Good and Bad news from Panama

Created by doina. Last modified on 2005-06-21 21:37:48
Countries: Panama

Noonsite just received this report from a sailor who transited the Panama Canal at the end of May:

All is well on the Panama Canal, but Balboa YC is now threatened by the Canal authority. They have advised that they are going to be dredging the channel in front of the club and that at least the first FOUR ROWS of moorings will have to be removed. These are the moorings that the visitors use. Apparently this is going to happen some time in the next year and will make it even more difficult for visiting yachts to find a mooring on the Pacific side.

Flamenco Marina at the end of the causeway is having some problems also. There is enough surge coming into the bay through the breakwater entrance that the mega yachts tied up to the barge were snapping dock lines. Now the accumulated wear and tear of the barge surging back and forth has broken the piling structures that hold it in place. Also, one of the docks that the marina bought from the Panama Canal sank. Fortunately they were able to get the boats off of it before it went down. Construction of new docks continues gradually and additional slips are becoming available. The surge and associated problems do not seem to affect the regular size boats (30' to 60') too much, just the mega yachts.