Little Molar Lake

Drainage: Clarks Fork (MT)
Approaches: No documented trailhead route. Nearest is Aquarius Lake — Clarks Fork Trail #3, 6 mi — then about 0.5 mi cross-country north · From Boulder Lakes — ~0.5 mi cross-country east
Elevation: 9,289 feet
Fish: No FWP data
Coordinates: 45.06416, -109.81564
Bugs: Minimal on our visit

Getting there

There's no maintained route to Little Molar. The closest documented access is the Clarks Fork Trail #3 approach to Aquarius Lake — 6 miles, 2.75 of them off trail — and then about half a mile of cross-country north.

We came the long way. Little Molar was a stop on the Day 3 move of a thru-hike that started at the Lady of the Lake Trailhead, roughly 12.3 miles out and about 9.3 miles from our basecamp at Splinter Lake. A thru-hike takes two vehicles: we left one at the Clarks Fork end of the Beaten Path, drove to the Lady of the Lake Trailhead in the other, and started walking. Set the shuttle rig before you leave, not after.

The hike

From Boulder Lakes the route drops into the basin below, then reverses and climbs east to Little Molar — about half a mile, gaining a little over a hundred feet net after the drop. It's a steady pull with a full pack, threading sub-alpine timber and rocky gaps to top out at 9,289 feet. There's no tread anywhere on it.

Tips & safety

• Navigation: No maintained trail reaches this basin. You're picking your own line up the slope, with map and instinct.

• Fishing: FWP has no data for this 3.2-acre lake — nothing listed either way.

• Thru-hike logistics: This is point-to-point, not a loop. Your ride has to already be parked at the exit trailhead.