The hills on the north side of Kamloops Lake across from Savona are one of the first areas to clear of snow because of the slope angle. open hillsides, and their south-facing aspect.   All routes into the Savona hills are steep but the open slopes allow for great views.   We hiked from the trailhead area for the Savona- Sabiston Creek Trail and followed an old double track up the slopes.

The slopes were covered in sage and grass with a small number of young trees and older snags.

Views extended along Kamloops Lake to the east.

To the south we could see the bridge crossing the Thompson River on its way down to Lytton.

We climbed 1400 feet (424m) in 2 km to a lunch spot.   To the west we could see the snow-covered Cornwall Hills (link) on the southeast side of Cache Creek.

To the northwest, the flanks of the flanks of Mount Uren overlooking the lower Deadmans Valley were inviting exploration and the Arrowstone Hills rising to over 1600m framed the horizon.

We followed a double track to a high benchland below the tower then turned west through  series of smaller hills.     We had hoped to pick up a known trail, a multi-use (mostly dirt bikes and mountain bikes) trail that follows a gully up the the Sabiston Creek Road.  We started down the trail and followed it all the way down to the trailhead.

We like this trail a lot and were fascinated by the number of clematis vines on the trees and shrubs.   This would be a fine nature walk while the vines are in bloom.   One website refers to this as the Bone Collector Trail.     It is part of a loop combined with the Sabiston Creek Road.   As hikers we will refer to it as the Clematis Trail.

The loop route had a steep start, a pleasant off-trail middle, and a nice downhill trail to finish, a total distance of 5.4 km in about 2 hours.   The hike requires some navigating, but offers rewarding views and a variety of habitats.   We will back for the clematis bloom in late spring.

More Information:

• Savona-Sabiston Creek Trail
• Cornwall Hills