Here is something you might find interesting Civ. Most sources claim that the Viking Ships were unable to tack against the wind. When they absolutely had to... Both the prevailing wind and ocean currents were against them to everywhere they went and sailed to from their home base. :)
https://trickyfish.co/how-did-vikings-sail-against-the-wind/
| Hey Openurmind, You tackled the key question I had about the Viking vessels: how did they sail to windward? Your link on this subject was excellent! When I was a kid growing up on Cape Cod, a popular sail boat was the cat boat. It was easy on a 14 foot Beetle Cat to understand the problem of sailing into the wind. A catboat is designed to operate in shallow waters (for fishing or shellfishing) -- perfect for the relatively shallow Nantucket Sound and the many inlets on the Cape. And because catboats have no keel and almost no draft, they are equipped with a retractable centerboard attacked to the hull by a simple hinge. That was useful: if your catboat hit bottom (such as a sandbar), the centerboard was forced up with no damage to the boat. You really got a feel for the forces at play in sailing to windward. In a moderate wind, you could even raise the centerboard yourself and notice: the sail was full, but you were making zero progress going in the windward direction. |