- CHAPTER 1 -
ERIK THE RED EMBARKS ON A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY
During a large family gathering at the home of Bjarne Herjólfsson’s father, Bard Herjólfsson, in Iceland; Bjarne made a surprise offer to his great-nephew, Leif Erikson, who himself was showing great promise as a sea captain. Bjarne offered Leif a leading seaman’s role on his ship, on a return trip to Bergen and Trondheim, Norway for the next supply mission. This would be a great opportunity for Leif to learn many navigational skills aboard the very ship which was so thoroughly tested as it endured being tossed and thrashed about in that wild North Atlantic storm when Bjarne first sighted an unknown land in the far west. Leif accepted the offer with a thank you to his great uncle. Leif’s half-sister Freydis was visibly feeling left without an opportunity to hone her skills at sea; when her father, Erik the Red suggested she could join his crew in his seafaring ship; giving her the opportunity to investigate and perhaps even visit the new unknown land which Bjarne reported having sighted in the far west, across the North Atlantic Sea. This would be a daring mission; but Erik trusted that Uncle Bjarne could give him suitable bearings that would enable them to make landfall and investigate the lands. 1
