At 9.36 pm, somewhere in the middle of the Baltic Sea between the Danish harbour metropolis of Aarhus and Helsingborg in Sweden, a scene takes place in the lounge on the Lido deck that we are not prepared for. While the "Sea Cloud Spirit" is bumping along good-naturedly, steadily and under engine against 7 Beaufort from the east-southeast, up here on the dignified third deck the shanty choir consisting of 20 crew members lines up next to a Steinway grand piano and begins to belt out a passionate and thoroughly entertaining best-of of the most famous sea shanties. "I am sailing, home again, 'cross the sea ..." The majority of the 42 checked-in guests have gathered for this happening in the wood-panelled lounge with its cosy art deco touch, enjoying co*cktails from the attentive barman Anton Campos and even singing along - thanks to the song sheets provided.
Drinks and entertainment are - contrary to our first impression - not the focus of the "Sea Cloud Spirit". Nevertheless, attractive art and culinary programmes round off the varied itinerary from time to time. For example, star pianist Igor Levit plays in the lounge, or the creative chef conjures up menus inspired by museums and works of art on land on a ten-day voyage. "Many of our guests are long-time sailors who love the comfort on board our ships, but also attach great importance to the fact that we set sail whenever possible," says Sea Cloud Cruises press officer Wolfgang Heumer. Of course, it cannot be avoided that the tight travel schedule and weather conditions sometimes collide and it becomes necessary to motor for a day in order to reach the next harbour on time. After all, the shore programme also needs to be ticked off.
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Construction with highs and lows
You can tell that the 85-strong crew enjoy their work and harmonise with each other. "The image is not deceptive," says Heumer, who has been on board on numerous voyages. "The team is happy when they can spoil guests." However, a lot of time passed before this could happen. It took twelve years to complete the 138-metre-long "Sea Cloud Spirit", whose keel was laid in 2008 at the Factoria Naval Marin shipyard in Vigo, Spain. Two years later, the shipyard went bankrupt and construction was cancelled.
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It was not until 2018 that construction picked up speed again after Sea Cloud Cruises was able to award the contract for completion to the shipbuilders from Metalships & Docks, also based in Vigo. However, construction was not to continue smoothly once again: the coronavirus pandemic caused considerable delays, partly due to the strict lockdown in Spain. The christening and maiden voyage originally planned for August 2020 were cancelled, as was a new date for the first voyage in April 2021. "Sea Cloud Spirit" was finally completed on 29 April 2021, more than a decade later than originally planned.
The "Sea Cloud Spirit" - Class instead of mass
As with the two much smaller sister ships in the Sea Cloud fleet, the credo was class instead of mass. "Sea Cloud Spirit" has four decks with a wide range of facilities for passengers: Main Deck, Promenade Deck, Lido Deck as well as Captain's Deck and Sun Deck. The 69 guest cabins are spread over three decks. On the promenade deck, in addition to the reception and the elegant restaurant with a 270-degree view over the stern, there are 25 suites with private balconies. One deck below, on the main deck, there is an infirmary, a boutique and the wellness and spa area including a steam bath, sauna, hairdressing salon and relaxation area. A bathing platform can also be folded down on the starboard side, from which water sports activities are possible.
On the lido deck, the Hamburg planning office Partner Ship Design has installed a library at the front, from which you can enjoy a fantastic view of the forecastle. There is no better place to read a book. Behind this is the lounge, including a grand piano and bar, while an open bar with bistro completes the offer in the stern area. Snacks, coffee and drinks are served here at extremely regular intervals. The captain's and sun deck above is largely open, while the superstructure in the forward section houses the bridge, the captain's cabin and office aft and a gym for guests. "The fitness area was very popular on our 17-day Atlantic crossing," reveals Wolfgang Heumer with a grin. "This is probably also due to the excellent and regular food on board." The passenger areas are connected by a staircase and a lift. As is usual on superyachts, the crew live at the bottom of the ship.
Windy cruise
The next day begins early in the morning in Copenhagen; whenever possible, "Sea Cloud Spirit" sails to overnight destinations so that guests can experience as much as possible in the few hours ashore.
"It looks like we can set sail on our next and final leg to Kiel. The current forecast is still very windy at 25 to 30 knots, but if the wind direction is right, we can easily sail at up to 35 knots, i.e. eight forces of wind," says Captain Vukota Stojanovic on the bridge. When asked what a storm is for him, he has a clear answer: "If nothing falls off my office desk, it's not a storm." But there are limits. "We try to sail with a heel of less than six degrees, otherwise the galley will have problems."
Storm "Poly", which hit Schleswig-Holstein in July with hurricane-force winds, was also felt by "Sea Cloud Spirit" on its leg from Oslo to Aarhus. "With wind gusts of up to 50 knots and waves over four metres high in the Skagerrak, it was a rough crossing, during which many guests had our on-board doctor give them plasters against seasickness," says the captain.
Sailing plan of the Sea Cloud Spirit
Complex sailing manoeuvres with 18 people
170 nautical miles to Kiel are on the programme for the last day of the voyage, and the wind direction is favourable. Vukota Stojanovic steers the three-master, which has a draught of 5.70 metres and is equipped with two canting keels, across the Øresund and far to the west into Køge Bay in order to achieve an optimum angle to the wind. "We sail particularly well with the square sails on a half-wind course, i.e. a TWA of 90 degrees. We can tack up to 70 degrees, but then the pressure in the 4,165 square metres of sails and the heeling increase unnecessarily."
Then the time has finally come. "Dear guests, I hate to disturb you, but I am pleased to announce that we will be setting sail again at 3 p.m.," cruise director Sabrina Sylvester can be heard proclaiming over the ship's loudspeakers.
Even the guests who have been able to witness the spectacle several times during the voyage don't miss it. The best places for this are on the sun deck, with so much happening on board that it is hard to know where to look first. In contrast to similarly sized superyachts such as Jeff Bezos' 127 metre long three-masted gaff schooner "Koru" or the 143 metre giant "Sailing Yacht A", which set their comparably large sail surfaces hydraulically and at the touch of a button, every sheet, every halyard and full-rigged special features such as gethaue (square sail halyard) and gordings (square sail reefing line) are operated manually on board the "Sea Cloud Spirit". That takes time. "We need between 30 and 45 minutes until all 28 sails are in the wind," explains Captain Stojanovic.
There are clear procedures and a hierarchical structure to ensure that everything runs smoothly on board during the complex manoeuvres. The captain decides to sail and gives the order to set sail to his bosun Vilmor Gemogalen, who is in charge of three masts and a rigging crew of 18 sailors. He decides which sails are to be set in which wind force. Each mast in turn has its own mast captain, who is responsible for carrying out the instructions.
At the end of Køge Bay, "Sea Cloud Spirit" finally sets a south-easterly course, the wind is blowing at 15 knots, "perfect conditions", says the captain happily. At all three masts, three sailors climb simultaneously into the steel rig, designed by tall ship luminary Zygmunt Choren and built in Poland, and, balancing on the foot horses (walking ropes underneath the yards), begin to loosen the toes, whereupon the sails begin to fall. Sail by sail, right up to the royals, which require a climb to a height of 58 metres.
The headsail battery consisting of jibs, jibs and staysails is unfurled at the same time until 4,165 square metres of Dacron cloth are in the wind, pushing the 4,835-tonne displacement "Sea Cloud Spirit" at speeds of up to eleven knots. "When we sail, we sail - without an engine, of course!" says Vukota Stojanovic, as the full-rigged ship gently leans to one side in a few 25-knot gusts. With a beam of 17.20 metres, five degrees of heel are clearly noticeable. The guests on board are beaming, enjoying their drinks under full sail and looking forward to the last social highlight of their trip: the Captain's co*cktail in the lounge, with piano music of course.
Technical data of the Sea Cloud Spirit
- Length over everything: 138 m
- Width: 17,20 m
- Depth: 5,65 m
- Displacement: 4.835 t
- Sailing on the wind: 4.165 m²
- Number of sails: 28
- Height of main mast: 57,90 m
- Passengers: max. 136
- Crew: 85
- Shipyard: Factoria Naval Marin, Metalships & Docks
- Year of construction: 2021
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