The Panama Canal has issued new (temporary) procedures for vessels under 65 feet to transit the canal. The critical item in these procedures is point “9” which says:

9. In addition to the master/skipper, the small craft shall have at least four line handlers available, as required by ACP regulations. These line handlers must have already been on board the small craft during the quarantine period mentioned in (2) above.

Yesterday the canal allowed three vessels to transit, in a nested fashion through the canal. Kyla Marie of yacht “Lazy Travels” describes the procedure.

“Our boat “Lazy Travels”, with “Ohana” and “Nutmeg” just crossed the Panama Canal from Atlantic to Pacific. Here are the details for how it happened for us:

We were allowed to use 4 line handlers for the entire 3 boat raft. Each boat had a transit advisor provided by the canal.

We were not allowed to use Canal line handlers, we had to find boats to transit with us that in combination would provide us with enough crew for the raft (4 line handlers, 3 captains, and if any children on board – someone separate to look after them). Seriously, you need all 4 line handlers to be able to give their undivided attention at all times.

We were also unable to rent lines, fenders or tires to reduce contamination. We had to make sure that we had enough to meet the requirements, which was 4 long lines, plus enough fenders for the raft and canal. Personal recommendation is to have a lot of fenders, and a few big round ones.

It seems like you must use an agent at this time, although we only used one to process our payment and paid a reduced fee ($150 USD + $50 for a credit card processing fee, name Roger – whatsapp number +507 6717-6745 – organized by Shelter Bay Marina).

Shelter Bay Marina, with the help of cruisers themselves, organized the measurement of the boats. There is currently an excel spread sheet (managed by Shelter Bay Marina) that lists all boats that want to cross the canal with their information. This is not an official document, but makes it easier to coordinate with all the yachts.

Basically we had to organize our own: measurement, crew, lines and fenders.

The most difficult part was finding 3 boats who together meet all the requirements and were ready to cross.

Our transit advisor said HIS OPINION is that the canal will continue to stay open for small vessels. I think this is based on need, and how smooth everything went using reduced line handlers.

Thank you to all the cruisers and staff at Shelter Bay Marina who basically made this happen.

To many more happy canal crossings !!”

Kyla Marie
SY Lazy Travels

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• Panama Canal: Small Boat Transits to Resume Tomorrow (8 April, 2020)
• Panama Biosecurity Requirements
• More COVID-19 Field Reports
•  COVID-19 Coronavirus: Special Procedures Being Introduced in Ports of Entry Worldwide

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Please share your current experience with COVID-19 restrictions and how it has affected your cruising plans. Contact Sue at editor@noonsite.com with your field report.

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The opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not reflect the view of Noonsite.com or World Cruising Club.