Canada's Underrated Waterfall In British Columbia Is A Breathtaking Mountain Gem Taller Than Niagara Falls

British Columbia is one of those corners of the planet that can seriously wow nature buffs — it's a place where ice caps feed the rivers, forests sweep to the horizon, and bears stalk the woods. You can go from the wild coast of Nootka Island all the way to alpine villages nestled between three mountain ranges without even leaving the province, and on the way see 15,000-foot-high summits, majestic fjords, and some of the most beautiful waterfalls in Canada.

Speaking of waterfalls, British Columbia counts Kinuseo Falls among its natural wonders, though you may not have heard of it. In fact, Explore, one of Canada's leading outdoor adventure magazines, ranked it among the top 10 most underrated yet awesome adventures the province has to offer, pointing out that it hides in a provincial park far from the usual tourist trail. You'll need to look for it in the distant eastern reaches of the province, just a touch over an hour's drive outside of the once-thriving mining town of Tumbler Ridge. That's a whopping 13 hours or more from the big airport in Vancouver, though the journey does involve some scenic bits along Highway 1 going through the Rockies.

Remote it may be, but the great cataracts of Kinuseo rarely fail to impress. Posting in the r/BritishColumbia subreddit, one visitor summed up that sentiment, calling it "one of the most breathtaking [places] on earth." Canadian Geographic backs that up, calling the falls one of the region's great natural features, mainly for its thundering water flow and whopping 229 feet in height, which is enough to dwarf even legendary Niagara!

There's a reason that Kinuseo Falls is ranked 4.8 out of 5 on Tripadvisor — it consistently stuns visitors. Many remark how it'd surely be a super-popular pitstop were it only a touch closer to civilization. As one person puts it in their Tripadvisor review: "This waterfall is taller than Niagara and equal in height to many famous Icelandic waterfalls — this would be a major tourist draw if closer to a major highway — definitely worth the drive!"

Tempted? The local Wolverine Nordic and Mountain Society, a not-for-profit dedicated to promoting the great outdoors of the Tumbler Ridge region, has a complete guide to visiting Kinuseo Falls. It highlights the two main ways to see them: from the designated viewpoints, or from jet boats in the river below. The latter is the best way to get within mist-touching distance. Expect a 4-hour trip up and down the Murray River that gets you right under the thundering water itself.

If you prefer to stick to dry land, there's a very short, ADA-accessible trail to the lower viewpoint, though that's closed at the time of writing as it undergoes reconstruction. However, the upper viewpoint, which is just 250 meters from the main parking area, remains open. What's more, a hiking path pushes on from there for almost a mile extra to reach the more distant Leake Viewpoint, a spot with truly dramatic head-on views of the waterfall from a little downstream.

Kinuseo Falls isn't the only jaw-dropper in these parts. It's actually just one feature of the greater Tumbler Ridge Global Geopark, a UNESCO-designated reserve dedicated to preserving the unique and enthralling natural history of the eastern part of British Columbia. You can even hike where dinosaurs once walked: Simply hit the web of trails that covers the Flatbed Valley area just south of the town of Tumbler Ridge, which let you trek down to spot dino tracks on the edge of a gurgling creek.

Head south again on the same highway that eventually brings you to Kinuseo Falls, and you can divert off to see yet another geological wonder, the Shipyard-Titanic Rock. Reach it on the aptly named Shipyard-Titanic Trail, which skirts the base of Mount Babcock to reveal a place of towering hoodoos and huge stones that jut from the earth to mimic the hulls of ocean vessels.

And, as if all that's still not enough, the mighty waterfall at Kinuseo cuts through the northern end of the Monkman Provincial Park. It's a 62,867-hectare area containing mountain ridges, virgin forests, and rolling wetlands. It offers oodles of adventure in the midst of the Hart Ranges, with longer routes such as the 30-mile Monkman Lake Trail taking you through untouched portions of the Canadian Rockies where there are another 10 — yes, 10! — waterfalls to spot.