The southern part of our route...

The northern part of the route...

View from the starboard side on the bridge

It's not all computers...

On the bridge

At any given time, there is at least two officers and one sailor (who keeps a visual look out) on the bridge.

When there is heavy traffic, bad weather, or coming into port, they have six on the bridge.

To change the course, it takes the approval of two officers and then final approval by the Master.  At various points, they also have a pilot captain who comes aboard in an advisory position because s/he knows the area very well.

The navigation console

The levers on the left are for the gas turbine thrusters. 

They do have a "ship's wheel" to manually move the ship but it's about the size of a car steering wheel.  Apparently big ship's wheels are passe...

Explaining navigation techniques

Bridge tour on the M.V. Infinity

The officers were kind enough to extend invitations for a tour of the bridge to those who asked at Guest Relations.

After seeing our Master turn the ship 360 degrees in the narrow Tracy Arm fjord we were already impressed.  The bridge tour was interesting -- the ship uses gas turbine engines, they have six navigation areas around the ship.  There are even 'port holes' in the floors so the officers can look down to sea through the decks.

What the locals call the Alaskan seabird...

Flying out of Skagway.

Docked on the pier along Broadway Street in Skagway

Looking south down Lynn Canal.

Heading into Skagway

Taiya Inlet on Lynn Canal (which is misnamed, it's actually a fjord).

The tide was going out again.  The tides changed every six hours or so and fluctuated between 4 feet at its lowest and 17 to 20 feet high tide in this area.