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Archaeologist Greer Jarrett at Lund University in Sweden has been sailing in the footsteps of Vikings for three years. He can now show that the Vikings sailed farther away from Scandinavia, and took routes farther from land, than was previously believed to have been possible. In his latest study, he has found evidence of a decentralised network of ports, located on islands and peninsulas, which probably played a central role in trade and travel in the Viking era.

The sailing boat – an open, square-rigged clinker boat similar to the boats used during the Viking Age (800-1050 AD) – travelled from Trondheim up to the Arctic Circle and back in 2022. Since then, Greer Jarrett and his team have sailed over 5,000 kilometres along Viking trade routes (see map). His research shows that the likely routes of the Vikings took them farther from land than previously thought.

“I can show that this type of boat sails well on open water, in tough conditions. But navigating close to land and in the fjords sometimes presents challenges that are just as great, but not as obvious. Underwater currents and katabatic winds blowing down from mountain slopes, for example,” says Greer Jarrett, a doctoral student in archaeology at Lund University.

Jarrett's research trips have not been without risks. When the yard holding up the mainsail snapped off the coast of Norway, the crew were forced to improvise to save themselves from distress.

“The cold in the Lofoten Islands was a challenge. Our hands really suffered. At that point I realised just how crucial it is to have a good crew,” says Greer Jarrett.

Has interviewed Norwegian seafarers

Jarrett has also tested the boat's capabilities on the open sea, sailing both the Kattegat and the Baltic Sea. Despite the lack of a deep-draught keel, Jarrett says the boats are surprisingly stable.

In a previously published paper, Jarrett and his colleagues have shown that in the Middle Ages it was possible for Greenlanders to travel to remote parts of the Arctic in search of walrus tusks using this type of boat.

To identify specific Viking routes, Jarrett also interviewed sailors and fishermen about the routes traditionally used in the 19th and early 20th centuries, when sailing boats without engines were still common in Norway.

“I used the experience of my own journeys and the sailors’ traditional knowledge to reconstruct possible Viking Age sailing routes.”

Stories helped Vikings to navigate

The Vikings did not navigate by map, compass or sextant. Instead, they used “mental maps” where memories and experiences played a crucial role. They also used myths linked to various coastal landmarks.

“Examples include Viking stories about the islands Torghatten, Hestmona and Skrova off the Norwegian coast. The stories serve to remind sailors of the dangers surrounding these places, or of their importance as navigation marks.”

These preserved myths are the last remnants of what must once have been a landscape steeped in stories. Jarrett calls this a “Maritime Cultural Mindscape”. Small islets, skerries and reefs were all part of a web of stories that helped the Vikings navigate through the landscape; and that were passed down through generations of seafarers.

Possible Viking harbours identified

Through a combination of direct experience of the characteristics of the boats, and digital reconstruction of what the landscape looked like in the Viking Age, Jarrett has identified four possible Viking harbours along the Norwegian coast in his latest publication. (See image)

The locations of these ports (Jarret calls them “havens”) are farther out to sea than the major ports and hubs, known to date.

“With this type of boat, it has to be easy to get in and out of the harbour in all possible wind conditions. There must be several routes in and out. Shallow bays are not an issue because of the shallow draft of the boats. Getting far up the narrow fjords, however, is tricky. They are difficult to sail upwind with a square rig, and the boats are sensitive to katabatic winds.”

Jarrett's hypothesis is that during the Viking Age, such small, easily accessible harbours abounded. Places where sailors could pause, rest, and meet other seafarers.
“A lot of the time, we only know about the starting and ending points of the trade that took place during the Viking Age. Major ports, such as Bergen and Trondheim in Norway, Ribe in Denmark, and Dublin in Ireland. The thing I am interested in is what happened on the journeys between these major trading centres. My hypothesis is that this decentralised network of ports, located on small islands and peninsulas, was central to making trade efficient during the Viking Age.”

Mast fixed with oars

Jarrett's research trips have faced a few challenges. On their way back from Lofoten in May 2022, the yard (mast spar) holding up the mainsail broke as they sailed through the middle of Vestfjorden. The accident happened with the vessel 25 kilometres out to sea.

“We had to lash two oars together to hold the sail, and hope that it would hold. We made it back to the harbour safely, but then we had to spend several days repairing the boat before we could sail again.”

“On another trip, a minke whale suddenly surfaced and flapped its huge tail fin just metres from the boat.”

Jarret's adventures have also highlighted how important relationships must have been during the Viking voyages.

“You need a boat that can withstand all kinds of weather conditions. But if you don't have a crew that can cooperate and put up with each other for long periods, these journeys would probably be impossible,” Jarrett concludes.