Dear Sailors,
It has to be the time to keep you informed about planning and to wet your appetites as we should like you to share our experiences on the Viking trail. This is a copy of the e.mail.
Gitte and I plan to return to the boat early April, complete the fitting out and set sail northwards through the Chesapeake Bay and the canal that joins it to Delaware Bay. The first place of importance has to be New York then on to that famous Viking stronghold of Martha's Vinyard, round Cape Cod to Portland and then to the Canadian border. Here we shall be in the Canadian Maritimes of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. From the Belle Isle, lying to the north of Newfoundland, we may make the crossing to Nuuk in Greenland depending on ice. If there is not too much of this about a little exploration of the south of Labrador may be possible.
From Nuuk we will follow the receeding ice southwards towards Cape Farewell. Iceland at Reykjavik or Vestmannaeyjer should be our next port of call and finally the Sound of Harris and Lochmaddy! That is it in a nut shell or coracle.
Timings and Planning
These are dictated by distance and weather, of course. From April the weather on the US eastern seaboard begins to improve and we should be following this improvement as we sail north. Ice clears from around Newfoundland in June, though some icebergs may still be present. Once clear of Labrador and into the Davis Strait, there is little ice especially the more north one sails. Strangely the ports along the NW coast are open for most of the year but we shall not go that far. Nuuk is open from mid July with the ice clearing southwards as the year progresses. The ice in the south west come from the east side round Cape Farewell. Come late August there is little and passage around the Cape can be as close as 35 miles. Because of the start of deteriorating weather systems we should be on our way back by the end of August. Initial distances I estimated in excess of 4000 miles but by not going too far along the Labrador coast this is recuced by up to 600 miles. Converting this to nautical miles the total comes to nearer 3500nm. With the time available the average distance per day is only 23. That should leave plenty of slack in the system.
In summary then
MId April Leave Virginia
Eary May New York
June Canadian Maritimes
Mid July Nuuk Greenland
Late August Sail for Iceland
Early Sept Sail for Scotland
Please regard this as personnal message though addressed to all! Such are the failings of modern comms. There no doubt that this promises to a superb cruise and scanning web sites we have found some excellent photos especially the further north one looks. Do come along.
Be looking for you,
