in 2006, and lowest was by swimmer Richard Halliburton at 0.36 cents when he swam it in 1928. In 2008, 309.6 million tons of shipping moved through the canal.

For me it was a great visit after sailing in the merchant marine for 5 years and never having passed through these locks. We travel here during our honeymoon in January 2007.

Category:

Travel & Events

Tags:

• Panama
• Canal
• Miraflores
• timelapse
• central
• america
• ships
• locks
• Lake
• Gatun
• wonder
• 8th
• engineering
• marvel

[eurodestination]

Fascinating