The Suez Canal

Blog 33 - The Suez Canal..

Dawn awaiting transit into Suez

Its 4.30 am and we are on the viewing platform on the 11th deck (just along from our stateroom on the ocean going liner QM2. Stateroom by the way is derived from the paddle steamers that sailed the American rivers, each of their cabins named after a state, e.g Texas or Virginia. ( now not a lot of people know that!) I diversify, the dawn is rising on a sunny but chilly morning and already there are many ships and tankers at anchor awaiting instructions on the convoy positions we require to transit the Suez Canal south to north. It is a ten hour gentle cruise on one stretch of flat water therefore no locks to negotiate. 

Entry in the canal from the south

Like the Panama Canal this is another feat of modern engineering and culminates centuries of efforts to enhance trade between Europe and Asia by connecting the Red Sea with the Mediterranean Sea. The 55 mile long canal was completed in 1869 amidst much celebration when two small fleets that had started separately from each end met in the middle at the new town of Ismailia. 

The French who had started the project ran out of cash and it was the UK who eventually poured money in through share issues that enabled the completion of the project. The French were to lead the main convoy but a sneaky British frigate popped in front at the last second to become the first to enter the canal. We never stop trying to get one up on those French, do we not?!

It was one of the Pharaohs that first had the vision for a canal and actually had 13000 men start digging a route but it all proved too difficult and he abandoned the idea. The Persians tried next but lost 30000 to accident and disease. Napoleon had a go and failed saying that there was a 10m drop from north to south so it would be an impossible task. Ferdinand de Lessops, a French engineer/statesman and the 'brains' behind the the current waterway later proved that this was not true and the canal was built without locks.

The British were in control of this region up to the the 1950's when the Egyptian President at the time Nasser declared the canal independent and the French, British and Israelites invaded. The subsequent 'Suez Crisis' attracted such strong condemnation from the world that a sheepish withdrawal took place and a treaty signed to declare the canal an international free way giving any nation's shipping (including warships) the right to transit the canal. 

looking to stern on the QM2 in convoy
 (our stateroom is three floors above
the lifeboats towards the bow)

The cost of a transit is based on the amount of fuel it would take for a ship to take the alternative route around the Cape of Good Hope. As an example, a cruise liner the size of the QM2 at nearly 150,000 gross tonnage, 344 metres in length, eating fuel at an alarming rate would pay a toll of $350,000, around £225,000 or equivalent to £100 per passenger. 

QM2 in convoy

The canal has three lakes called the Bitter Lakes and these are used mainly to anchor ships during transit as convoys go in each direction by turn. Our convey had 15 other ships (including two Chinese warships!) each approximately one mile apart, while at anchor were 36 vessels awaiting their turn to travel south. 80 ships a day (10% of the world's shipping) sail through this stretch of water and provide the number one source of income to Egypt. 

Tourism which was the top source of income has now dropped drastically due to the ongoing vulnerable political situation in this region (for example, we were originally due to stop there but our itinerary was changed to include a stop in Jordan instead).

The differing terrain with water as the source of growth
(The QM2 bow is in the foreground)

One of the startling, most noticeable points about the Suez is there is lush green vegetation on one bank and the Sinai desert on the other. This is because one bank has water irrigation mostly fed by a canal and pipe system from the River Nile over 80 miles away. On the 'green side' up to three crops a year are grown as well as fruit trees. Rainfall is below 3 inches a year. In fact statistically any region with less than 2.7 inches annually is declared a desert so water is the precious resource here and without it desert would be all around.

The town of Ismailia

About half way along the canal the town of Ismailia is a historic reminder of the many wars that have been fought here to gain control of this vital artery. In 1967 Israel invaded the Sinai peninsular and many lives were lost in the stout defence put up by the Egyptian forces. The town battled on and eventually a treaty was signed just before a surrender was to be declared. Again in the early 70's there was an invasion and again peace was restored. 

The Sinai showing traffic
waiting for the ferry with a tank
looking on!

The memorial to the 1967
and 1973 wars

There is a monument here to the many lives lost in the wars fought on this land. There are still many soldiers in small lookout posts and in larger barracks along the banks here, also pontoon bridge sections at regular intervals which can quickly transverse the canal to send tanks into the desert. This proves that trust is still not fully restored between powers in the middle east

The Cantarra Bridge empty of traffic

There is also a fine bridge north of here, the only road bridge crossing the canal to the desert in the east. The Cantarra double cantilever bridge stands a mighty 240feet and the QM2's funnel only scraped underneath by inches. Interestingly enough the bridge had no traffic crossing over but the ferry station further along had a huge trail of lorries and cars waiting to cross. Whether there was a problem with the bridge or another reason we never did find out.

The canal irrigation canal system

The Sinai is being developed and at the northern end of the canal

nearer to Port Said there are irrigation systems and houses being built to capture the hidden resources this vast desert has to offer.  There are 90million people in Egypt mostly in the west and the Nile Delta. A bold new Egyptian initiative is under way to move many families and businesses to this region. 

New development in the Sinai Desert

Watch this space and let's hope the constant state of flux that has been synonymous with the Middle East for centuries will be resolved by negotiation, treaties and not war and for once there may be sustained peace for ordinary families to live their lives as we take for granted in the west.

Leaving the Suez canal at 4pm

We left the canal at 4pm and headed into the Mediterranean Sea. At the present moment we are heading west towards the port and city of Civitavecchia a two hour drive from Rome where most of the ship's day excursions are heading.

DKT