The following are more photos of Joyful’s transiting the Panama Canal. Exciting, isn’t it?
41. Big ships like Titan in front of Joyful used the small train cars to control their floating lines on top of the locks.
42. The morning after transiting the first 3 locks of the Panama Canal, Jeff ate breakfast on Joyful at a mooring in Lake Gatun.
43. Joyful’s three line handlers stayed overnight in Joyful’s cockpit in Lake Gatun. The advisor went home and was replaced at 6 AM by another advisor.
44. Music ministry – Anne in Lake Gatun playied her guitar after brealfast for Joyful’s line handlers and the Panama Canal Advisor.
45. Flat Mr. Davis gave Bill the helm on Lake Gatun in the morning.
46. A red navigational buoy marked a channel on Lake Gatun.
46a. The chart plotter showed Joyful’s location in the channel in Gatun Lake, on the way to the locks leading downward to the Pacific Ocean.
47. Joyful motored on Lake Gatun toward the rest of the locks leading to the Pacific Ocean.
47a. Joyful motored in the Lake Gatun channel with Aventura in the lead, a container ship ahead, and channel buoys on the starboard side.
47b. Joyful motored with Aventura and other yachts the next morning to travel across Lake Gatun to the locks leading downward to the Pacific Ocean.
47c. Joyful’s three line handlers for the Panama Canal enjoyed a quick snack.
49. Joyful, the catamaran, & Aventura rafted together, then waited at a mooring, before they entered the Pedro Miguel lock
50. Line handlers got ready for another day’s work with Joyful. This time, Joyful was lowered downward by the locks to the level of the Pacific Ocean.
51. A land based line handler walked Joyful in the Pedro Miguel Lock.
52. Panamanian flags proudly flew throughout the canal.
53. Joyful’s floating line was secured on land ready for the water in the Pedro Miguel lock to be released.
54. Flat Mr. Davis watched the line, as he waited for the doors to close in the Pedro Miguel Lock.
55. The water level lowered in the Pedro Miguel Lock once the Pacific side doors opened.
56. Joyful, Aventura & the catamaran rafted up again for the transit of the higher of the two Miraflores Locks.
57. A land based line handler controled Joyful’s line.
58. A close up view of the land line handler with Joyful’s control line.
59. There were many machines that controled large ships in the locks.
59. There were many machines that controled large ships in the locks.
60. One of Joyful’s line handlers eased out Joyful’s floating line as the lock’s water level went down.
61. This photo shows Joyful, the catamaran & Aventura rafted together in the locks, with small control cars on land used for ships’ lines.
62. Two land line handlers were ready to throw lines with monkey fists (heavily weighted round ends of ropes) onto Joyful to walk her into the upper Miraflores Lock.
63. Land line handlers threw control lines with monkey fists onto Joyful.
64. Joyful’s land based line handlers walked Joyful up to the lock through location for the upper Miraflores Lock.
65. This is a close up view of Joyful’s control line with its monkey fist in the line handler’s hand.
66. One of Joyful’s line handlers caught a line with a monkey fist on the end which was thrown by a land line handler.
67. Flat Mr. Davis posed by a monkey fist which was on the end of a land line thrown from the top of the lock to connect to Joyful’s floating blue lines.
68. Flat Mr. Davis watched Joyful’s land control line handler.
69. A land line handler walked Joyful by the lock doors toward her location for the lowering of the water level in the upper Miraflores Lock.
70. Joyful’s land based line handler attached a floating line to a cleat before the sea water level went down.
71. Joyful’s line handler, now with the monkey fist and floating line, prepared Joyful for the lowering of the water in the upper Miraflores Lock.
72. A bird flew above Joyful in the upper Miraflores Lock.
73. One of several birds seen near the upper Miraflores Lock.
74. Joyful’s bow line handler made Joyful ready for a downward descent in the upper Miraflores Lock.
75. Joyful’s floating line was cleated off and was ready to be adjusted as the water level went down.
76. Lock doors begin to shut behind Joyful in the upper Miraflores Lock.
77. Flat Mr. Davis at Joyful’s helm was ready for the double lock doors of the upper Miraflores Lock to close so Joyful could descend almost to the sea level of the Pacific Ocean.
78. Joyful’s new canal advisor for the second day in the canal received information from the control building in the upper Miraflores Lock with Jimmy on Aventura in background.
79. Joyful’s line handler payed out some floating line as the water level in upper Miraflores Lock lowered.
80. Bill and a line handler stood on Joyful’s bow as the water level lowerd in the upper Miraflores Lock in the Panama Canal.
81. Joyful’s line handler eased out the floating stern line as the water level descended in the upper Miraflores lock.
82. Birds in the upper Miraflores lock doors caught fish.
83. Flat Mr. Davis and birds were near the upper Miraflores lock doors as water level lowers.
84. Birds soar above lock doors in the upper Miraflores lock.
85. Jeff, Bill & a line handler stood on Joyful’s bow as the highest Miraflores lock doors open.
86. Joyful was ready to be walked forward to enter the lower Miraflores lock, the last lock before the Pacific Ocean.
87. Joyful entered the lower Miraflores Lock.
88. Flat Mr. Davis in the lower Miraflores Lock in the Panama Canal. The observation tower at the top was packed with well wishers.
89. Dunbar of Aventura kindly climbed Aventura’s mast to take photos while in the lower Miraflores Lock. Thank you, Dunbar!
90. The chart plotter showed Joyful in the lower Miraflores Lock.
91. Joyful was secured to land in the lower Miraflores Lock as the water descended.