127 Friday 4/20/2018 Cruising Suez Canal 5:00 AM to 5:00 PM Updated

127  Friday 4/20/2018  Cruising Suez Canal 5:00 AM to 5:00 PM

An engineering marvel, the Suez Canal was completed in 1869 after ten years of construction.  We entered the sea-level, single lane waterway with no locks, and continued through two lakes that allow northbound and southbound ships to pass each other: Ballah Bypass and Great Bitter Lake.  As we cruise the historic waterway, stark desert sands stretch into Egypt all around us.  An occasional giant mound of sand appears along its banks, dug from the canal.  Small patches of swaying palms are fed by canal waters.  Emerging like a mirage, you will see Ismailia, known as the “City of Beauty and Enchantment.”  This settlement was built by an Egyptian khedive (viceroy), Ismail the Magnificent, to serve the canal’s construction and maintenance.  

Sand creates a bank.  This sand that was removed to create a deeper channel and allow more two way traffic.  

Towns and lots of greenery on one side.  

There were guard stations on both sides.  On the developed side, you could see they were manned.  On the other side, I am not sure.  The wall and guard booths were too far away.  

We entered the Suez Canal around 5:00 AM.  In the beginning, we were in single lane traffic.  A man showed me an app - vesseltracker.com.  There is a cargo ship ahead of us, another cruise ship behind us followed by another cargo ship.  Next, we entered a lake where ships could pass one another, but no one passed.  Now we are traveling in the newest part of the canal which has two way traffic.  There are huge piles of sand on both sides of the canal.  This sand was dug out of the canal area to widen the canal.  This improvement allowing two lane traffic and creating huge mounds of sand along the canal only took one year.  

This Pilot Boat brought a new pilot to take us through the canal and picked up the pilot that had brought us to the canal.  I understand the Pilots have a very strong union.

Entering the Suez Canal.

Mosque along the Suez Canal.  

This side of the canal had a wall with guard towers all along the way.  There were towns and farms along the way.  The other side was just desert.  There was a wall and fewer towers.  The wall was not close to the canal.  

After high temperatures during our time in Egypt, this morning was quite cool and in the 60's.