Ruth

In 1946, Captain Viktor Luik bought the Ruth from Jüri Kaudla, (who organized the voyage of the Dagmar). Välis-Eesti newspaper reported that the boat, which according to some documents was renamed the Rolling Home, departed Göteborg for Durban, South Africa, on August 6, 1947. The wooden three-masted boat was 12.49 meters long.  The Ruth added passengers in Denmark and crossed through the Kiel Canal, stopping in Hamburg, Germany, where it picked up additional people, including Senta Grunzig, Luik’s future wife. Leaving Hamburg, the boat was intercepted by a British naval patrol boat and detained for five days in Cuxhaven, Germany. The Danish passengers, who apparently had escaped from a prison, were removed.

The Ruth made stops in Portsmouth, Brest, Coruña, Lisbon, Huelva, Cadiz, Tangier, Rabat, and Casablanca, spending about a week in each port. Captain Luik then decided to start transporting goods between some of the same harbors, which some passengers opposed. When three people went ashore in Casablanca, the captain simply sailed off, stranding them in the French Protectorate of Morocco. Captain Luik and Senta Grunzig’s journey ended in Venezuela, after passengers who had boarded the boat in Spain tried to hijack it. Viktor Luik registered the Ruth in Pampatar, Venezuela, on Jan. 7, 1949. He and Senta remained in Venezuela for the rest of their lives and raised three daughters. He never shared his past with his grandchildren, who grew up thinking he was Swedish. 

Known crew and passenger:
Captain Viktor Luik
Senta Grunzig