The sources for our information on the Viking settlement in Vinland (North America) largely comes from a mixture of saga literature and archaeological finds. There are two sagas that cover the expeditions to Vinland, The Saga of the Greenlanders (Grænlendiga saga) and The Saga of Erik the Red (Eiríks saga rauða). Much of our insight into what may have occurred during these expeditions come from these two sagas. The Saga of Erik the Red focuses on the life of Erik the Red and his settlement in Greenland. It also covers the lives of his children and their discovery and subsequent expeditions to Vinland. The elder of the two Vinland sagas (by about 200 years), The Saga of the Greenlanders, focuses primarily on the expeditions beginning with the discovery of Vinland by Bjarni Herjolfsson. It is important to note that while the two have very similar subject matter, they do deviate at some points. For example, The Saga of Erik the Red will suggest that Leif the Lucky discovered Vinland instead of Bjarni Herjolfsson. Both are described as discovering the land in the same manner, but The Saga of the Greenlanders suggests that Leif meerly traveled to Vinland later. Despite these minor differences and some fantastical elements, the two sagas give great insight into what may have been the explorers' reasons for leaving as well as their interactions with the natives, who they called skrælings. ^1

The Vinland sagas both mention that Vinland and the surrounding areas are plentiful in resources, be it fish, grain, or grape vines.^2,3 This observation is echoed by Adam of Bremen in his History of the Archbishops of Hamburg Bremen, which notes that the Danes made described Vinland as having grape vines and unsown crops a plenty.^4 Despite the apparent abundance of resources in the land, this does not appear to have been enough to keep the Viking settlers. The Saga of the Greenlanders display the Vikings as having a tenuous relationship with the natives. While some voyages begun with a trade relationship, they typically ended in conflict with the natives. Thorvald Eriksson was mention as capturing and killing a group of natives, which led to a large force of skrælings returning to fight the Vikings. There is another incident during the voyage of Thorfinn Karlsefni, where skrælings are killed for trying to take weapons from the Vikings. This as well leads to a battle with a native force.^2 Despite their victory, the Vikings leave Vinland and return to Greenland after battle with the natives. This sentiment is echoed in The Saga of Erik the Red, where the settlers decided to leave for home because they believed that they would be under constant threat of attack by the natives and the threat outweighs the offerings of the land.^3 There is only one other cause noted for Viking settlers leaving Vinland in the sagas. This only occurs during Freydis' voyage in The Saga of the Greenlanders, where infighting leads to the death of a good portion of the settlers and leads to the Vikings' return to Greenland.^2

In regards to archaeological evidence, there is only one confirmed Viking settlement and a handful of likely, yet still unconfirmed sites. The confirmed Viking outpost is that of L'Anse aux Meadows. It was used around the year 1000 and was used for only a short period of time.^7 The first possible Viking site at Sop's Arm is made up of a series of holes that were likely to be used as pitfalls to catch large animals. This site would have only been used for hunting. At current, there isn't an attached settlement or structures found around it. The next site is located at Nanook on Baffin Island. At the site a possible metalworking building has been found, but at current the dig has been terminated, which has prevent further investigation.^5 The last site is at Point Rosee. This site may have been used to roast bog iron and a turf made structure. It seems it may have been used just to collect the iron, but little else has been found to confirm or deny this.^6 Through the sites we have found, at current there is no serious evidence that suggests what would have caused the Vikings to not settle more extensively or remain for longer in North America.

Sources:

1. "The Vinland Sagas." In The Sagas of the Icelanders, ed. Örnólfur Thorsson, 626-635. New York: Penguin Books, 2001.

2. Kunz, Keneva trans. "The Saga of the Greenlanders." In The Sagas of the Icelanders, ed. Örnólfur Thorsson, 636-652. New York: Penguin Books, 2001.

3. Kunz, Keneva trans. "Erik the Red's Saga." In The Sagas of the Icelanders, ed. Örnólfur Thorsson, 653-674. New York: Penguin Books, 2001.

4. Adam of Bremen. History of the Archbishops of Hamburg Bremen. trans. Francis J. Tschan. New York: Columbia University Press, 1959.

5. Jarus, Owen. "Searching for the Vikings: 3 Sites Possibly Found in Canada." Live Science. April 18, 2016. Accessed July 29, 2017. https://www.livescience.com/54439-three-possible-viking-outposts-discovered.html

6. Strauss, Mark. "Discovery Could Rewrite History of Vikings in New World." National Geographic. March 31, 2016. Accessed July 29, 2017. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/03/160331-viking-discovery-north-america-canada-archaeology/.

7. Pfrenger, Andrew and John P. Sexton. "Saga Brief 4: The Norse in Vinland (Interview with Loretta Decker of L’Anse aux Meadows)." Saga Thing Podcast. Podcast audio, Dec. 7, 2015. https://sagathingpodcast.wordpress.com/2015/12/07/saga-brief-4-the-norse-in-vinland-interview-with-loretta-decker-of-lanse-aux-meadows/