Viking Country
Aug. 26-27, 2012







Heading north to where the Vikings landed, we stopped at Point Riche lighthouse and the Port au Choix National Historic Site, where archeological research uncovered  evidence of human settlements at this location 5,000 years ago.








Heading on to St. Anthony, we had dinner at the Lightkeepers Restaurant, which is written up in several travel guides as one of the better seafood restaurants. It is adjacent to Fishing Point Park where we boondocked for the night. The park overlooks the entrance to the St. Anthony harbor. Right next to our vehicles was a fog horn, which starting sounding off when the fog rolled in in the morning; we had no trouble waking up that morning.








Our next stop was L'Anse aux Meadows National Site at the tip of the northern peninsula. In 1960, an archeologist discovered evidence of a Viking settlement at this location about 1,000 years ago. This site is now considered to be the only authenticated Viking settlement site in North America. The ridges in this photo show the location of the walls of one of their buildings. After the archeological studies were completed, the site was recovered with sod to restore it to its natural state.







Adjacent to the archeological site are reconstructed Viking buildings based on historical data from Iceland; the Vikings are believed to have come here via Iceland, Greenland, and Labrador.







A typical Viking chieftain's home.









Inside the sod buildings were docents dressed in costumes from the Viking era and playing the role of Norse people in the Viking settlement.









Ed, wearing a Viking helmet and carrying a shield and axe, is playing the role of a Viking warrior. He looks pretty fearsome to me.









A few miles away is Norstead, a commercial re-enactment of a Viking settlement.








A couple of the docents at Norstead playing the role of Viking women.








Ed sitting in the chieftain's chair with his Viking "wife" beside him, but at a lower level.







These Viking women were engaged in making yarn, weaving, and sewing, according to Viking customs and styles of the era.

Next stop: Labrador