Viking Ship

Viking Fest Minnesota is now the proud owner of the largest working Viking ship in Minnesota. It’s 30 feet long and 7.5 feet wide. See our Facebook page for our naming competition!

The Last Eikenskold Ship Build

Built by Kerry Eikenskold, this ship is more than a replica. It is the final chapter in one man’s life-long journey through craftsmanship, imagination, and reverence for the Viking spirit.

Eikenskold, a seasoned boat builder from Ohio, began crafting vessels at the age of 30. Over the decades he’s built kayaks, canoes, and Viking longships — each project a step toward mastering a timeless craft.

In 2020, as his hands grew slower but his wisdom grew sharper, Eikenskold decided it was time to pour all of his years of experience and gained insight into one last build, one final ship.

This vessel before you is that ship; the culmination of one man’s voyage of learning, trial, and triumph.

Its dragon-head is a personal homage. As a boy in the late 1950s, Eikenskold watched the film The Vikings, starring Kirk Douglas. The dramatic, Hollywood-style dragon prow captured his imagination and thus began a curiosity for Viking age history, lore, and legend that would stay with him to this very day. This figurehead is not historically accurate, but it isn’t meant to be. Instead, it’s a faithful recreation of that movie’s design; a tribute to a spark, ignited in childhood, that has remained lit through a lifetime.

The most famous of the 8 longboats Eikenskold has sold across America, appeared in the well-known Capital One commercial where Vikings, charging from their ship stopped to ask, “What’s in your wallet?”

But this ship is different. This one carries the weight of goodbye.

When Viking Fest Minnesota arrived at Eikenskold’s shop in California to bring the ship to its new home in the north, Kerry grew quiet before unabashedly admitting, “It’s going to be hard to see it go.” A feeling of finality to which I think we can all relate.

It was our good fortune however, that like every great craftsman, he knew it was time for that last send-off. And so, it is with the builder in mind that Viking Fest Minnesota is proud to be the new steward of Kerry Eikenskold’s final build.

Enjoy the artistry, craftsmanship, and historical reverence of Viking Fest Minnesota’s new Longship, and be inspired. Because this ship is not just wood and nails. It is memory. It is passion. It is the story of a man who never stopped chasing wonder — and invites you now to do the same.