A crew of 6 adventurers set sail on a 500-nautical-mile voyage in the North Sea from Tvøroyri on the Faroe Islands bound for Trondheim, Norway aboard Naddoddur, a 33′ long Faroese Viking ship replica. The voyage, expected to take 3-5 days, ended in tragedy last Tuesday when the craft capsized in high seas near Norway’s dreaded Stad Peninsula. American archeologist Karla Dana drowned. The remaining five, one Faroese and four Swiss nationals, were rescued from a liferaft.
The voyage referred to as “The “Legendary Viking Voyage,” was organized by Sail2North Expeditions and was attempting to recreate Viking travel between Norway and the Faroe Islands.
Naddoddur was named after Naddodd, a 9th-century Norse Viking credited with the discovery of Iceland. He was also one of the earliest settlers on the Faroe Islands.
On Tuesday evening, when the Naddoddur was about 60 miles off the port of Stad on Norway’s west coast, they encountered rough conditions with waves of up to 15 feet.
At around 8 pm, a distress call was made from the vessel. Local civilian boats arrived at the scene and reported that the boat had capsized and five people were found on a life raft, according to the Norwegian Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC). The survivors were airlifted to safety at around 8:50 pm local time.
Emergency workers searched through the night and found Karla Dana’s body under the capsized boat on Wednesday morning after weather conditions improved.
Karla Dana was an archeologist and field researcher, as well as a member of the Explorer’s Club.
In social media posts ahead of departure, Sail2North, described Dana, 29, as the youngest member of the crew who “embodies both the curiosity of a field researcher and the boldness of an adventurer.”
“Karla epitomizes the spirit of exploration and commitment to future generations,” the online post added.
The Stad Peninsula, also referred to as the West Cape, is the westerlymost and most exposed point of land on the Norwegian coast. It is notorious for its rough and dangerous seas.
In Viking times, longboats were dragged up and over a 4.5 km long and 240 m high mountain pass to avoid the extreme weather around the peninsula. In 1594, 15 ships sank attempting to round the peninsula with the loss of between 300 – 600 lives. Hundreds more lives have been lost over the intervening years.
Norway is now scheduled to begin construction in 2024 of the world’s largest ship tunnel through the Stad Peninsula to create a bypass for ocean-going ships, as well as coastal ferries, freighters, and fishing vessels.