Norsemen’s route from Greenland to Wineland 165 
a bear on the island and thereafter called it Bjarney (bear island), but the 
country Markland.” 
Let us on the map observe the possibilities of coasting in these re- 
gions, that is to say from the point somewhere or other on the north- 
east coast of Labrador where the expedition must have reached land. 
From here it had either to go towards N. N. W. or towards 5. 5. Е. along 
the coast; but of these two possibilities there can in this connection 
naturally only be a question of the latter. 
As far as the Strait of Belle Isle in 52° N. lat. there is no prospect for 
any sort of diverging movements. There is from this strait, however, a 
possibility of three routes: along the continent, along the west coast 
of Newfoundland, and along the east coast of this island. Which was 
the one taken by Karlsefni? 
If one dares commend oneself to the given text, one must apprehend 
it as having been the coast of the continent. It imphes this, that they 
bore away towards the south-west and that an island “Bjarney’’ lay to 
the south-east. All this agrees with the conditions near the Strait of 
Belle Isle, where one has the turn of the coast, and where Newfound- 
land lies as an island to the south-east. Naturally Bjarney must not be 
thought of as the whole of the great island Newfoundland, but only as 
the north end of Newfoundland’s northerly narrow peninsula. The 
skipper who came along Labrador’s coast was obliged to pass, at a range 
of at least 50—60 Km, a 15—20 km broad strait, thus he could hardly 
avoid noticing that there was land to the south-east. 
But he must have got the impression that it was a smaller country 
or an island, in comparison with the great bulk of land, the coast of which 
he himself sailed along. Unless Karlsefni for some reason or other left 
the coast of the continent at the eastern entrance to the Strait of Belle 
Isle, in order to continue along one of the coasts of Newfoundland. Of 
these it would be most reasonable to think of the east coast, partly 
because, as is remarked later on, he had the coast on the starboard side, 
and partly because it could be thought that he continued south of the 
Strait of Belle Isle along the continuation of the north-eastern Labrador 
coast without being aware of the opening of a Strait. 
The thought is barely reasonable. To be sure, Newfoundland might 
be Markland to judge from its vegetation, but beyond this nothing agrees 
with the contents of the saga. The saga’s following mention of long 
sandy beaches does not agree with the fjord-like coast of Newfoundland. 
Hovgaard’s assumption that the most extreme point reached by the 
expedition, or consequently Wineland itself, ought to be sought near 
White Bay on Newfoundland’s north-east coast, and that the sandy 
beaches should be found between Sandwich Bay in Labrador and the 
Strait of Belle Isle, is not particularly convincing. The same is the case 
with the possibility of Karlsefni having continued towards the south along 
