Maritime transport Finnish Silja Jacoby works as a coxswain on the world’s largest wooden sailing ship – a model from the 18th century

For one two months at sea, one to two months free. Such is the Finnish Silja Jacobyn rhythm well into the end of next year.

Jacoby, 27, graduated as a sea captain from Novia University of Applied Sciences two and a half years ago. Jacoby has worked on sailing ships before, but his current job, the Swedish sailing ship Götheborg, differs considerably in appearance.

Gothenburg is a replica of a sailing ship of the same name by the Swedish East India Company, which sailed the seas of the world in the 18th century.

Nearly 50 meters long and 11 meters wide, the ship is the world’s largest wooden ocean-going sailing vessel in service. The ship is open to the public in the South Harbor of Helsinki for an entrance fee until Monday until about noon.

At the beginning of June, Gothenburg left Gothenburg, Sweden, for the second major trip to Asia in its history. The ship made a similar voyage shortly after its completion in 2005-2007.

The journey between Gothenburg and Silja Jacoby will continue in the coming months across the Nordic capitals, Western Europe and the Mediterranean. In the spring of 2023, the ship will head through the Suez Canal toward the Indian Ocean with a destination in the port of Shanghai, where it is scheduled to arrive in late 2023.

Original Gothenburg was wrecked in front of the port of Gothenburg in 1745.

Jacoby’s job is to make sure that the same does not happen to the newer Gothenburg. As the co-pilot in charge of navigation, he prepares the ship’s routes and ensures that the ship follows the planned route.

Jacoby’s work station is a small navigation cabin. He digs nautical charts and a harp out of the cabin box system.

Nautical charts were used for navigation in the Baltic Sea as early as the 18th century, but in addition to these, Jacoby has modern ECDIS and AIS systems used to locate the ship, avoid collisions and identify other ships.

“The ship has modern rescue and navigation equipment. Otherwise, the ship would not be allowed to sail by the authorities, ”says Jacoby.

However, the ship’s steering system follows the old construction method. The bridge has a huge wooden rudder, and there is a crew on the deck to check the condition of the ropes used to steer the sails.

As he stands on the tar-scented deck and directs his gaze upward, the dozens of ropes attached to the ship’s mast squeak in the eyes of the layman.

“Every rope has a purpose,” Jacoby assures.

Some there are also modern conveniences on board. The osmosis machine makes the salty seawater potable fresh water and the generator in the engine room takes care of the electricity production. The ship also has water toilets and showers.

Sailors who pop on the ship for a short time sleep in sleeping halls on either hammocks or modest bunk beds, but the ship’s permanent crew has their own small cabins.

We will not be able to visit the sleeping quarters as some of the crew are asleep at the time of the interview.

Previously Jacoby has served as second mate and chief mate on cargo ships, as a volunteer mate in Helena, a scholar owned by the Finnish Sailing Ship Foundation, and as second mate in the sailing ship T / S Gunilla, whose home port is in Öckerö in western Sweden.

The sailing ship in Gothenburg started with Jacoby this summer. He wanted to switch from cargo ships back to sailing ships, and the captain of Gothenburg was already familiar to Jacob from his previous job.

Although Jacoby has hundreds of days of experience with sailing ships, Gothenburg differs from the previous ones in terms of sailing technology. For example, the set of sails used in a ship, a combination of different sails, is different, which together with the hull of the ship affects the sailing characteristics of the ship.

What has been common to previous sailing ships is that training is a big part of Jacoby’s job description in Gothenburg as well. The Swedish sailing ship Gunilla is a training ship for a sailing-focused high school, and while working there, Jacoby trained high school students to handle the sailing ship.

Schooner Helena is also a training ship, whose sailing crew introduces the participants to navigation.

You will also get on a trip to Gothenburg for a week or two at a time deckhandejaa type of volunteer who is not required to have any training or previous sailing experience in the field.

That is why education is part of Jacoby’s work in Gothenburg.

Gothenburg is scheduled to reach the port of Shanghai by the end of 2023. However, navigating mate Jacoby reminds that route and schedule plans may still change.

For example, on the day of the interview, it became clear that the ship’s arrival from Helsinki to the port of Stockholm would be delayed for some days, as the ship would have to be taken to the shipyard to fine-tune the propeller blades.

Jacoby does not yet know what he is going to do when Gothenburg arrives. Although his 4.5 years of polytechnic studies already produced the papers of a sea captain, he needs more days at sea to qualify as a sea captain.

Taking Gothenburg through all three oceans is not enough.