Men climbed eagerly up the gangplank,
sand churned in the surf, warriors loaded
a cargo of weapons, shining war-gear
in the vessel’s hold, then heaved out,
away with a will in their wood-wreathed ship.
Over the waves, with the wind behind her
and foam at her neck, she flew like a bird.
– Beowulf, Seamus Heaney (trans.)
Lines 212-217: Beowulf and company set sail for Denmark to take on the ‘shadow-stalker’ terrorizing Heorot Hall.