It has no doubt been a big year in news in Vancouver. Stories centered around the city hall election overhaul, growing homelessness, an ongoing rental affordability crisis, the legalization of marijuana and an extreme wildfire season... just to name some of the hot topics.
But it was these 10 stories that Courier readers were most interested in online in 2018.
1) Vancouver High on Life vloggers die in Shannon Falls tragedy
It was a sad day for Vancouver when news broke that three young video bloggers had tragically died at Shannon Falls. Vancouverites Ryker Gamble, Alexey Lyakh, and Megan Scraper were known for creating adventure videos for the YouTube channel High on Life. Their followers, friends and family took to social media to share how the group had inspired many to chase their dreams and travel the world. It was truly a heartbreaking accident that shocked readers and sparked debate about the risks adventure bloggers take. This was the Courier’s most read story by a long shot.
Read more about the tragedy HERE
2) Everyone is loving the new plant based beyond meat burger at A&W, except vegans
Next it was all about burgers, but not just any burger, the A&W Beyond Meat burger. It was touted as the next best thing for vegans, but they had a different view and were more than happy to point out the flaws – cheese and mayo (to name a couple) – in the burger everyone else was raving about. Despite the qualms by vegans, there’s no doubt it was a popular choice – it sold out pretty quickly. The hype surrounding this new meal gave the story a big boost.
Find out what vegan's thought of the burger HERE
3) Minimum wage increases go into effect June 1 across B.C.
When wages go up, everyone wants to know the details, so it's no surprise this was the Courier's third most read story of the year. B.C.’s minimum wage increased by $1.30 on June 1. The new wage – from $11.35/hour to $12.65/hour – was a result of the recommendations made by the independent Fair Wages Commission. This story continued to be popular throughout the year.
Read more about the increase HERE
4) This is what a Vancouver rental scam looks like
Nobody wants to be the victim of a scam. For this reason, the Courier’s in-depth, first-person account on what a rental scam looks like in Vancouver was popular with readers.
The story follows the experience of a Courier reporter who came across a Craigslist scam, and the ways scammers tried to bait him into renting a suite in Olympic Village.
Find out how to avoid real estate scams HERE
5) These are the Vancouver locations used in To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before
Vancouver is home to the film locations of many movies and TV series, but this story on the spots where To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before were filmed was particularly popular.
The film is "smart and sweet, and hits a lot of notes that are appealing to a vast audience. And for viewers, there’s a lot that might look familiar."
See where the movie was filmed HERE
6) Why this woman walked nine hours straight in downtown Vancouver
Sometimes, people live and work in a city for years without exploring it properly. Jenna Mazur’s is not one of those people. Her tale of walking for nine hours straight in downtown Vancouver sparked a lot of curiosity amongst readers.
She walked 43.3km of downtown in a single day and learnt a lot along the way...
Find out why she did it HERE
7) The most over the top description of a Vancouver real estate development we’ve ever read
We had to mention at least one more real estate story. So here’s one that made readers laugh and question the strategies used by big developers to sell properties.
This Kudos and Kvetches column takes a look at the ways developers “sink their meat hooks into prospective buyers with elaborate branding, promotional hype and poetic ad copy.”
Read more HERE
8) Tessa Virtue’s hilarious response to Ryan Reynolds tweet goes viral
There’s no doubt Vancouverites love a story about Ryan Reynolds – but when a Canadian Olympian tweets back a clever response to him, it’s even better.
Reynolds, who is known for his social media antics, tweeted out praise for Team Canada, freestyle skier Cassie Sharpe, and Virtue and Moir.
“Go @TeamCanada!! @CassieSharpe is a legend — makin’ it look easy. And thank you @tessavirtue & @ScottMoir for agreeing to raise my children as your own.”
Virtue, who along with her partner had announced a retirement from the sport, had an even funnier response, tweeting:
“And here I’ve been wracking my brain to come up with a post-competition career path… Scott, get the mini van!”
The tweet went viral and readers couldn’t get enough of the story.
Read more HERE
9) Controversial climate change activists stick it to Vancouver trucks and SUVs
The topic of climate change can easily ignite a fierce debate, but these activists added fuel to the fire earlier this year with stickers. Yes, stickers. The anonymous group of climate change activists weren't too pleased with truck and SUV owners and they made a very visual and public point of voicing that disdain. Known as CO2alitionBC, the group went around Metro Vancouver tagging large private vehicles with bumper stickers that read, “My car doesn’t care about your climate.”
The bizarre protest was quick to grab peoples' attention on social media.
Read more HERE
10) How we won't miss you, Gregor Robertson, let me count the ways
Last but not least, this opinion piece on outgoing Vancouver mayor Gregor Roberston had the clicks coming in.
It seems a lot of people just wanted to read about Roberston’s “failures.”
He wasn’t the most popular of mayors amongst the Courier’s readers towards the end…
See what was highlighted HERE
Find out what the top real estate stories for 2018 were HERE
