Savona Mountain

Savona Mountain Rim Trail – Kamloops Trails

Doug Smith  August 22, 2023 at 8:56 am

Savona Mountain stands above Savona and Kamloops Lake with steep cliffs on the north and east sides.    We can hike to the Savona Caves part-way up the cliffs on the east side, but we can also drive to the top of Savona Mountain on a forest service road and hike from the summit along to the rim.    The area at the top of cliffs is sometimes called Hoodoo Village and the name is a good one with many “balancing-rock-hoodoos” above and below the rim.   On a hot summer morning, we drove to the top of the mountain and parked by the communications towers.   The road requires high clearance and has some spots that are bit rough, but it is a reasonable drive in the dry season.

From the parking area, we have excellent views to the north and northeast.

Savona Mountain

From the summit area inside Savona Provincial Park, we hiked east following a trail marked by Al Budreau (Kamloops Backcountry Hikes Vol. II).    Al led the way as we wound through burned trees and along open ridges.

Following the winding rim trail we arrived at various viewpoints and each time there were new hoodoos to see.

Savona HoodoosThe hoodoos are spread out over a 3 km distance, clustered on various slopes.  

Hoodoos VillageJust as impressive are the cliffs and bluffs below the rim.    We hiked out to a series of viewpoints and we could have added more.  

Savona Rim TrailThis whole area is wild and rugged, similar to the Red Plateau Escarpment.

Savona Rim TrailThis is a wonderful hike.    Our thanks to Al for his work on this.    Another leader who showed others this trail has now passed away.     We take this opportunity to remember and thank Clive Giolma. 

Details on the hike can be found in Al Budreau’s book, pages 88 – 91.  

We will be back again next year to explore some more viewpoints on the Mount Savona Rim.  

 

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Doug Smith

Doug writes for Kamloops Trails, a not-for-profit (and ad free) website, offering information on trails, waterways, routes, featured spots, viewpoints, and explorations in the outdoors in the Kamloops area (and beyond).

Doug started exploring this area in 1976 and continues to follow tracks and routes wherever they lead, with the aid of map, compass, GPSr and camera. After many dead-ends, but also many discoveries, he chose to share this information.

The Kamloops Trails website has a massive number of interesting posts and would be of interest to anyone in Kamloops who enjoys the outdoors. Visit the Kamloops Trails website at: http://www.kamloopstrails.ca/

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