Day 6 - Panama Canal Transit

We got into the first of 3 parts of the Gatun Locks at around 8:45 am.  Very impressive lock system!  There was a Panama Canal guide on board who narrated the trip over the ship speaker system providing interesting information and background.  The ship is not identified as the Silver Whisper for the communication with the Canal staff.  It is called S16Zulu.  The "S" is designation for southbound.  The "16" is the number of the ship (even numbers for southbound).  The "Zulu" identifies it as a passenger ship.

Here are a few pictures.

The first is the entrance into the first part of the Gatun locks.

The next is a picture of the lock gates opening from the first part of the lock into the second.

The next is a picture of one of the "mules".  They are engines tethered to the ship which help guide it into the lock.  Our ship had 6 mules attached - 3 on each side.

After clearing the Gatun Locks we cruised across Gatun Lake en route to the Pedro Miguel Lock.  Here is a picture of Gatun Lake.

We are currently en route to the Miraflores Locks.  Stay tuned.....