The Corinth Ship Canal cuts through the isthmus between the Peloponnesus and the rest of the mainland of Greece. It was opened in 1893. It is 6.3 km in length and 24.6 m wide at sea level. The following is the official website for the canal:

http://www.corinthcanal.com/en_index.php

The following are some pictures that were taken during a recent trip to Greece:

http://www.geocities.com/greg_vassilakos/greece2006/ycanal01.JPG
This is the drawbridge at the Corinth end of the canal. It sinks down to the bottom of the channel to allow ships to pass.

http://www.geocities.com/greg_vassilakos/greece2006/zcanal01.JPG
A ship approaches from the Gulf of Corinth.

http://www.geocities.com/greg_vassilakos/greece2006/zcanal02.JPG
The ship passes over the drawbridge.

http://www.geocities.com/greg_vassilakos/greece2006/canal03.JPG
A ship approaches one of the high-level bridges from the Corinth end of the canal.

http://www.geocities.com/greg_vassilakos/greece2006/canal04.JPG
Looking down into the empty cargo holds.

http://www.geocities.com/greg_vassilakos/greece2006/canal05.JPG
There the ship goes toward Isthmia and Athens beyond.

http://www.geocities.com/greg_vassilakos/greece2006/canal06.JPG
Now a large sailboat passes under the bridge.

http://www.geocities.com/greg_vassilakos/greece2006/isthmia02.JPG
A tug tows a ship past a canalside restaurant at the Isthmia end of the canal.

http://www.geocities.com/greg_vassilakos/greece2006/isthmia03.JPG
The ship is passing over a sinking drawbridge similar to the one at the Corinth end of the canal.

http://www.geocities.com/greg_vassilakos/greece2006/isthmia04.JPG
The ship exits the canal toward Athens.

I've never hears of a sinking drawbridge before. Any chance of more pics?

I've never hears of a sinking drawbridge before. Any chance of more pics?

There is an article in Wikipedia < http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Submersible_bridge > that describes the submersible bridges on the Corinth Canal. The article includes a picture sequence that shows the bridge at the Isthmia end of the canal:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4b/BridgeSubmerging.jpg/200px-BridgeSubmerging.jpg

Incredible I learned something new. I'm gonna read the article to see how deep they submerge to avoid damage by boats. Good pictures of the Corinth canal.

Greece's Corinth Canal closes to shipping after landslide

ATHENS, Jan 2, 2007 (AFP) - The Corinth Canal, the western Greek waterway connecting the Ionian and Aegean Seas will close to shipping for around a week after a Sunday landslide reduced its depth to "unsafe" levels, operating company Periandros SA said on Tuesday.

Every year, about 11,000 vessels from over 50 countries transit the six-kilometre (3.7-mile) canal, avoiding a detour of 135 nautical miles (250 kilometres) around the Peloponnese peninsula.

Maintenance of the 114-year-old canal, which is situated in one of Greece's most seismically active zones some 80 kilometres west of Athens, occasionally raises concern in a country that accounts for half of all earthquakes on the European continent.

Geologic fissures in the canal's walls have caused several landslides in the past, the most serious of which in 1923 interrupted shipping for two years.

Another major disruption occurred in the waning months of World War II, when the retreating German Army in 1944 set explosives to the flanks of the canal and sunk railroad cars inside it.

At the time, it took five years to clear the canal for traffic, Periandros SA said.

Hell wanna jump from one of them high-level bridges, probably die though

Photos of the construction?

I've never hears of a sinking drawbridge before. Any chance of more pics?

Me neither, it looks interesting!