The Northern Expedition will be sailing through the Panama Canal on Saturday (Feb. 21), and BC Ferries spokesperson Deborah Marshall says islanders who want to watch the ship's progress can follow it on the tracker at www.bcferries.comThe new ferry, which will be serving the north coast by this summer, is on schedule to arrive in BC in early March, Ms Marshall said. It will start working the Prince Rupert-Port Hardy route in late May.Meanwhile, the 42-year-old Queen of Prince Rupert has only a few weeks of service left before retirement. The QPR's last sailing from Skidegate is scheduled for March 31. Ms Marshall said BC Ferries is planning to hold some sort of ceremony for the ship, probably in Prince Rupert. More details will be available as the date approaches.Starting April 1, the Northern Adventure will be serving both north coast routes and will become the usual ferry for the Skidegate-Prince Rupert route once the Northern Expedition comes on board to service Prince Rupert-Port Hardy.