VEGA

Sailcargo’s proof-of-concept vessel is on her way to the Americas

By Jeremy Starn of Sailcargo

At a dock in the Netherlands, opposite a lush green field with windmills rotating slowly in the distance, a beautiful wooden cargo ship is moored. On her stern you can see her name, Vega.

On board is a hum of activity. Harnessed sailors are working high in the rigging. On deck, others are whipping ropes, cutting timber and fashioning tools.

It's unusual for so many Sailcargo workers to be outside of the Costa Rica shipyard at one time, but they are here now, to help safely deliver Vega across the Atlantic. She's the newest member of Sailcargo's shipping fleet, joining Ceiba (currently under construction) and the proposed Pitaya. After her transatlantic voyage she'll undergo a minor refit to maximize her cargo space. Before year's end, Vega will be shipping cargo between Colombia and New Jersey.

The purchase of Vega marks a major leap forward for Sailcargo, which hopes her voyages will serve as a proof of concept for other vessels to follow.

Vega is a traditional Swedish vessel — a complete rebuild of the original 1909 ship that sailed in the Swedish cargo fleet for over 50 years. She suffered a major fire and was significantly rebuilt in 2008. The new Vega retains all the best aspects of classic Nordic design, combined with modern ship-building techniques and safety standards, including copper strapping on the hull, a copper-sheathed hull and bulkheads.

“If you haven’t noticed, Ceiba and Vega are extremely similar,” wrote Sailcargo’s Danielle Doggett on Facebook. “Probably due in part to the fact that I’ve loved Vega ever since I first saw her in 2014. The inspiration for Ceiba was the Ingrid, a Finnish vessel built in 1906. Vega was built in Viken just three years later.”

Vega has been operating as a non-profit sail-training vessel –teaching a new generation of sailors the skills to work on a tall ship. But now she will return to her original purpose of hauling cargo under sail.

As of early June, Vega was sailing south from Sweden, through the Baltic and the North Sea, docking in Denmark and Germany along the way. She'll continue her journey south along the European coast to the Canary Islands. After a brief stop in Tenerife to collect additional crew members and conduct a final provisioning, Vega will sail to the Americas.

Post-refit, Vega will have a capacity of 150 tons. She will also carry a number of trainee sailors from Costa Rica who will be learning the skills to work aboard a sailing ship, so they are ready to crew Ceiba when she is launched.

This move would not have been possible without impact investors such as business partner Cafe William, which has already committed to filling the cargo holds of Vega, Ceiba and Pitaya for all northbound voyages.