When Europeans first came to the new world they would typically sail south and west to Canary Islands, then west to get to the West Indies. On their return they would go north past the Leeward Islands and Canadian Maritime provinces before turning east towards Europe? Why did they choose this circular route?
Because of the generous winds and maritime currents
Explanation:
Sure, it's not the closest route to Europe, but there they had a good concentration of winds, and the Labrador and North Atlantic Currents promoted speed to the vessels.
