The Norwegian built Viking ship Draken Harald Hårfagre has set sails from Haugesund in Norway, heading west across the Atlantic. The ship will arrive in Reykjavík on May 3. From Iceland the ship will continue westward, following in the wake of Vikings who sailed from Iceland to Greenland, and from there to North America.
Read more: The Vikings left their mark on the European map: Here is our guide to help you find them
The ship is a recreation of a type of Viking ship called Skeid, a version of the longship, would have looked like. The construction used archaeological knowledge and old boatbuilding traditions as well as legends gleaned from the Icelandic sagas. It is the largest seaworthy Viking ship in existence, measuring 35 m (115 ft) from stern to stern, and 8 m (26 ft) wide. The largest Viking ship discovered by archaeologists is the Roskilde ship, which is 27 m (121 ft) long.
It is manned by a international crew of 32 men and women. The crew was chosen from over 4,000 volunteers, and includes people from Norway, Sweden, Estonia, Russia, Spain, France and the UK, as well as US and Canada. No Icelanders are on the crew. According to the local newspaper Morgunblaðið, the Icelandic boat builder Gunnar Marel Eggertsson was asked to join the crew, but was unable to participate in the voyage. Gunnar Marel built the Viking ship Íslendingur, which he sailed to America in 2000 to commemorate the 1,000 year anniversary of the voyage of Icelandic explorer Leifur Eiríksson to North America.
Read more: Ten fascinating facts about the statue of Leifur Eiríksson
The ship is set to arrive in Reykjavík on May 3, from where it sails on to Greenland. It will arrive in Quqortoq on May. From there it sails to North America, arriving in St Anthony in Newfoundland, Canada on June 1. The ship will then sail between various ports on the East Coast of Canada and the US, ending it‘s journey in October in Mystic Seaport in Connecticut.
You can follow the voyage of the Viking ship on Facebook.
The Norwegian built Viking ship Draken Harald Hårfagre has set sails from Haugesund in Norway, heading west across the Atlantic. The ship will arrive in Reykjavík on May 3. From Iceland the ship will continue westward, following in the wake of Vikings who sailed from Iceland to Greenland, and from there to North America.
Read more: The Vikings left their mark on the European map: Here is our guide to help you find them
The ship is a recreation of a type of Viking ship called Skeid, a version of the longship, would have looked like. The construction used archaeological knowledge and old boatbuilding traditions as well as legends gleaned from the Icelandic sagas. It is the largest seaworthy Viking ship in existence, measuring 35 m (115 ft) from stern to stern, and 8 m (26 ft) wide. The largest Viking ship discovered by archaeologists is the Roskilde ship, which is 27 m (121 ft) long.
It is manned by a international crew of 32 men and women. The crew was chosen from over 4,000 volunteers, and includes people from Norway, Sweden, Estonia, Russia, Spain, France and the UK, as well as US and Canada. No Icelanders are on the crew. According to the local newspaper Morgunblaðið, the Icelandic boat builder Gunnar Marel Eggertsson was asked to join the crew, but was unable to participate in the voyage. Gunnar Marel built the Viking ship Íslendingur, which he sailed to America in 2000 to commemorate the 1,000 year anniversary of the voyage of Icelandic explorer Leifur Eiríksson to North America.
Read more: Ten fascinating facts about the statue of Leifur Eiríksson
The ship is set to arrive in Reykjavík on May 3, from where it sails on to Greenland. It will arrive in Quqortoq on May. From there it sails to North America, arriving in St Anthony in Newfoundland, Canada on June 1. The ship will then sail between various ports on the East Coast of Canada and the US, ending it‘s journey in October in Mystic Seaport in Connecticut.
You can follow the voyage of the Viking ship on Facebook.
