10/9 – Disembark, Return to Panama City

We left the boat this morning and traveled over a rough road to San Lorenzo National Park, about 3 miles away. This was the site of a defensive fort located at the mouth of the Chagres River and the Caribbean Sea, established in the late 1500s. The original, at water level, was attacked by Henry Morgan from the land side in 1670, who left it in ruins, then used it as a base to attack Panama City the next year. In 1680, the Spanish rebuilt it on the cliff above and fortified it in the back with a dry moat and a drawbridge. Not much is left of it, and we spent about 30 minutes walking around the various levels. The original canal entrance dug by the French utilized this river, but eventually, a more easterly entrance was created.

Bird at the dock

Image of the original Fort San Lorenzo

The Chagres River

Next several photos are of San Lorenzo

 

 

 

Interesting bird - note the tiny feather at the back of his head

Jim climbed the hill behind the fort.

Back on the bus, we had to cross the canal entrance, and a bridge across is still being built, so the bus took a ferry over to the Colon side where the road south to Panama City is. Lake Gatun stretches far to the west and there does not appear to be a convenient south route there. Before going to our hotel, we stopped for lunch the Miraflores Locks, near where we were a few days ago, and then visited the central cupola with murals of the canal. 

The Gatun Lake Dam from the other side.

On the ferry, we get a real rain storm, and we were on the
bus, totally protected. We wore rain gear for all of 15 minutes
despite constant forecasts of 80% chances of rain daily.

Monument in front of the admin building to Goethals,
the man who build most of the canal.

The palm trees in the park mark the width and
length of the original locks.

Interior of the cupola

Above and below: the murals in the cupola

 

Statue of Teddy Roosevelt who was a major
proponent of the canal when he was
Secretary of the Navy.

Finally, we made it to our hotel with a mission to find a few more gifts, pack for the trip home (we had to leave the hotel at 5:30am, so last minute packing was kept to a minimum), and clean up for our farewell dinner.All in all, it has been a good, if short, trip with enjoyable travel companions and a very knowledgeable and helpful tour director.