Vancouver woman sets goal to visit 100 waterfalls before starting Chemo

VANCOUVER, Wash. (KPTV) - A Vancouver woman is on a mission to accomplish a big goal before she starts chemotherapy treatments in November. She's aiming to visit 100 waterfalls before she may no longer be physically able to.

Brooke Matthews, 49, was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis in 2022. She describes the disease as her body deciding that her entire digestive tract is an enemy, "and so it just attacks it."

Over the past two years, Matthews has tried various treatment options to alleviate her symptoms, but she said nothing seemed to work. As a last-ditch effort, she's preparing to begin chemotherapy infusions.

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"Apparently the next three months are going to be really rough. Treatment starts on November 18, and this is forever, the rest of my life. During that time, I will have a suppressed immune system," Matthews explained.

While Matthews is hopeful she'll be able to continue living life to the fullest, she said she doesn't know how her body will react and if she'll ever be able to hike up another waterfall. That's why she's made a goal to visit 100 waterfalls before treatments start on November 18.

"I'm going into it with positivity, having something that is just really keeping my spirits up and having me focused on myself and self-care and health," Matthews said.

As of mid-October, Matthews had already made a big dent in that goal of visiting 100 waterfalls with Bridal Veil Falls in the Columbia River Gorge being number 11 on her list.

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"I'm at 44 right now, and the goal is to get to 100 by November 17. And number 100 has been on my list forever. So I want to end with Ramona Falls," Matthews said.

The 49-year-old explained while she's going into the journey with a goal in mind, what matters most is her positivity and belief that there's something wonderful waiting for her on the other side, maybe even Waterfall 101.

"There's always a reason to keep going. There's always something to be positive about. There's always a light. You just have to find it," Matthews said.

You can follow Matthews on her journey on her social media pages.