2026 Arcata Lantern Floating Ceremony

The 43rd Annual Arcata Lantern Floating Ceremony for Peace is Saturday, August 8th, 2026. It is an opportunity to offer spiritual consolation for people we miss, departed loved ones, peace, joy, healing, harmony & all we hold dear. It is for those suffering from genocide & oppression, such as the people of Gaza, Sudan & immigrants. It is in loving memory of the victims of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima & Nagasaki.

Please ride-share, bike, walk or take a shuttle from I Street & Samoa Boulevard. Flashlight Recommended. Parking at the lake is limited to staff and people with disabilities.

Event Schedule

9am – 1:30pm – Lantern Making at the Arcata Farmer’s Market – Tables will be set up and there will be supplies.

7pm – 7:30pm – People will gather at the Arcata Marsh & Wildlife Sanctuary by Klopp Lake at the end of South I Street.

Rick Kruze will be playing the shakuhachi flute as people arrive.

Arcata Mayor Kimberly White

Paula Jones

The McKinleyville Choir

The Raging Grannies Singing Songs

Humboldt Taiko Drumming

8:40 – Lantern Floating.

This is a free event!
All are invited to attend.

The City of Arcata’s Nuclear Free Zone Committee began this ceremony 39 years ago to commemorate the US atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945 and to affirm our dedication as a community to the cause of peace, to bring awareness to the dangers of nuclear proliferation, and to advocate for environmental sustainability.

Community groups helping to create these events are:
City of Arcata, Humboldt Buddhist Peace Fellowship, GI Rights Hotline, Shinnyo en, Humboldt Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Social Action Committee, Veterans For Peace, Humboldt Friends Meeting (Quakers) & Women’s International League for Peace 

See less

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on 2026 Arcata Lantern Floating Ceremony

Arcata Lantern Floating Virtual Ceremony

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Arcata Lantern Floating Virtual Ceremony

Welcome to the Arcata Lantern Floating Ceremony Website

Lantern floating is a beautiful opportunity for the community to come together for a collective moment of remembrance and reflection.

In 2019 we co-create a virtual ceremony in a video of photos, artwork, remembrances, hopes and intentions. There are also other videos on this site, including a documentary of the Arcata Lantern Floating Ceremony by local filmmaker Brianna Chapman and other videography.

This event is an opportunity to offer spiritual consolation for people we miss, departed loved ones, ancestors, intercultural harmony, healing and all we hold dear.

Our Facebook page is www.facebook.com/ArcataLanternFloatingCeremony

Our deepest gratitude to Mark Larson for the photo on the top of this page and for the many photographs he has taken of the Arcata Lantern Ceremony over the years, many of which are in our images gallery on this website.

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Welcome to the Arcata Lantern Floating Ceremony Website