Ravensborg is a reproduction of a Viking longfort on beautiful property owned by Sam Shoults.  Its construction has been aided by a growing group of dedicated, and skilled, volunteers.  It strives to achieve an authentic depiction of a Viking Longfort as it would have appeared along the Scandinavian trade routes of the Viking Age.  It opens up to the public twice a year, in the Spring and Fall, and fills with Viking re-enactors.  It's four miles Northeast of Knox City, Missouri. If you're mapping it, it's at 40.169921, -91.961006.  In 2016, Jack, Ed and Henrik journeyed from the San Francisco Bay Area to join in the fun.

Our first view of Ravensborg.  Impressive.
The front gate beckons	Ravensborg has a raised berm around it and wooden defenses
A lot of work has gone into the construction.  The longhall.	The forge
A tent, the Angus house and another building going up	There's even a runestone
The long house, complete with firepit	Ready for Vikings
Jack and Bjornstad have arrived	Jack, Henrik and Ed enjoying themselves
Annika sets up her stall	We should have read the runes...
A helmet for all occasions	Fun for the whole family
Thora, temporarily at rest	The kitchen
The oven	It's a hike and hunt
The neighbors	Training begins
Youth versus experience	Jeff holds them off
A one-on-one duel	The warriors gather on the hillside
A little instruction	The weather cooperated nicely
Sam works at the firepit	Over 60 Vikings joined the fun
The Bjornstad tent provided a little shade and shelter	Visitors and shoppers drop in
Jeff has an Old Norse T-shirt: "Af sæmd kemr máttr" "From honor comes strength", more or less	Jeff in his dinner finery
Ed visiting with the neighbors	Nope, that's not an outhouse in the middle - it's a storage shed
Young Vikings	Arts and crafts on the bench
Lena sells fabric	Bjornstad is between the buildings and behind Lena's trading stall
A geteld-style tent	Derek gears up
It's time for battle	Combatants doing what combatants do
Henrik watches the warriors gather
One in the middle, and the others take on the fighter one at a time	Waiting for his turn
Fighters choose their weapons	"I hit him right about there..."
Learning how to do it	Waiting for the outcome
A horsetail helmet	The Angus family.  A wooden sword will have to do for now.
The Bjornstad runestone traveled 2,000 miles to make an appearance...	... and the base broke
The archery and axe-throwing range	Henrik provides some advice and counsel
Ed helps Madison	Henrik and Madison throw some axes
Henrik nails it	Jack likes the pattern
Ed and Annika pose for a shot	Cindy joins in
Annika, Cindy and Susan (I think)	Nice bling
Evening approaches	The shadows get longer
The sun sets on the encampment	The clouds do their best to be photogenic
Dinner in the longhouse (and it was much darker than this appears)	The incredible meal included venison, pork, chicken, blueberries and a half-dozen other dishes
The raven tent at sunset
On Sunday, Jack visits the boat shed	Henrik adds an owl figurehead
Ravensborg, 2016

  © For information contact Jack Garrett at info@vikingsofbjornstad.com