Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
the rainforest. There's also a snack bar, a tourist-priced restaurant, and lots of shade and seat-
ing for picnics.
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: GATÚN LOCKS AND AROUND
By bus
Catch any Costa Abajo
bus
from Colón. For the locks, get off just before the traffic
lights at the swing-bridge across the canal and walk up the road on the left. For the dam, take
the first left after the locks. For the Centro de Observación de la Ampliación del Canal, get
off just after crossing the railway line about 2km before the locks, and walk 3km up a gravel
road.
By taxi
A taxi from Colón will take you to the locks and back for around $15-20 including
wait time, more if you want to include the new observation centre.
Fuerte San Lorenzo
Mouth of the Río Chagres, 13km northwest of Gatún Locks • Daily 8am-4pm • $5
Perched high on a rocky promontory, standing guard over the mouth of the Río Chagres, the
well-preserved ruins of
Fuerte San Lorenzo
bear witness to its importance during Spanish
colonial times. Its spectacular location, commanding views of both the brooding river and the
glistening Caribbean, coupled with its isolation and forest surroundings make it a far more
evocative place than the more accessible and more visited Portobelo. Along with the forts at
Portobelo, the place was declared a World Heritage Site in 1980 and is now a popular des-
tination on the cruise ship circuit, but if you get there early (or visit during the rainy season)
you can often have the place to yourself.
The fort is set within the 120-square-kilometre
Área Protegida San Lorenzo
, amid a
swathe of secondary forest and swampland, which provide excellent
birdwatching
. Though
off the road to the fort with your binoculars is likely to be productive. Some areas are still out
of bounds on account of unexploded mines that the US military left behind after deciding it
was too expensive to clear - there are warning signs about the dangers but they are not every-
where, so stick to the paths.
Brief history
Construction of the original sea-level earth-and-wood fort began in 1595 to protect loot-laden
Spanish boats sailing down the Chagres to Portobelo from attack by foreign vessels. Though
Francis Drake failed to take the place in 1596, it fell to one of
Henry Morgan
's privateers
in 1670, enabling Morgan and his band to pass unhindered up the river and destroy Panama
City. The fort was rebuilt in coral stone in the 1680s in its present cliff-top location, where it
was eventually ruined in 1740 by the British. Although San Lorenzo was rebuilt and further
strengthened the fortifications were never really tested again, though they were used as part
of the US military defences in World War II - note the still visible anti-aircraft platform next
to the tower.
