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Balboa & Panama Yacht Clubs

The Balboa Yacht Club (BYC) is on the southern (Pacific) side of the Panama Canal just before the Bridge of the Americas. They have numerous buoys that are available to transient boats. The Panama Yacht Club (PYC) is in Colon at the northern (Atlantic) side of the Canal. They have a few slips availabled for transient boats. Many baoters anchor in the Flats, and anchorage about a mile away and dinghy over to the PYC.

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	MV Heather K. on a Balboa Yacht Club (BYC) buoy just south of the Bridge of the Americas. The Canal entrance passes underneath this bridge. The BYC generally has sufficient buoys available to handle transient vessels. Those that want to avoid mooring fees can tie up to the anchorage near the Flamenco Signal Station; although, coming ashore in your own dinghy requires scambling across large rocks forming the breakwater. A new marina and anchorage is being built on the eastern side of Flamenco Island, but we did not explore it.
	The fuel dock of the BYC. You have to use the BYC shore boats and are not allowed to land you dinghy. You can tie up to the dock for fuel as this sailboat is doing. Behind the fuel dock are several slips where, for a fee, you can tie-up to wash your boat or take on water.
	All shore visits at BYC from boats on buoys must use the BYC pangas. You call them on the radio and generally the wait is less than ten minutes.
	This is the foundation remaining from the old, two story Balboa Boat Clubhouse that burned down several years ago. To the left of the foundation is the marine railway that is still in service. Our friends, Bill and Suzy on the Cal 35 Altair, hauled out here for bottom painting in March, 2001.
	The "clubhouse" for the Balboa Yacht Club. They serve good hamburgers, reasonably priced drinks, and there is a swimming pool. We think BYC is the best place to stay and do the paperwork cha-cha-cha. There are good agents avaiable that will do this for you, but we decided to do it on our own with a group of other boaters. Knowledgeable taxi drivers hang around here and for $15-20 drive you in a few hours to all the required places. Generally you wait from 3 - 5 days for a transit date after paying fees and being admeasured.
	Some of our cruising friends at the restaurant/bar in the BYC "clubhouse". Here we met some young US and European backpackers that wanted to line handle for the experience of going through the Canal. While we already had line handlers, we invited them to join us anyway. It turned out that several of them were experienced sailors and were able to help other boats.
	The Christobal Signal Station on the Atlantic side of the Panama Canal. This is the station that controls all Canal traffic between Colon and Gamboa. From Gamboa to Balboa, it is the Flamenco Signal Station that has the control. The Panama Yacht Club is about a mile away around the right side of this station and beyond the cranes visible in the background.
	The Panama Yacht Club (PYC) with the fuel dock along the right edge in this picture. The club does not have many slips available for transient boats, so many anchor out in the flats and use the dinghy dock. There is a nominal daily charge for this. The PYC clubhouse is quite busy and has a full service dining room. For shopping, boaters are advised to use taxis to go into Colon which cost about $1.

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