As an undergrad an American history professor told us a story of a pair of sailors that got shipwrecked sometime during the early 1500's somewhere near modern day Alabama or Mississippi. This was before natives in North America were exposed to any European colonization.

The pair aimed to trek east to the Atlantic and hope for a rescue ship. Instead of reaching the sea near northern Florida, they ended up hiking all the way to Nova Scotia. Most likely they were redirected by the Appalachians. It took them many years until they reached the north Atlantic and were finally rescued.

According to my professor, one or both of them sat in some bar in England for the rest of their lives telling and retelling their story, but none of it was every recorded or passed on in detail to posterity. This is tragic because it would have given insight about Native American cultures and tribes before the pressure of European colonization. Historians know we have a skewed view of Native Americans as being violent savages from the viewpoint of European colonists because they experienced Natives reacting to invasions of their land.

I suppose my question is whether or not this story is true (I would hope it is considering I heard it from a pretty well respected Colonial American historian) and if anybody can point me to any sources about it. Has anybody else heard about it? Thanks!