When he returned to the harbor of Delfzijl in the Netherlands after a journey to Finland and Russia, his father and the local police were already expecting him.
[citation needed] After a discussion, Löhndorff's father agreed to let him pursue a career as a sailor.
At the end of September 1914, the ship reached its destination, where it was seized due to the outbreak of the First World War.
Bored and restless on the seized vessel, Löhndorff fled and embarked on many adventures in Mexico.
[4] Löhndorff fled from the seized vessel after a short time because he was bored and eager to pursue his quest for adventure.
In January 1916, he witnessed revolutionary troops seize 17 US civilians from a train and, under orders from Pancho Villa, execute them on the spot.
A punitive expedition led by General John Pershing was launched but remained unfinished, as the troops were ordered to return in 1917 when the US entered the First World War.
During his imprisonment, Löhndorff met Captain Conrad Sörensen, whose sailor classes he attended.
After the war, Löhndorff managed to obtain provisional documents through the Swiss embassy, which allowed him to leave the United States and return to Europe.
[citation needed] The following bibliography lists the first editions of his novels as provided in the Catalogue of the German National Library.
Many of Löhndorff's novels were translated into at least 12 different languages: Danish, English, French, Flemish (Belgium), Italian, Serbo-Croatian, Dutch, Polish, Spanish, Swedish, Czech, and Hungarian.