A gorgeous hike that ascends through forest and wildflower meadows to reach a historic fire tower. The Saddle Mountain Lookout is perched panoramically high above Nakusp and Arrow Lakes!
Distance, round trip: 10.7km
Elevation: +824m
Season: mid-July to late September
Difficulty:
ModerateTrailhead & Driving Directions
Drive about 20km south from Nakusp on Highway 6 and turn right at the signed Arrow Park Ferry. Drive aboard the ferry and reset your odometer. Note that that the ferry shuts down from 12:15-2:15pm daily and the last sailing is at 9:20pm.
On the other side of the ferry, turn right onto gravel Saddle Mountain Road at the signed junction. Drive 9km along Saddle Mountain Road, parallel to the lakeshore. You’ll reach a signed turn-off on the left for Saddle Mountain Lookout Road – take it and start switchbacking up the mountain for the remaining 8km to the trailhead. This road was in great condition and suitable for 2WD low clearance vehicles in 2019.
The parking lot is where the road widens. Look for the trailhead and leave lots of room for other vehicles. To find the trail, follow the road for a few paces and watch for the signed trail starting on the uphill side.
The trailhead sign suggests you plan for 3 hours up, 2 hours down. And that was spot on for our hiking pace!
Up through the forest
The trail starts off at a steep ascent through mature cedar forest, full of lush undergrowth and moss.
Pretty soon the big trees give way to sub-alpine forest full of huckleberries. The trail switchbacks at a reasonable grade and continues to ascend. Look back through the semi-open forest for glimpses of Arrow Lake growing more distant below.
Reach a rest bench at 2.4km and then continue on to 3.4km to reach the remains of an old hunting cabin. Look up at the cabin to get a good view of Saddle Mountain’s summit – still high above!
Alpine Meadows
Now it’s getting exciting! The trail begins switching out of the forest into the alpine meadows of avalanche paths. In early August, these meadows were abloom with a kaleidoscope of wildflowers: purple aster, yellow arnica, white heliotrope, red paintbrush, blue delphinium, and green-white anemones.
In addition to the wildflowers, you’ll now be treated to wide views of Arrow Lake below as well as the distant Valhallas and Goat Range Provincial Park. Looking up the avalanches paths will show you just how close you’re getting to Saddle Mountain’s summit.
Rocky Sections
The trail will weave up some shorter switchbacks and then approach Saddle Mountain from the north-east.
The trail crosses a rockslide beneath the summit, so watch for cairns and step carefully. Then you’ll hike below the cliffs on a narrow path to come up at the ‘saddle’ between the two peaks. There is some exposure here.
The last little section of trail to the summit is slightly scrambly with exposure. Take your time and step up to the top!
The Lookout
You can go inside the fire lookout to sign a log book and read about the history of the area. There are also interpretive signs labelling all of the peaks on the surrounding panorama. Excellent!
This is a fairly popular hike, so expect to have some company at the summit. It’s a gorgeous spot for lunch, and shade can be found around the fire tower.
Heading back
Retrace the trail to head back down, enjoying the wildflower meadows all over again!
[…] views at the summit! You’ll look down over Nakusp and Arrow Lake, with the distant nub of the Saddle Mountain Lookout across the […]
And the lookout operators carved their names in the rock at the top for posterity. Such an amazing place, even though some may be a little leery of the narrow trail almost at the top. Trust your friends to hold your hand; it’s worth it!
Started our hike from the Upper parking lot, enjoyed the winding, sometimes rocky well defined trail. On the final stretch (base of the lookout peek) we scrambled over large rocky terrain & wound our way on the steep goat like trail then enjoyed the view of a myriad of mountain peaks in the distance!!! Took a 5 minute power nap then made our way down. Was a day well spent!!!!!
We all have bedrock events emblazened in our memories that stay with us forever, and hiking Saddle Mountain is indellibly burned into my memory. 12 years old. Dad worked summers for the Forest Service in Nakusp, and in the summer of 1956 he was tasked with resupplying the forest tire lookout on Saddle Mountain. We started the hike at dawn. In those days, the hike began right in Arrow Park. No road part way up the mountain in those days. Despite being just 12 years old I carried a rifle with me, as did my dad, and off we set.… Read more »
Wow Russ, this is an incredible story and such a strong memory. Thank you so much for sharing here! It was so neat to learn more about the history of the tower and what a feat to hike up from the valley bottom with all the gear!
I just have a question! are you allowed to sleep at the top in the lookout.
Yes, if you leave no trace. There is no booking system right now, and the Nakusp Trails Society is working on something to avoid conflicts of multiple groups hoping to stay overnight.
Can you take dogs on this trail
Yes, dogs are permitted but there are steep drop-offs so be confident in your dogs recall or keep them on a leash. Have fun!