Castle of San Lorenzo and Camino de Cruces Section 3

Scenic road chapters

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Castle of San Lorenzo

   The Castle of San Lorenzo stands on a cliff at the mouth of the Chagres River, on the Caribbean coast of Panama, and it was built to stop pirates. Gold and silver came across the isthmus on the Camino Real and the river, and this stone fort guarded the river mouth from the sea. Construction began in the late sixteenth century, and the fort, with its ditch, ramparts and cannon, was a serious piece of military engineering. It did not hold forever. In 1671 Henry Morgan and a force of buccaneers took it after a fierce fight in which the Spanish defenders resisted until their thatched roofs caught fire. Morgan went on to sack Panama City.

   Read the complete Castle of San Lorenzo write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Castle of San Lorenzo is where the day begins. Next is Fortifications on the Caribbean Side of Pa.

2. 2. Fortifications on the Caribbean Side of Pa

   Columbus named it Puerto Bello, the beautiful harbour, in 1502, and for once a sailor's first impression was right. Portobelo sits on a deep, sheltered bay on Panama's Caribbean coast, backed by steep green hills, and for two centuries it was the point where the wealth of Peru left the New World. Gold and silver came by sea up the Pacific coast to Panama City, crossed the isthmus on mule trails like the Camino de Cruces, and were loaded here onto the Spanish treasure fleets. Every year, a great fair was held, with merchants and soldiers crowding the little port, and prices and diseases both soared.

   Read the complete Fortifications on the Caribbean Side of Pa write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Fortifications on the Caribbean Side of Pa comes up about 70 km into the recorded legs. Next is Camino de Cruces Section 3.

3. 3. Near Curundú

   This point lies on the western side of Panama City, in the belt of land that was once the American-run Canal Zone, between the old neighbourhoods of Curundú and Ancón and the green slopes leading towards the canal. Ancón Hill, the forested hump that dominates this part of the city, was for decades the administrative heart of the zone, and the area still has the wide lawns, tidy wooden houses and tropical trees of that era.

   Read the complete Near Curundú write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 166 km into the recorded legs you reach Camino de Cruces Section 3. Next is back through Fortifications on the Caribbean Side of Pa.

4. 4. back through Fortifications on the Caribbean Side of Pa

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Fortifications on the Caribbean Side of Pa write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Fortifications on the Caribbean Side of Pa, late in the day. Next is Castle of San Lorenzo.

5. 5. Castle of San Lorenzo

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Castle of San Lorenzo write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Back at Castle of San Lorenzo. That is the ride.