Location: Panama Canal
What a day! Vela said goodbye to the Atlantic Ocean this evening as we entered the Panama Canal, and I think it is safe to say that everyone had a pretty cool day. After a morning of canal training yesterday, our four teams (starboard bow and stern, port bow and stern) were ready for the intense line handling that was required as we went through the Canals locks. All students were separated onto the four corners of the vessel and took up the lines as each lock filled with water, and Vela was raised 85 feet, three times over. Tomorrow, the opposite thing will happen as our elevation decreases back to 0 on our way back into the Pacific, so the students will be easing the lines as we fall 85 feet in each of the three locks.
The students had another unique experience today as Vela took a pilot onboard for the transit because that is a necessary thing that all vessels have to do while transiting the Panama Canal. Her name was Paula, and she was very calm, cool and collected. We were even lucky enough to have cotton candy skies as a backdrop to the unique scenery that already makes up the Canal. That was one of the highlights for many of the students, as well as the cold drinks they were semi-surprised with halfway through the transit. Now, we are motoring through the lake that sits between the canals, and everyone is pretty tired from the big day but nonetheless excited for tomorrow. To the Pacific, we go!
PS: Dear Mum, Dad, Derek & Andrew – miss you guys so much and wish you could have all been here today to see how cool the Canal was!