Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival 2026

Long before the famous voyages of the 15th century, Scandinavian sailors had established a reputation as intrepid navigators and explorers. These seafarers, which today we call Vikings, are most famous for their raids upon the churches and towns of western Europe, but this was only a small part of their adventures across the Atlantic Ocean. Recent research suggests a much wider extent of exploration and settlement than previously thought, with intriguing new evidence appearing across a vast expanse of the northern hemisphere. In this talk I will introduce some of the lesser known aspects of the Viking Age, including their key contributions to maritime technologies, and discuss some ongoing mysteries regarding potential Viking presence in the high Arctic, Spain, and the Azores.

From a wooden boat and waterborne perspective, Leslie will take her audience on a voyage of Native history, loss and into our recent tremendous renewal of Native Canoeing strength as communities gather and traveling on the local Salish Sea waters once again. From research in library and museum photo archives, early explorers journals and ethnographies; as well as from searching to find and then make lines drawings from older representative canoes; right into recording Native Elders' own stories and hearing of community needs; she will share how communities found old growth, learned to carve and steam the great cedar into transformed canoes as the old masters knew how to do.  She'll present the excitement of "Bringing them canoes back" during the first PADDLE TO SEATTLE in 1989; and then a remarkable challenge for a 500 mile canoe pilgrimage ~ pulling all the waty up to Bella Bella, Canada.  And then land this presentation, by moving it forward to the rich gatherings of more than 100 canoes and six thousand Native folks now as the Tribal Journeys have matured.

It would be a slideshow presentation featuring descriptions of the class event, what it was like to build the boat myself, launching and sailing across the Atlantic to Antigua, the event itself and what it took mentally and physically to complete a circumnavigation on such a small vessel, systems, design and outfitting, as well as anecdotes from the high seas, followed by Q&A

The Viking Age (800-1050 AD) was a period of maritime expansion and transformation, shaping the lives of coastal communities from the Caspian Sea to Newfoundland. Explorers, fisherfolk, raiders, traders, and settlers travelled incredible distances over some of the most dangerous seas on earth, often multiple times within individual lifetimes. Although archaeological, linguistic, and genetic evidence provides us with the origin and destination points of these voyages, we know very little about what happened on the sea: what sailing and navigation techniques were used? What routes were followed? And why were the Vikings such successful seafarers?In this talk I will try to answer these questions by drawing on the results of my doctoral research project, in which I reconstructed Viking Age seafaring routes by conducting experimental voyages throughout Scandinavia onboard traditional Norwegian clinker boats. These voyages also helped establish the seafaring capabilities of the Vikings, allowing us to make more informed judgements about the geographical extent of their travels, and identify potential areas for future archaeological excavations. Finally, my research evaluated the relationships between indigenous North Americans and Viking settlers in and around Greenland, where the common pursuit of key resources led to cross-cultural tensions, just as it does today.

Sharing about the last year of learnings about woven sailmaking, the completion of the first sail and how it performed on the 33ft canoe. Sharing an update on the beginning process of the great voyaging canoe.

The Pete Seeger Sing-Along returns to the Festival for the 4th time. Pete was a wooden boat guy, so we decided the Wooden Boat Festival would be a good place to sing his timeless songs. Each year we fill the room with song and life, where every voice is welcome, lyrics are provided, and the spirit of Pete Seeger fills our souls. Songs are led by Tom Shindler and other Peninsula Musicians, but all of you are the real stars.