A look back at the 2016 B.C. stories that became internet sensations

As 2016 comes to an end, here are some of the stories we just couldn't resist sharing because you — our esteemed readers — helped make them instant internet hits.

Shirtless Trudeau

Possibly our biggest water cooler story from B.C., the image of a shirtless Prime Minister Justin Trudeau became an internet sensation.

Wedding photographer Marnie Recker took the pictures of a topless Trudeau photo bombing a wedding that took place on a public beach in Tofino, B.C. 

Sightings of Trudeau in B.C. with his family set off waves of "Trudeaumania" earlier this year, although some of that shine has been dimmed with the Liberal government's approval of the Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain pipeline.

Although nothing delighted our readers quite as much as the shirtless Trudeau photo bomb, here are a few other gems. 

The Mexican-Canadian man who took on Trump

Diego Saul Reyna  a Mexican-Canadian steel framer, made headlines earlier this year when he climbed Vancouver's under-construction Trump Tower and hung a Mexican flag from the top.

He was responding to then Republican candidate Donald Trump's suggestion that many Mexican migrants were rapists or criminals. 

"He's just a big bully. He's the definition of bullying. He's bullying an entire country," he said. 

"I put a Mexican flag on the roof of the Trump Tower in Vancouver, just to show that he is benefiting from us and that we are working hard on his projects and that we are not all criminals."

Reyna's protest struck a chord with many Canadians and the story was picked up internationally.

Many people, including Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson, have publicly asked that the Trump name be removed from the building

Since then, Trump has been elected as the new president of the United States.

Evidence-stealing crow

Canuck the crow, Vancouver's most notorious bird, was accused earlier this year of flying away with a knife from a crime scene. 

On May 24, police shot a man near Hastings and Cassiar streets. They were called to the scene of a car engulfed in flames. When they arrived, police said, they were confronted by a man with a knife.

Shots were fired and the man was arrested.

Vancouver Courier reporter Mike Howell, who was at the crime scene, said he saw the bird — which had a red tag on its leg as does Canuck — swoop in and pick up an object from inside an area cordoned off by police tape. 

"A cop chased it for about 15 to 20 feet, and then the crow dropped it and took off," Howell told CBC.

Police recovered the knife and placed it into an evidence box.

No comment from Canuck, although he did post a photo of himself wearing a Santa hat on his dedicated Facebook page.

Is social media ruining hiking?

It started off with a simple post on YouTube that showed the parking gong show at the trailhead of the popular hike to Joffre Lakes. 

But it sparked a massive conversation on social media with many complaining that the hunt for the picture-perfect Instagram shot was ruining what hiking was all about for many Canadians: solitude and nature.

Here's the rub: Social media is, well, a social conversation. It's how people find out about what is trending and interesting, so it's not surprising that Joffre Lakes has become increasingly popular as more and more people share their images of it on Instagram, Facebook and other sites. 

And with Parks Canada now handing out free passes to all national sites in 2017, it remains to be seen how popular these places will get. 

100-year-old sprinter inspires

Who doesn't like a story of defying the odds? 

It took 100-year-old Indian runner Man Kaur almost a minute and a half to complete the 100-metre race, but she never broke her stride.

And when she finally crossed the finish line at the Americas Masters Games in Vancouver this August, her competitors — many of them two decades younger — were there to cheer her on.

Now, she plans to race at the next World Masters Game in New Zealand in April 2017 when she will be 101 years old.