Modern navigational technology can seem little short of miraculous, and there is little doubt that it saves time, trouble, and lives every single day. That said, it is far from perfect. Charts can be lost, misplaced, or destroyed; although you may order them in plenty of time—ahem!—they may get to you too late, and even the most detailed charts may not be entirely accurate nor contain all the minute local information you may find you need. GPS is very good, but far from perfect, and signals can be lost and electronics compromised. Even the tried and true compass has its limitations, as anyone trained to use one learns early in the process. As John noted in an earlier post in which he thanked Janice and Trent, amongst others, experience and local wisdom based on traditional knowledge can prove vital supplements, adding insight, color, and details of conditions not always captured in charts, or even in weather reports. Sage wisdom offered by returning travelers can also prove helpful, such as that gifted to us by Jim Taylor, who offered crucial insight based on recent experience.
The point of this blog is that this sort of collective wisdom and group memory was at the core of Viking navigation and exploration. The sagas are replete with information passed on from one voyager to another, and even when taken with a grain of salt, these often might help to provide a fuller picture of what might lay over the horizon in terra incognito. The Norse did not have charts as we understand them, nor did they rely upon the compass. Nor did they know how to fix longitude, although (when visible!) the sun and the stars could guide them reasonably well. In general, however, the Vikings crossed the Atlantic by what we would term latitude sailing, moving roughly from east to west from one landmark, waypoint, or island to the next, often according to a memorized schedule of days for each leg of the journey. They would have to adjust for calm, storm, sunless days, and the like, largely by educated guesswork, drawing upon generations of accumulated wisdom. They might also rely upon tell-tale bits of flotsam and jetsam, the types and movements of birds and aquatic animals they encountered, the direction and force of the wind and swell, and even the color and taste of the water. This is all to say that—although as this very blog and its concomitant satellite tracking map certainly attest!—as much as we have utilized and embraced any and all available technological aids on our journey In the Wake of the Vikings, we have also tried to emulate the ancient Norse respect for local knowledge and traditional wisdom.
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In the Wake of the Vikings 