Talk to a Local Expert
Visit the Camrose Visitor Centre to connect with a Camrose maven.
Just so you know
Difficulty
Duration
When
Easy
1-3 hours
Year round
The Visitor Information Centre (Bill Fowler Centre) is your one stop shop for local information and tourist information for nearby attractions.
Summer
(May long weekend to September long weekend)
Winter
Mon-Fri
8:30 to 7:00
Sat, Sun, Holidays
10:00 to 5:30
Mon-Fri
8:30 to 4:30
Huge Viking Boat
Ever wanted to see a Viking boat in real life? Well, there's one in the Visitor Information Centre that is over 5 meters (17 feet) long and 2 meters (7 feet) wide and is less than half the size of a real longship. This replica longship was a gift to the City from the University of Alberta's Augustana Campus. The Viking boat is an homage to the rich Scandinavian heritage of the community that settled Camrose/Sparling area in the early 1900s.
On January 30, 1985, Olaus Straumsnes came to Camrose from Telemark, Norway to construct a replica of an authentic Viking longship for Augustana. Olaus was trained at the båtbyggerskole (boat building school) in Hardanger. He completed the build in less than 4 months. The keel section is made of oak, the gunwhales are pine, the ribs are fir and the benches are spruce.
The boat was tested and successfully voyaged around Mirror Lake in 1985.
