Milestones of the Project
SOON! | Stern Post Assembly
The vertical elements at the stern of the ship, extending from keel to deck, will be installed shortly. With our strong team, we are able to hoist all of the pieces by hand, like we did with the stem. Keep an eye on our social media channels (Instagram is best!) to see live-content while the assembly is taking place.
25th March 2020 | Gammon Knee Installed
The stem received its crown on March 25th. The cutwater, the forwardmost point of the ship, finally rested in its rightful place. The gammon knee is made out of pure Guapinol hardwood and weighs about 320 kg (700lbs+).
8th January 2020 | One Year Anniversary
Just one year ago we laid Ceiba’s keel. It feels like yesterday, but the impressive size this ship has grown clearly shows the time that has passed since this day. We celebrated this day with a talent show inside of Ceiba’s and with a special video release.
Videos: 2019 - Year in Review
20th November 2019 | Midship Frame is Up
While we're far from being halfway through the whole Ceiba build, we have reached a symbolic halfway mark for the framing process. From now on the bevel of the next frames turn to the aft.
Videos: Assembling Ceiba's Frames
Blog: What a Good Week at the Yard
30th August 2019 | Raising Ceiba’s Stem
Almost 7m long and weighing over 2 tonnes, the Guapinol stem piece was felled by a landslide 20 km from the shipyard. Adding shape and character to the ship, the stem now stands tall in its rightful place, overlooking the Gulf of Nicoya for the time being.
Videos: Building Ceiba's Stem / Raising Ceiba’s Stem
1st March 2019 | First Small Boat Building Course at our Shipyard
Our non-profit association, AstilleroVerde, held its first boat building course in March 2019, which was attended by local artisanal sustainable fishermen from the nearby fishing village of Costa de Pajaros. For more information please check the website www.astilleroverde.org.
February 2019 | Restoration of 90 Year Old Ship Saw Completed
Found in a car park in Victoria, B.C., this impressive piece of machinery, built in 1927, was restored here at the shipyard. A life revived, we gave a new purpose to this old machine.
20th February 2019 | Hoisting the First Frame
Hoisting the first frame was achieved through pure ‘man- (and girl) power’ ; hauling and lifting the giant that is Frame No. 48 up into the sky with the use of ropes rigged to keel, hanger and hand. Many strong arms heaved ropes through a pulley system, hoisting the first frame onto the keel.
Video: Raising Ceiba’s Frames Blog: A Revival of Traditional Wooden Ship Framing
8th January 2019 | Laying Ceiba’s Keel
During all those times we read history books about a ship beginning on the day the keel is laid, it had never occurred to us just how much work had to be put in prior to that special day...
8th January 2019 - 'Day One' of the Ceiba build!
Video: Laying Ceiba's Keel
November 2018 | Lofting of Ceiba Completed
Lofting is a technical drawing / drafting technique whereby curved lines are created to form the shape of the streamlined object in full-sized patterns. The lofting of Ceiba was led by master shipwright Bert van Baar.
Video: A Ship in the Lines / The Tip of the Iceberg
Blog: Welcome to the Lofting Experience / Lofting en la lluvia
July 2018 | Shipbuilding Hangar & Basic Infrastructure Completed
In July 2018 the massive canvas covers for the shipbuilding hangar were installed, which were sewn into custom dimension here at the shipyard. These heavy canvas covers provide essential shade to our shipbuilders and their installation marked the finalization of our shipbuilding hangar.
December 2017 | Moving to the Shipyard in Punta Morales
In December 2017 our team moved down to the shipyard land. We only had one little house on the site, which the early team of volunteers used as a sleeping place, while construction the first workshops.
Video: Shipyard Build Site
Blog: Welcome to Our Shipyard
July 2017 | Building our First Treehouse-Office
In July 2017 our team spent multiple days in Punta Morales to built our first office, which is part of the essential infrastructure needed to start working at our shipyard. At that point our headquarters have still been 1.5 hours up the mountain, in Monteverde.
Blog: Shipyard Office: Aerial Construction | From a Tree to a Treehouse
5th February 2017 | First Investment in Ceiba
And so a dream gave way to possibility. This day marked the first major milestone in Ceiba’s story, a moment that breathed life into the project, a sign of hope for the future of our oceans.
October 2016 | Kickstarter Campaign Successful
“Help us begin construction on a cargo tallship in Costa Rica & achieve carbon-negative freight shipping!” This is how it all started. We succeeded our Kickstarter Campaign and raised CA$ 30,821.
April 2016 | Registered “SAILCARGO INC.”
The registration of SAILCARGO INC. represented an important first step in the journey toward emission free cargo shipping. We had a company and a vast amount of work ahead, and we were excited to embark upon the path of this promising project.
Progress Chart
Construction Process
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