deva in paradise

Sailing on the most beautiful Sailing Ship afloat, again.

As we made our way back to the USA we made a detour to join the magnificent “Sea Cloud”, which had just finished its twice-yearly Atlantic crossing from Europe. We boarded her in Curacao after flying directly from from Amsterdam,. Then we sailed via the Netherlands Antilles, Colombia and San Blas Islands to Panama...

The Sea Cloud is a four masted bark built in Germany 86 years ago. She is one of the last remaining iron-hulled tall ships built at the zenith of sailing ships in the early 1900's.

The reason we joined her was Debby's idea: to celebrate 49 years since Mike worked his first job on a ship. He was Galley Boy on on the Sea Cloud in 1968-69 at the age of 17. So as you could imagine, it was a very nostalgic experience. Adding to that, we have both seen the Sea Cloud several times over the years in the Caribbean, where she is the grandest of the many sailing vessels that ply the area. One never forgets their first sight of her under sail with all 33 sails set, flying along at 15 knots or more...

When Mike sailed on her in the 1960's there were few sailing vessels left of that size and complexity. The evolution of sailing ships that started about 5000 years ago reached its evolutionary peak with these ships built in North Sea shipyards of Germany. The Sea Cloud above deck had all of the features of the glorious ships that once carried grain and nitrate between Europe and South America, around the Great Capes in gale force winds with no engines at all. Massive steel masts and yards up to 200 feet above the waterline, over 30 miles of running rigging, and needing all 65 crew members to set and furl sails. There was no more exciting job in the world for a young lad who wanted nothing more than to climb the highest masts, heave on the lines with his mates, and feel the tall ship heel in a fresh breeze.

The average age of the crew in 1968 was 24 years old. That included the Captain and the Chief Mate who were probably in their 50's... Most of the crew were Scandinavian, from Norway, Sweden, and Denmark, with a few Brits. Mike was the only American on board. Being the lowest ranking crew member on the ship, he was subjected to all the normal rites of passage. His nickname was “Yebla Yankee”, meaning “Yankee Devil” His day started when he was given a 50 gallon drum full of potatoes to peel on Main deck next to the pantry.

Peeling potatoes and washing pots and dishes was less interesting than climbing the ratlines,, but he was willing to do those tasks just to sail on the awesome Sea Cloud. His pay was $80 a month but he would have done it for nothing. When he signed off in 1969 after 4 months onboard learning everything he could, he was still just an ordinary seaman. It was the start of his maritime career that continued until he retired as a ships Pilot in 2017.