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Bellingcat
@bellingcat.com

A mysterious, never before seen island in Canada made waves after it was photographed adrift on Williston Lake, British Columbia before supposedly vanishing. Video footage of the island shows a thickly forested landmass undulating surreally on the water. But did it really disappear?

x.comphilip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) on X'According to estimates, it's bigger than the size of a Canadian football field and nearly the size of two NFL fields'

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Bellingcat
@bellingcat.com

BC Hydro, which operates the lake, claimed that the origin of the island could not be pinpointed. Planet Labs satellite imagery can show us where the island came from — and where it is now. Our analysis shows that the island traveled more than 100 km since coming afloat. www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

Bellingcat
@bellingcat.com

In July 2026, a 2.5 acre copse of trees near Heather-Dina Lakes Park suddenly disappeared from satellite imagery as water levels in Williston Lake rose to a 14-year high.

Bellingcat
@bellingcat.com

Archival Landsat data shows that these trees appeared here in 2012 — the last time the lake was filled to its current water level.

Bellingcat
@bellingcat.com

Satellite imagery shows that the island drifted around Lake Williston for several weeks, briefly coming to rest on the shoreline on at least two occasions. Images below from July 16 and 17 show the island drifting north of Weston Bay.