Historic District of Panamá and Fortifications on the Caribbean Side of Pa starting at El Chorrillo

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Historic District of Panamá

   After Morgan destroyed the old town in 1671, the Spanish chose a new site a few kilometres west, on a rocky peninsula that was easier to defend, and moved the city in 1673. That is the historic district of Panamá, today called Casco Viejo or Casco Antiguo, and it is a very different place from the ruins. Narrow streets laid out in a grid run past colonial churches, balconied houses and small plazas, with the Pacific on three sides and the glass towers of the modern city across the bay.

   Read the complete Historic District of Panamá write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Historic District of Panamá is where the day begins. Next is Camino de Cruces Section 1.

2. 2. Near Colón

   West of the Panama Canal's Caribbean end, the land goes quiet surprisingly fast. You cross from the Colón side on the Atlantic Bridge, the long cable-stayed span that finally replaced the old swing bridge and the ferry over the canal entrance, and within minutes the container cranes give way to rainforest, old American base buildings and a narrow road heading north toward the mouth of the Chagres River.

   Read the complete Near Colón write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Camino de Cruces Section 1 comes up about 87 km into the recorded legs. Next is Fortifications on the Caribbean Side of Pa.

3. 3. 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

   about 145 km into the recorded legs you reach Fortifications on the Caribbean Side of Pa. Next is back through Camino de Cruces Section 1.

4. 4. Near Colón

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Near Colón write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   back through Camino de Cruces Section 1, late in the day. Next is Historic District of Panamá.

5. 5. Historic District of Panamá

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Historic District of Panamá write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Back at Historic District of Panamá. That is the ride.