In 1960 Helge Marcus Ingstad, a Norwegian explorer, and his wife Anne Stine, an archaeologist, following clues from Norse sagas and with some guidance by local resident, George Decker, found the site of an 11th century Norse community on the northern most tip of Newfoundland. The Vikings had discovered the New World 500 years before Christopher Columbus! Unlike Columbus they didn’t stay long or spread the news to the rest of world but they did travel back and forth between L'Anse Aux Meadows and Greenland carrying boatloads of harvested lumber for the colony in Greenland and returning with supplies for the little settlement in Newfoundland.
The site at L'Anse Aux Meadows was most likely a base for exploring the region, repairing boats and sheltering over the winter. As many as 90 people lived there including women who left behind artifacts that would have been used for spinning and weaving wool. The buildings were burnt when the site was abandoned after a decade or two.
Start at the visitor center which has an introductory film and exhibits and artifacts from the Vikings and also from the native groups who used the area for seasonal fishing and gathering. A boardwalk leads to the settlement site and a reconstructed hut with costumed re-enactors.
The visitor center is accessible. A long flight of steps leads down to the boardwalk but visitors with mobility problems may drive at an accessible lot near the site. It’s not large enough for big RVs but the road loops around to a drop off spot and RVs can then park at the bus parking area. A boardwalk leads to the reconstructed hut. The ground is hard packed and the hut is accessible but narrow and crowded in spots. The actual dwelling site is uneven and grassy but can be viewed from the boardwalk.
Part of the trail that starts from the visitor center parking lot and travels across higher ground above the settlement is accessible.
The parking lot at the visitor center has a few long RV spaces. Park
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