Ash Scattering in the Olympic Rainforest · Personally Conducted · Beautifully Documented
Everything you need to know about this ceremony: the ancient forest, the salmon rivers, and what your family will receive.
When We Operate: We conduct Olympic Rainforest ceremonies year-round. This is one of the only temperate rainforests on earth, and it is remarkable in every season. Salmon return to the rivers each autumn. Bald eagles gather in numbers rarely seen anywhere else on the continent. Roosevelt elk drift between the cedars. Rainforest waterfalls run fullest from late autumn through spring. Whatever month your family chooses, the forest is alive and ready to receive.
Beneath a canopy a thousand years old.
"Standing beneath the Sitka spruce and the western hemlock, three hundred feet above a forest floor that has not been touched in a thousand years. Deep moss on everything the light reaches. Under the canopy, the silence is older than the trees." — The Bonaventure Team
"When the salmon return each autumn to the rivers that drain this forest, bald eagles gather in numbers rarely seen anywhere else on the continent. Black bears wade into the shallows. Roosevelt elk drift between the cedars like ghosts made of shadow and antler."
The ancient old-growth forests of the Olympic Peninsula provide a breathtaking sanctuary to honor your loved one, where pristine waterways wind through some of the most untouched landscapes in North America. This is one of the only temperate rainforests on earth. Sitka spruce and western hemlock rise three hundred feet above a floor of club moss and sword fern. The trees are a thousand years old. The silence under them is older still.
Your loved one's ashes are gently carried to a tranquil forest waterway, a place where clear currents flow beneath towering centuries-old conifers and moss-draped canopies. These are the same storied rivers where wild salmon return each autumn on their ancient migration home, one of nature's most profound journeys of renewal and remembrance. Surrounded by the soft rush of the river and the voices of the forest, our team carries out every detail with care, ensuring a respectful tribute in a setting where the land has remained unchanged for generations.
As the water carries their ashes through fern-carpeted valleys and beneath cathedral-like stands of ancient trees, the moment becomes a lasting connection to the natural world. Each autumn, the salmon will return through these very waters, a seasonal reminder of the enduring cycles that bind us to the places we love. Bald eagles will gather. Roosevelt elk will wade the shallows. River otters will pass through. The forest will hold them. That is the whole point.
An Olympic Rainforest ceremony through Bonaventure carries your loved one into this living landscape. The cedar groves they always meant to see. The salmon river they heard about from a friend once. The quiet beneath a canopy older than anything they knew. Your family designates Bonaventure as your personal representative. We carry your loved one, we document every moment, and we bring the ceremony home to you.
For one family, for one person, with full reverence, every time.
Every ceremony begins with a conversation. Tell us about the person you love: their stories, what these ancient forests meant to them, and the season that feels right. We will take it from there.
Tell Us Their StoryOr call us at (515) 206-4845. We answer.
The Rainforest Through the Year
This is a year-round destination. The Olympic Rainforest is alive in every season, and we schedule ceremonies in any month your family chooses. Each season brings its own character to the landscape.
Winter brings the rainforest at its fullest. The rivers run high, the waterfalls thunder, and the moss drinks deep. Spring carries the bird migration through, with songbirds filling the canopy and Roosevelt elk calves following the herd between the cedars. Summer brings long days of soft emerald light, filtering down three hundred feet through the spruce and hemlock. And autumn is the most remarkable season of all: five species of Pacific salmon return to the rivers that drain this forest, and bald eagles gather along them in numbers rarely seen anywhere else on the continent. Your family chooses the season. The forest is ready in every one.
Talk to Us About TimingWhat Every Ceremony Includes
One price. Everything handled. Nothing left for your family to figure out.
Four Steps. We Handle Everything.
We designed this service so families carry nothing but the memory. We carry everything else.
Most families tell us the hardest part was deciding this was what they wanted. Once that decision is made, we take care of everything else.
Begin This JourneyAll-inclusive · $1,500 · No hidden fees
"My husband and I were looking for an alternative to the traditional memorial. We were extremely impressed with the outstanding service they offer. They professionally take care of every detail, providing peace of mind at a very difficult time."
"It is so comforting to know that my final resting place will be in a protected natural landscape instead of a cemetery. Thank you so much for all you do to make that dream a reality."
"I could not be more pleased with how beautifully and respectfully you undertake this important service. The photos alone brought tears to my eyes."
Ash Scattering in the Olympic Rainforest. Your Questions Answered.
Honest answers to every question, including the ones people are sometimes afraid to ask.
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Yes. Your family is the legally authorized party to determine the final disposition of your loved one's cremated remains. Bonaventure acts as your designated personal representative and secures the appropriate authorization for the specific landscape your family chooses. Washington State maintains a formal framework for disposition of cremated remains, and every ceremony is conducted within a documented, authorized process.
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No. Bonaventure specializes in unaccompanied scattering. Our team conducts the full ceremony on your behalf as your designated personal representative. You receive photographs, GPS coordinates of the scattering site, and a written tribute that bring the experience home to you. This is exactly what we were built for.
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Year-round. This is one of the few Bonaventure destinations we operate in every month of the calendar. The Olympic Rainforest is alive and remarkable in every season: rivers run full in winter, songbirds return in spring, soft emerald light fills the canopy in summer, and salmon run the rivers in autumn. Your family chooses the timing. The forest is always ready.
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Each season holds something extraordinary. Winter delivers the rainforest at its fullest, when the rivers run high and the waterfalls thunder. Spring brings the bird migration and Roosevelt elk calves. Summer carries long days of soft light filtering down through the canopy. Autumn is the most storied season of all: five species of Pacific salmon return to the rivers, and bald eagles gather along them in numbers rarely seen anywhere else on the continent. We will guide you toward the timing that fits your loved one best.
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There are very few temperate rainforests on earth, and the Olympic Peninsula holds one of the most extraordinary of them all. Trees older than the United States. A forest floor that has not been disturbed in centuries. Five species of Pacific salmon still running the ancient rivers. Roosevelt elk, the largest elk subspecies in North America, still drifting between the cedars. Your loved one rests in a living landscape that will remain wild and beautiful for generations. Families can return and hike in using the GPS coordinates we provide. The land holds them, and the land endures.
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The Olympic Peninsula is one of the richest wildlife corridors on the continent. Roosevelt elk, the largest elk subspecies in North America. Black bears along the rivers during the salmon runs. Bald eagles in numbers that are hard to believe until you see them. River otters slipping through the shallows. Pileated woodpeckers, barred owls, varied thrush. We cannot guarantee a specific animal in the frame of a photograph, but we can guarantee the landscape they live in, and we watch for them.
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USPS is the only federally authorized carrier for cremated remains within the United States. You can request a free USPS Cremains Kit from your local post office. Place the ashes in a sealed, durable container and ship to us, or have your funeral home ship directly. Ashes are logged with a unique identifying code the moment they arrive.
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Professional ceremony photographs, GPS coordinates of the scattering site, a written storytelling tribute of the ceremony, and confirmation of native memorial trees planted in your loved one's name through the USDA Forest Service Plant-A-Tree Program in Olympic National Forest. Everything documented and returned to your family.
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Yes. The Olympic Peninsula holds extensive public trail networks accessible to everyone, and many of the rivers we work with are reachable by short hikes from the road. Families can return using the GPS coordinates we provide. Some families make it an annual trip. The forest holds them. That is the whole point.
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Our team includes former park rangers, wilderness guides, credentialed soil scientists and fisheries biologists, and an 18-year editorial professional. Our Pacific Northwest team is based in Port Angeles, at the foot of the Olympics. We know these rivers and these forests from years on them, not from photographs. Every ceremony is conducted with reverence, documented professionally, and returned to your family in full. This is not a logistics company. This is our life's work.
$1,500. All-Inclusive. No hidden fees. No add-ons.
Tell us about your loved one: what the Pacific Northwest meant to them, the season that feels right, the memory that brought you here. Every ceremony begins with a conversation. We will carry them there with full reverence.
Or call us directly: (515) 206-4845. We answer.
