Vernon residents Kathy Earl (left) and Ryan Bouwmeester sit in front of Crooked Falls in Squamish.

Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Ryan Bouwmeester

A Vernon couple is partway through an ambitious goal to visit 400 waterfalls in BC that was prompted by the isolating effects of COVID pandemic restrictions, but bloomed into the exact opposite. 

Not only has the mission been a whole lot of fun for the pair, it has opened the doors to lasting friendships and a greater appreciation of the province's beauty.

“Prior to this I didn’t explore that much of BC and it’s features are phenomenal with sand dunes, glaciers, deserts and mountain lakes, its bonkers," Ryan Bouwmeester said.

He met his girlfriend at the onset of the pandemic, and they went in search of local waterfalls to get outside and benefit from nature. As restrictions loosened, the couple expanded the search for more waterfalls and have since found 241 of them, accessing some by kayak, jet boats and bicycles. 

"We've found a variety of exertion levels from waterfalls beside parking lots, to falls we've hiked many kilometres to see," Bouwmeester said. “It’s expanded all of our abilities and we now know what it feels like to hike uphill in 40-degree heat.”

Rainbow Falls in Whistler is pictured in summer, 2024.

Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Ryan Bouwmeester

Bouwmeester said life-long friendships have formed along the way. 

“I’ve kept in touch with the vast majority of fellow hikers and arranged camping trips to various areas where people come to camp together and eat together. People reach out and we share information and directions to falls we don’t know about,” he said.

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He has found numerous adventurers with similar goals, including a woman who set a goal last year to summit her age of 36 in mountains while her children ages 9 and 7 did the same.

“It was really neat to see and we ended up doing a couple of those mountains with her, then continued adventuring with her this year and did a full camping trip with her family which combined waterfalls and mountain peaks.”

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So far, the couple has visited, and photographed, 241 waterfalls in the province that run year-round and have names. Progress to complete the goal of 400 has been slowed due to severe weather events.

“There are fires that closed highways or burned down areas, numerous adventures were burned out or flooded out. Reaching our goal will take longer than first expected,” he said

Crooked Falls in Squamish is pictured in summer, 2024.

Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Ryan Bouwmeester

Every year, Bouwmeester compiles photos of the waterfalls he takes using a cell phone and selfie stick and compiles them in an online album. He prints off hard copies to send to family and friends, getting signatures from fellow hikers on his own copies. 

When asked what his favourite waterfall is so far, Bouwmeester couldn’t decide. He said some can only be viewed from a distance while there are others they can stand under.

“We get up close and personal with the falls and stand under as many as we can or swim in the pools underneath them,” he said

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But that isn’t the best part. Bouwmeester and his girlfriend Google the little towns they travel through ahead of time to experience neat shops and eateries and share information on the special finds to others.

“We used to make quick food stops and keep driving but now the journey is so much more,” he said. “We stop at points of interest, we pass along knowledge, we connect with others.” 

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News from © iNFOnews, 2024