Among the most popular we can mention the Athabasca Falls in the Alberta region, the Montmorency Falls in Quebec, the Helmcken Falls, the Brandywine Falls, the Spahat Creek Falls, and the Takakkaw Falls in British Columbia, the Kakabeka Falls in Ontario…
The list would still be long, but I prefer to stop here and tell you a little more about the most interesting waterfalls in Canada.
Athabasca Falls
Athabasca Falls is located in the province of Alberta, within the Jasper Natural Park, more than 3,000 kilometers away from Toronto and Niagara Falls.
Located in the beautiful setting of the Canadian Rockies, along the highest part of the river from which they take their name, Athabasca Falls, with its drop of just 23 meters, is much smaller than Niagara Falls ( They are close in height and width to the Bridal Veil Falls.
Despite their modest size, these falls pack enormous power: although they can’t compete with the might of Niagara Falls, Athabasca Falls is still considered among the most powerful in Canada.
Montmorency Falls
Montmorency Falls are located in the province of Quebec, about 12 kilometers from Quebec City and more than 800 kilometers from Toronto, in the territory of the park to which they give their name, the Montmorency Falls Park (in French Parc of the Chute Montmorency).
The falls owe their name to the man who discovered them, Samuel de Champlain, who decided to name them after the nobleman who in 1603 financed his expedition to America, the Duke of Montmorency.
Montmorency Falls is the highest in the province of Quebec, and at 84 meters high, although less wide, they are more than 30 meters higher than Niagara Falls.
The best way to see Montmorency Falls up close is to climb the picturesque staircase that flanks it, equipped with several observation points spread along its route, which consists of 483 steps.
Mountaineering fans can approach the waterfall through one of the various ferratas found nearby.
Wells Gray Provincial Park
Wells Gray Provincial Park is a Canadian wildlife park located in the province of British Columbia. Wells Gray is also known as “the land of waterfalls” because within it is the largest concentration of waterfalls in British Columbia: 39 of them, the largest, have a name and history, but there are many others, small in size. , all to explore.
Among the park’s most interesting waterfalls are Helmcken Falls, Dawson Falls, and Spahats Creek Falls.
Helmcken Falls
Helmcken Falls is one of the four tallest waterfalls in Canada and is almost four times taller than Niagara Falls (Horseshoe Falls).
Helmcken Falls is located in the province of British Columbia, 40 kilometers from Clearwater and more than 4000 kilometers from Toronto.
It is thanks to the exceptional height of this waterfall, which flows into the Murtler River, that Wells Gray Park was born.
Located a short distance from the road, from which it is visible thanks to a platform, the waterfall is enclosed in a rock formation that has the appearance of a semicircle, from which it flows directly into the canyon below without encountering obstacles.
Due to this particular shape of the rock, in winter, at the base of the waterfall, an ice funnel is created (if the winter is especially severe, it can exceed 50 meters in height) which gives it more charm.
Although the semicircle shape may suggest some resemblance to Niagara Falls, the greater height of Helmcken Falls, combined with a greater closure than Horseshoe Falls, makes the two falls completely different from each other.
Dawson Falls
Dawson Falls is another of the Murtle River’s most famous waterfalls, located within Wells Gray Provincial Park in British Columbia; 5 kilometers further south, on the same river, are the Helmcken Falls.
Although the height of the waterfall is lower than that of Bridal Veil Falls, the smallest of the three Niagara Falls, Dawson Falls makes up for this lack with its considerable width (90 m).
Spahats Creek Falls
Spahats Creek Falls is a set of waterfalls located in Wells Gray Provincial Park, in the province of British Columbia, more than 3000 km from Toronto and Niagara Falls.
Spahats Creek Falls is located within the Spahats Creek waterway.
The combined height of the two waterfalls that make up Spahats Creek Falls is 75 meters, almost 20 meters higher than the more famous Horseshoe Falls; Certainly, these falls cannot beat Niagara Falls in width, since the only visible waterfall measures just 7.6 meters wide, but they still surpass them in height, since the fall of the outermost waterfall measures 61 meters. vertically, and encounters no obstacles on the way down.
What makes Spahats Creek Falls special is its location: while one of the two waterfalls remains too hidden in its narrow passage to be visible, the second plunges into the river through a picturesque tunnel carved into the volcanic stone. , same waters that flow exuberantly there.
This particularity, together with the beauty of the nature that surrounds it, gives these waterfalls an aura of magic and mystery.
Kakabeka Falls
The Kakabeka Falls are located within the park of the same name, Kakabeka Falls Provincial Park, in the province of Ontario, just 30 kilometers from the city of Thunder Bay and almost 1,500 kilometers from Toronto.
Located in the course of the Kamistiquia River, Kakabeka Falls plunges directly into the gorge below, formed at the time of the Canadian Shield (Precambrian Shield), of which it is a part.
Due to its height and position, Kakabeka Falls is often referred to as “The Niagara of the North”, but unlike its more famous sisters, Kakabeka Falls, although close to the road, is located in a more naturalistic context.
Another thing that differentiates it from Niagara Falls is the color of the water, which due to a high concentration of iron minerals, has a particular reddish tone.
Due to erosion, the rock wall surrounding the canyon is extremely unstable and therefore inaccessible; But it is precisely this phenomenon that has destabilized the environment, which has brought to light several fossil finds dating back to around 1.6 million years ago.
Takakkaw Falls
Niagara Falls, move over! Yes, anyone who sees the beautiful Takakkaw Falls quickly forgets why Niagara Falls looks so fascinating.
Takakkau Falls is located within Yoho National Park in British Columbia, more than 3,500 km away from Toronto and Niagara Falls.
Although it cannot surpass the famous waterfalls on the border with the United States in width, it does surpass them in height, because the 57 meters of Niagara Falls are a crumb compared to the 258 meters of the final waterfall of Takakkaw Falls. , which plunges into the void from the top of a huge, barren rock wall.