What Ever Happened to Pedro Miguel?

After operating for nearly 70 years as a favorite stopover for world cruisers transiting the Panama Canal, the nonprofit Pedro Miquel Boat Club was forcibly closed down several years ago by the Panama Canal Authority. Buildings were boarded up and surrounding fences were chained shut. The club lay just a stone’s throw from the Canal’s Pedro Miguel Locks, and former tenants were told that the Authority had important plans for the site which precluded the continued operation of the club and its adjacent boatyard.

On our recent trip to Panama we checked out the property to see what progressive new developments were taking place. Sadly, we found that no improvements have been made. Instead, the formerly vibrant facilities are being silently decomposed by tropical decay.

It’s obvious to the local boaters we interviewed that the shutdown was more political than practical. Apparently the closure was simply an effort to purge yet another remnant of the U.S.’s control of the Canal Zone — a process that’s been ongoing ever since President Jimmy Carter transfered ownership of the Zone back to the Panamanian government (by way of General Torrijos) in 1977.

Since the mid-’30s the club had been a friendly place for world cruisers to work on their boats, and tenants had actively supported charitable causes within the Panamanian community. The closure marked the end of an era which is not likely to be replicated anywhere else along The Ditch. So today, as the crumbling buildings and a few abandoned boats slowly fade away, all that remains of value are the many happy memories held by sailors all over the world.