Sail cargo Project - Costa Rica

Oh yes I do. There used to be plenty of them around in the 1960s and 70s. Few had engine at that time.

The last time a saw one that was definitely without engine was in Cirebon in 1997. They arrived under sail until inside the breakwater, then dropped the sail and set out a boat under oars to tow her into the old Dutch trading port, just like in the good ol’ days.

When trading from Singapore to East Indonesia in the early 1970s we frequently came across Perahus that was becalmed, especially in the Banda Sea.
They frequently signaled that they required help and set out a small boat to come across. Usually they had run out of water and/or food. We would give them some water, rice and vegetable so they could survive a few more day, until, hopefully, the breeze picked up.

The Bugis have sailed the waters of Indonesia, S.E.Asia and even down to Western Australia for centuries without the benefit of compass, or any other form of navigation instruments.

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The ship has a really small capacity, the equivalent of 9 standard containers, they would have to be shipping some very high value cargo to make money.

I remember several years ago a group with a sailing craft starting a business running coffee from Central America to Spain.

If you want to check out some people actually doing cargo by sail, check out https://fairtransport.eu/

It is very small scale and I don’t think that the world’s cargo will go back to old time sail.
Fun for some folk to learn old time sailing and move some specialty products.

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The defining feature being most of the “crews" are trainees, who pay the company for training. Operating costs come from tuitions and donations. In essence, school ships with large gift stores. Nothing wrong with that.

For those questioning their intended ports or lack of cargo, their site says they intend to run Costa Rica-to-Canada, and the article linked on their site says they’re already booked up for Northbound voyages.

It sounds like they expect, and have found, importers willing to pay a premium for sustainable haulage. Whether that ends up being a sustainable business model long term remains to be seen.

With at least a year to go until she is on the water, she already has a surplus of interest for her initial northbound voyages from companies willing to pay a premium for emissions-free transport of products such as green coffee, cacao, organic cotton and turmeric oil. Bio-packaging, electric bicycles and premium barley and hops for Costa Rica’s burgeoning craft-beer market are among bookings so far on the southbound journeys.

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I can easily imagine an importer in Canada that brings in thousands of containers a year using the sales pitch that they are eco friendly & give preference to 0% carbon emitting transport when available. They pay the higher cost on the 9 container sailboat & claim all of their product is environmentally conscious. I think that is smart business. If they carry 9 containers north & paying passengers south that would be even better for them.

Agreed, I think it’s the only business model that will work for sail.

I remember back in the 70s where those were still under sail. I was amazed to see that. Too bad the only photo I have of any is this one. Taken in the late 70s.

Scan10044 by , on Flickr

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so the question then is how Canada will treat the vessel’s regulatory class? SOLAS has provisions to exempt wooden vessels and if then not SOLAS will all the other IMO Conventions be applicable? If not, then there is a free pass to man with non certified mariners. I wonder if these folks have been to talk with Transport Canada about all of this?

going to bring up that I hope these folks realize that during the fair months of the year, the prevailing winds on the West Coast are not favorable for this proposed trade and in winter is downright bloody awful. I do not know how their prospective clients feel about cargoes being out at sea for any extra weeks as the vessel is stuck endlessly beating to weather or how would prospective crews feel if being paid very low or even paying the owner to be aboard? People will walk off after becoming utterly exhausted. Lastly, how would they be able to call in US ports of refuge unless the USCG gives them a pass and unless that have cash to pay for tugs and port fees? Means they will be stuck out there getting the SHIT kicked of them all winter long!

True about the prevailing winds on the west coast. There are 2 solutions going northbound from Central America in a sailboat. One is to reach to Hawaii first, then to BC. The other is what west coast sailboaters refer to as the “baja bash” which is to motor all the way in the teeth of the prevailing winds and seas.

Looking at the gaff rigged topsail sailplan of their vessel, while very pretty and purely traditional, it is highly labor dependent and will require a large crew to handle. Not at all what one would want to beat to weather in a gale. This shows a complete lack of experience operating under sail on the west coast of North America.

so let me pose this question…what about the use of wind turbines on a vessel to generate electricity to power motors for propulsion. If winds are ahead, would the forces acting astern on the vessel cancel out the power produced to propel the vessel ahead. I would think many smaller turbines which can be brought down in port would be better than a couple very large tall wind turbines?

There’s no way they can store enough electrical energy or produce it underway to bash 5000 miles NW along the coastline against those prevailing conditions.

A sort of ‘Perpetuum Mobile’ (perpetual motion) ?

another point to raise is that in heavy seas which this vessel will encounter much of the year, wood works a lot meaning leaking which requires pumps to operate continuously which themselves must be powered somehow. With heavy cloud cover, forget solar so short of diesel generators or steam how do you run these pumps? Kind of defeats the whole zero carbon idea.

Also wood makes for a heavy hull which means slow speed. This whole concept is based on marine transportation which was proved uneconomical more than a century ago so from a practical operations standpoint, this is a deadman walking even before standing up.

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at least I am not the first to ask this question…

I wished this had included more images though

If this is going to get anywhere they’ll have to switch aux power to diesel.

then is it dead even before it is born