After the MnGCA Breakfast Buddies in Fargo, ND Kim and I checked out the Heritage Hjemkomst Interpretive Center in Moorhead, MN.

The Hjemkomst was a sailable replica Viking ship that was 76.5 feet long and 17.5 feet wide. It weighed about 16 tons and took only 74 days to get from Duluth, MN to Norway. The ship’s original creator never saw it sail but his children and extended family as well as plenty of others saw to it that it sailed the ocean.

With only a life boat, diesel generator, a HAM radio, and a canvas tent considered “creature comforts”, these sailors were true explorers! Powered by both oar and sail and being hand steered, this 16 ton vessel had a small and mostly experienced crew. They trained on Lake Superior and across the ocean in Norway prior to their adventure.

An amazing ship that was sailed by amazing people. One of the few things worth seeing in Fargo/Moorhead.

After seeing the ship, we sat down and watched a movie about the replica Stave church built next door in the 1990s.

The church was modelled after a Stave church which resides in Vik Norway which was built around the year 1130. Used as a place of worsehip until about 1850 when it was slated for demolition due to a new Norweigan law which stated that any church had to have the capacity to hold 30% of the local population, something Stave churches are not known for. A concerned architect of the time along with a coalition of interested individuals saved this historic structure and attempted to restore it to its original glory.

Originally there were thousands of Stave churches in Norway but now only 28 Stave churches remain. A family in Minnesota wanted to build a near replica and provided the majority of funds to do so. Using log cabin builders and hand wood carving craftsmen, they completed their beautiful dream and it now stands as a tourist attraction and wedding chapel. Amazingly intricate and beautiful wood working detail that even this non-believer saw the beauty of.

Funny side note: aside from modern exits, indirect lighting, and sprinklers, this building has no modern conveiniences including heat. A February wedding saw a -10 day and a bride with a sleeveless dress freezing her ass off. Sucked to be her.

Overall a nice way to spend a rainy day in Fargo/Moorhead.

See all the pictures from today here

Out with Kim at Sponsel’s Minnesota Harvest outside of Jordan, MN.

We brought a picnic lunch with sandwiches, leftovers from last night, chips, and some seafood salad. The sun was shining through the beautifully colored leaves and it made for a great lunch.

After picking up a jar of apple butter in their orchard store we walked about 1/2 mile to their pumpkin patch and picked one out ourselves for $2 instead of a .25/pound. Kim didn’t make the walk back with me and instead waited with the pumpkin near the patch. Walking the half-mile from the patch to the main area took less time than it took me to drive back out. Luckily a guy in an Explorer moved a barrier out of the way and let me and 20+ other people out along w/me.

See all the pictures from today here (mobile) and here (camera).