The Real Panama Canal: What Tourists Don't See!

when you sail around the world you face two big decisions go around Cape Horn and Cape a good hope or go through the Suez and Panama Canal the trade-off is simple sail around the bottom of Africa and South America and endure thousands of additional miles and boat breaking conditions or go through the Sue and Panama Canal pay with your pocketbook but save time and avoid the wrath of Mother Nature we've tackled the Capa Good Hope but this time we're taking on the Panama Canal with a Twist to go through the Panama Canal you actually need five people on board you need four line handlers and one driver and what we decided to do which we are so excited about is put it out to our patrons and luckily we got this huge response from patrons of people that actually would like to come down and go through the P now how does it feel you know what what occurs to me this is almost 110 years old it's insane you feeling confident Monica and Peter and my mom are the three crew that are going to be coming down to help through the Panama Canal and we are just so stoked how did that go for you as it's always a little hectic that was a little insane it's all good you did a great job at the hell you mean when you're in full reverse and the boat's not stopping I just stood by to watch everybody scramble so I mean when I'm in full reverse and the other boats in full forward I'm like what's going on we're doing four nons into these logs ah we're all laughing that's all all that matters I think I'm Ben that's Ashley together we did the unimaginable we sold everything and then set up on a mission to sail around the world civilization see you later fishing competition man I think I win this is going to be awesome after 38 countries over 40,000 nautical miles and welcoming two kids along the way we are on our second lap around the world it's definitely harder cruising with kids but it's really rewarding and it's been a lot of fun having them along for the ride that's what this is all about meeting people seeing beautiful places and the Beautiful world that we live in subscribe to follow the adventure as we live a life at Sea I have no idea what's going to happen [Music] we can go inside guys so let's go see where it goes roll something in wow yeah you're right yes people have harvested the wi this is a story that begins in the Panamanian jungle a place that has long been forgotten yet holds a key piece of History to the Panama Canal abandoned bunkers barracks and armories are hidden amongst the jungle a near sight now but a place ones bustling with activity preparing for war the Cold War one of the Army Post that protects that narrow channel which connects the Atlantic and paic B oce you can almost hear The Echoes of military orders filling the Halls a vivid reminder of a time when the threat of global conflict loomed large it's like I don't even know what that's for like a shoot for either people to go up and down so those tunnels they apparently go all the way down the ocean these are old batteries and they're really really fun to kind of like poke around and explore it's smack dab in a jungle about 10 minutes walk from Shelter Bay Marina 5 it's really close it's pretty cool and there's usually like Hower monkeys and other monkeys around we haven't found them yet but we've heard them the smoke pots are fired up they're a key part of any plan for the defense of the canal great clouds of smoke bow out in a protective cloak to hide the vital Waterway the pots are positioned to completely obscure the canal no matter which direction the wind blows everyone's pretty intrigued by these uh Old World War II things this is uh battery Stanley I don't know when the Americans pulled out of Panama but huge batteries uh that used to house I assume ammunition to protect this side of the canal [Music] yeah we'll go check out the barracks later there was a huge Barracks here what do you think booty those are called leaf cutter ants don't stand in their path okay buddy [Music] you it's amazing how this place has been abandoned and just kind of fallen into neglect I mean I don't know when it was been I'm guessing like 20 years ago yeah we're walking in the uh empty Barracks out here at I think it's called Fort Sherman right near Shelter Bay Marina and there's so much cool stuff never mind the fact that we're in a jungle and we saw some guinea pig thing and some other like raccoon and eater thing and there's monkeys all around and parrots and birds and gosh knows what it's beautiful there's also like an abandoned armor base and an abandoned bus station uh basketball here pretty wild so these were the old Barracks where they would House people um it's pretty wild it's like why would there be a trail through the top level of this house anyone have any ideas and then it goes and ends here where is this Trail about huh maybe maybe bats or something hey maybe some kind of bird so let's smash this sink everything's just kind of falling down this place gives me the E GBS you know I'm sure there's no one here but there's a lot of these buildings and there's uh there's a little bit security of the gate but other than that there's no security pretty crazy place you can that' be great movie Set that' be for sure hey good morning Mr Ben yes now you have a pileup time tomorrow 4:00 a.m. in the morning call christobal signal Channel 12 um by 6:00 in the morning yes you guys patrons you are amazing look at what Peter brought for us I think there might be a toilet seat in here what's in there Ben this is what we're most excited about what is it guys a toilet a toilet seat it broke on the last passage right man those are the most expensive annoying toilet seats in the world what else do we got waa we are a little low on fridge space for the Pacific frosting which going to take 30 days so room and a new seat for our table so we're going to put vegetables and fruits in here I think it'll be good for a seat too right yeah it'll be perfect the seat will go because bu's old enough and then oh Willa is that the color you picked out yeah you like jacket but how you Hing on yeah hey on something there's some bonus material in here guys oh [Music] syrup okay I'll tell you a fun fact I cook with it I bake with it it goes in salad dressings it goes on kids stuff oatmeal everything we go through about one of these every few weeks we're having morning bowling lessons what we're doing is we're tying Bowlings and what's going to happen they're going to throw us um monkey fist like a light line then we tie a bowling to this bowling which will hold our boat and then they'll pull this rope back up the locks and then they'll tie us off so that's why we need to learn Bowlings today you guys got it no pressure's on got an hour I'll hold the tree you pull on the rabbit there we go you see it yeah I do that's the loop right there and there's and then I put the monkey's head through here yeah that's right what does it need to be this big I guess yeah so are you ready Ben yeah I think I'm ready we've we've reefed the crew we've explained everything that we did wrong last time probably do some things wrong this time but yeah we're ready let's go we're [Music] late you're [Music] clear we got a dedicated film today we have Peter behind the camera Monica up here she's a c photographer and uh I guess what are we [Music] directors as we head towards the canal we're waiting for our pilot this expert knows the locks inside and out they help our mly crew with line handling and making sure we don't smash into the lock walls the pilot also coordinates with authorities to schedule our passage it's all part of a really well choreographed dance to fit as many ships through the canal as possible good morning everyone good morning sir I'm Ben Ben I'm Carlos Carlos Ashley my wife Ashley meet you nice to meet you Peter Peter to meet nice to meet you Hi man where are you from guys Canada Canada time here uh second time second time yeah what about through the can second time second time oh great so you're familiar with the Cano ah a long time ago ah a long time ago so we're going to tie up our ropes so that one there is the one going in the middle okay so he's going to be leading my coworker is going to let us know if he needs some assistance they're going to ask it I give it to you and you operate if you missed it that was a key piece of information the pilot is informing me of the chain of command he coordinates with his colleagues and in turn communicates that to me for all intents and purposes the pilot takes over the navigation and the maneuvering within the canal to ensure a smooth and safe passage uh nor five good morning okay we have Thea Striker so we got our adviser this is Carlos he's one of the best in the industry he tells me and he's going to actually help us through the canal how many times have you been through the canal several times now several you're humble no no but I mean hundreds of times when I was in observation I did many many transits because I really wanted to get the experience yeah to to learn really how to lead and guide the group and that's what is all Carlos just told us we're going to WRA up with the monal in the middle we're going to be on the starboard side of the raft I'll be here to help with whatever okay yeah so we try to do it safely we to don't have any problems but it's okay always to have a fender ready just in case handy put it against the wall or something yeah it's not going to happen but just in case okay so we'll get things more or less ready I'm going to take off our black lines cuz we don't need them they do lines yeah get just tidy up the last couple things get ready I'm going to get a hat first though cuz even though it's cloudy today I'm going to get fried what's happening Willa we going under the bridge are we going under that big bridge yeah going to it I hope not this is a very big bridge we're not even going to touch it look at how high it is Willa yeah wow hey under right under the bridge no [Music] problem we for this a thin sliver of water which separates the great land masses of the western hemisphere is one of America's most important outposts the Panama Canal something that many people don't realize is that the panma canal is not so much a canal but a lake 85 ft above sea level the French had initially tried to replicate canals like the Suz which is literally a ditch at sea level but they failed as this is a fairly mountainous region of Panama and there's lots of landslides and rainfall it wasn't until the Americans came in 1904 that it was determined that the ditch wasn't so much needed instead a series of locks were devised to raise and lower ships to Lake gatun it worked very well by using the lake as the heart of the main reservoir a ship enters a lock the doors are closed and a valve is open to allow water from Lake katun to flow into the lower chamber with the ship inside the first lock the tower operator turns the switch which closes the 7ft thick Gates and fills the lock this process is driven entirely by gravity as the source water is at a higher elevation a few hours later after it's motored across the lake the opposite happens ship moved down through the locks as valves are opened and the lake water spills into the ocean emptying each lock in a controlled manner using this shortcut to many of the world's ports saves time and money for both the military establishment and Commercial trade operating the canal ships no longer needed to sale around Cape Horn the Savings in time distance and money were [Music] tremendous now we're just coming up entryway of the canal and in the meantime I am still practicing knocks how's it going nose and eyes we're good we're good we're just about to come in we've been told that we're going to wraft up with the monal and then we'll be an outside boat so kind of fun to be an outside boat you get to do something instead of being stuck in the middle but we may need to overnight on the lake and then do the rest of the transit tomorrow it's actually I think 30 m across the lake approximately so it takes about 5 6 [Music] hours so we are rafted up to three boats there's a monole in the middle as you can see and then another cataman we have line handlers in our side the Wall comes out quite a bit more on the port side here and uh we haven't sent our lines in so we've received our Monkey Fist and we just have the sending lines um I don't know what they're called just the skinny lines they throw we'll be sending our lines up there so probably as soon as these guys have hit the wall on the starboard side which is coming up quite a bit further in there's going to be three sets of boats in this one there's the main boat the main package then there's two tuck boats behind it and then there's us we're the lucky ones who get to tag along to the road pretty close on that side yeah exactly what occurs to me this is almost 110 years old it's insane it's in such great shape so much fun oh good even all the shouting and all the excitement how's it going over here Monica this is awesome this is my guy yeah Carlos Carlos has got our ship sorted thanks Carlos the start or the end of a circum navigation we're not quite sure it's kind of P little hary coming in it's blown it was blown 16 17 knots up the bum and the boat the raft was kind of like going side side side swerving all over the place lots of yelli now we're just pulling into the the next set of locks and I we'll be going up another I don't even know I need to figure out how much it is how high do we go up then uh 2.87 M there we go how much is he locks each lock I have no idea we'll Google it for you as we enter these lcks we can't help but think how lucky we are not many people get to go through the Panama Canal and here we are on our second time through we couldn't have dreamed of a life like this even if we tried thank you guys for watching as we go up we have to pull in these lines to take the slack out of them so that's what Peter is doing on the front that's what our adviser and Ashley's mom are doing in the back we are just moving into the very last log uh to get up to Gaton Lake after this we're out we're in Gaton Lake and then we just have to motor forever and kind of relax I'd say this is like the most stressful part until we get TI up uh once we're tied on it's easier to control but right now there's a lot of wind blowing us through the boats are twisting a lot as as a raft and it's a bit uh bit [Music] challenging okay [Music] are you guys need help put it put it down you can't put it down mom yeah you guys okay there oh yeah um I think we just got a p and that's it guys let's got you in link we've made it up into to the middle whoa whoa whoa W the raft is moving as a group still we've got three boats tied up together we're just exiting the locks together then we'll untie and we'll motor individually across the lake we'll stop and have some lunch because you know this isn't a bruise cruise but it is a food Cruise um across the lake I'm just kidding I'm not feeding these people it's been really good with this team we've had a good team going up and uh who knows who'll have going on the down so it all switches up there's a lot of Shifting and movements to get the maximum number of boats down to the other side in the [Music] Pacific the primary purpose of the Panama Canal is to move cargo sailing ships like ours rank way down the list and get bundled with Freighters that dominate the lcks as a result we were asked to spend the night tied to this Mooring designed for freighter thank you Carlos [Music] [Applause] at the film crew just just get the film crew the [Laughter] Bing yeah sir push from the [Music] toil without killing your foot oh that's tiny how many people can say that they slept in the Panama Canal we made it guys halfway half let's go show them where we are so this is home for tonight um yeah it's a beautiful little spot it's called I can't remember the name Gambino or something Gambon or gambo gambo so this is where they store all the dredging equipment for the entire Channel couldn't get a one day transit because the locks on the Pacific side had a tug a big tug in it and had a some sort of classification where it created too much prop wash for um sail bus to go behind it so we're chilling here tonight we're just having a beer uh down below and it it just feels good to be here I blew up a little piece of the water maker cuz I was cranking up the pressure which is as you do on a water maker and it was outputting so much water cuz we're making fresh water from fresh water that the output line of our water maker wasn't big enough uh that it the kids are doing fine anyways water maker is fixed and uh we're just raed up here it's about sun setting and it's kind of a cool little spot and tomorrow we go down this is how you make a 2-year-old be quiet good night guys everyone as you know we live on a sailboat and starlink has completely revolutionized Our Lives instead of rushing from Anchorage to Anchorage country to country port to port we can now chill in places like these which are incredible and we have blazing fast internet but the thing is you still get routed through countries that you don't always want to get routed through right now if I look online it's telling me that I'm in New Zealand but we're actually in fatua French poesia when we sailed across the Pacific in the last weeks our data was being routed through places like bagota Columbia that's where a VPN a virtual private Network comes in like Nord VPN you simply download it from the app store or the Google Play store and then you can choose what country you want to be routed through on top of that all of the data flowing from your computer or phone to the destination is encrypted no one can see it trust me I know we used to be in software a lot of go go but it it is actually true it actually does work so we we have a link down below that gets you an exclusive nordvpn deal which is an extra 4 months for free plus a 30-day money back guarantee there's literally no risk to try this out you will be a lot safer online with one click it's literally that simple try it out we're going to go to shore explore this beautiful spot and when we come back this video will be uploaded thank you nordvpn go check out that link it is a really good deal good morning from the middle of the Panama now we had an amazing sleep crocodile just cruised by uh this morning uh the big fighter continue to go by what happens here in the Panama Canal they go I guess it's Northbound um for part of the day and then the traffic switches and goes southbound there's actually a a bottleneck in the Panama Canal on the southern end and uh they have to organize the traffic so we're just waiting for that traffic to pass we'll get our pilot aboard and then we'll continue on we're really looking forward to being down on the Pacific side it has been it will be 20 over 24 hours that we've been actually doing this uh we're not going to be down on the other side till probably around 300 or 4:00 p.m. so it's it's a long couple days uh but it's been a really fun couple days and it was really nice to just chill on the lake today when you don't have anywhere to go and nothing to do and you're just waiting for your uh adviser to show up so these doors are the original doors they're 110 years old and there's not a single weld in those doors I said that at one point they welded I think in a patron update and I was I was corrected there is no welding in these they're all rivets all riveted no welding at all and it's 110 years old cannot believe it why is there no welding I don't know they didn't do that back then yes they didn't have welding come on they had to have some sort of welding Peter I'm not 100 sure which do you think they had welding 110 years old T years ago I have no idea you know what I think they would be hot rivet and I think it would probably all hand riveted yeah it is so if you can't if you can't hear Peter he said hot hot riveted hot riveted and they had monkeys that scooped the hot rivets that flung them to the people okay it's ail fools there are a lot of monkeys here but no um there's two locks we still have to go down they're just securing the ship behind us and once it's secured the water will start draining and we will be going like any second now just to give you guys an idea of how much water gets drained so this Lake behind me this lock gets drained into the Pacific Ocean it's way down there that's a lot of water something like 2,000 lers or no more than that gets drained out uh every time the locks get emptied and a ship gets put down same when a ship gets raised up that's a lot of water that gets wasted and Spilled into the Pacific Ocean now pull the line more more okay now [Music] pull SL the L SL the line L SL the line SL line quick I wanted to show you how we got everything set up we got Monica at the back here handling the a port side line and um this one's a really really important one because right now there's quite a bit of wind about 20 knots pushing us forward in this lck so it's holding us from kind of hitting the gates which we really don't want to do so this is a very important corner for us and then going forward we have all these fenders out the side but there's only two boats in the raft uh today going down so the fenders on this side have not come close to the wall and that's a good thing but they're there just in case we have we have floating fenders at the front so these fenders are just in case we get too close to a wall the raft pivots or we need an emergency situation even when you're docking it's not a terrible idea to have something that's kind of like a floating thing in case in case your uh Captain is poorly judged the distance or something yeah Captain Chaos Peter's been running the port forward line and he's doing an amazing job we have a lot of fenders here and we are very particular about our windows so we've marked our Windows if you have a cat around with Windows it's a good idea just to mark them uh so it's easy to communicate with the boat you're wrapped enough with to not put fenders where you don't want fenders to be but yes lots of fenders between the raft but really it only touches in the middle if everything's tied off right that's about it they have two lines out as well it looks like their starboard forward probably needs to be adjusted a little and we maybe we'll mention that to someone it's like the beginning of a new era I don't know how to explain it I feel kind of great about this I need to get Ben up here he's helping B go potty let's find him oh there he is we're about to see the Pacific feels good to be on the doorstep of another decade of Adventure pretty crazy to be here with two little kids doing it all over again what do you think Monica pretty stoked amazing experience yeah y here we go watch this can you believe it no it's crazy here we go Pacific Ocean bound champagne oh yeah that's better that's so exciting welcome to the Pacific Peter our maiden voyage through the Panama Canal that's right get you in the as we enter the Pacific we are once again home it might seem odd to call any specific ocean home but the Pacific is Where We Belong we're on the doorstep of some of the best sailing in the entire [Music] world okay here you go will on bie I'm kidding everyone thank you for your help thank you for the opportunity awesome cheers oh that's what it is Cheers Cheers Cheers Cheers B

Channel: Sailing Nahoa

Views: 62,677

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Id: ch2p1RzqNr4

Length: 30min 32sec (1832 seconds)

Published: Sun May 26 2024