‘Would you do this?’ WA ferries offer ash-scattering memorials on Puget Sound

Among the many benefits that Washington State Ferries (WSF) provides the region is hosting burials at sea, offering great comfort to families and loved ones who want to grant the recently passed away’s blessing of having their ashes spread throughout the Puget Sound.

It is legal to scatter ashes in the Puget Sound, as cremated remains can be scattered on all public navigable waterways under Washington state control.

“My mother-in-law lost her best friend of like 40, 50 years, a local lady who lived on the islands,” KIRO host Spike O’Neill said. “When she passed, my mother-in-law and her friends booked this sunrise ferry trip because the Washington State Ferry system accommodates those who want to spread ashes into the Puget Sound. It’s a very common request in our area. The Sound is such a part of the people’s lives up here in the Northwest.”

WSF offers these trips during non-heavy commuting times, typically between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. or later in the evening. The ferry service even provides a biodegradable “journey urn” made from Himalayan salt, so there are no piles of metal containers sitting at the bottom of the Sound thrown from the ferry. Journey urns range in price from $35 to $200.

Would you do this?

“I don’t know if I would want to do this with all the other passengers right there, because it’s kind of a private moment,” KIRO host Jake Skorheim said. “I’m not knocking anybody who does it. Would you do this?”

“Haven’t done that in particular,” Spike replied. “When my father-in-law passed, he was cremated as it was becoming much more common. The family took it upon themselves to spread his ashes in numerous places that he loved. The Columbia River, where he used to love to fish. Part of his ashes were spread in the French Alps, as he was a skier and he had a chance to go and ski the French Alps a couple of times during his retirement. My sister-in-law and her kid, during a scheduled trip to France, they made a side trip to go up to where he used to hike and ski. We’ve done the Southwest desert. He’s got some of his ashes spread there.”

This service is available along the following ferry routes: Anacortes/Friday Harbor, Anacortes/Orcas Island, Edmonds/Kingston, Mukilteo/Clinton, Port Townsend/Coupeville, Seattle/Bainbridge Island, and Seattle/Bremerton.

“There are places that don’t want you to do this, like Disneyland,” Jake said. “People are dumping ashes at Disneyland all the time.”

“Covert ash spreading is huge. It’s a big, big, huge secret thing that people are doing,” Spike added. “I know people who have had their remains spread at what was then the Kingdome.”

There is a $150 fee to reserve a memorial on a ferry.

Listen to the full conversation here.

Listen to “The Jake and Spike Show” weekdays from noon to 3 p.m. on KIRO Newsradio 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the podcast here.