Video bloggers who died at Shannon Falls inspired millions: YouTube group

Can social media lead to dangerous behaviour? Can the search for social media fame lead to dangerous behaviour? Penny Daflos reports, after three YouTubers were killed at Shannon Falls.

The hikers who died earlier this week after an accident at Shannon Falls are being remembered by their friends as kind, driven and outgoing.

In a video posted on the social media stars' YouTube page, other members of the group confirmed to their followers that Ryker Gamble, Alexey Lyakh and Megan Scraper died Tuesday.

They were in a step pool near the top of the falls, located about 60 kilometres north of Vancouver and just south of Squamish, when they slipped on the edge and fell down about 10 storeys to another pool below. None of them survived the accident.

"The world has lost a great deal of light with their passing," Parker Heuser said in the video published Friday morning.

"They lived every single day to its fullest. They stood for positivity, courage and living the best life that you can, and they shared and taught their values to millions of people worldwide."

Like Heuser, Gamble and Lyakh were part of "High On Life SundayFundayz," Vancouver-based video blogging group that travels the world, posting videos on social media of their adventures. The group says its goal is to encourage others to see the world.

The group, which has more than one million followers on Instagram and 500,000 subscribers on YouTube, made headlines last year when Gamble and Lyakh were ordered to spend a week in jail for a photo shoot in a protected area of Yellowstone National Park.

Scraper was often featured in High On Life's videos and photos, and had her own following of about 173,000.

On Friday, Heuser read a message written by Gamble and Lyakh which he said was meant to motivate the group's followers to live in the moment and think positively.

"The world is vast and full of possibilities. Follow your bliss, get out of your comfort zone, stop looking for reasons why you can't and start looking for reasons why you can. And if you can, you should," he read, as he and others in the video teared up.

Wiping their eyes, the men in the group asked for privacy as they grieve and thanked their fans for their support.

The group has set up an online fundraiser to cover the costs of a celebration of life for the trio. They're attempting to raise $50,000, and have so far gathered about $3,000 in donations.

Any funds left over will be given to the families to cover their travel, accommodation and other expenses, the GoFundMe page says.

They've asked those who felt inspired by the High On Life crew to share stories, photos or videos using the hashtag #HOLInspired, which they will then share with the grieving families.

Few details have been provided about what happened leading up to the fatal fall, but a cousin told The Canadian Press that Gamble had died trying to help Lyakh.

"Even in his final act on this earth he was trying to save the life of his very best friend," Rob Mangelsdorf said in an interview Thursday.

He told reporters that the family was told Scraper slipped and her boyfriend tried to save her, then Gamble went after them both.

Their bodies were found Tuesday night in a step pool with help of an underwater camera. Due to challenges with the terrain, it took officials until Wednesday afternoon to recover their remains.

With files from CTV Vancouver's Penny Daflos and The Canadian Press