Where to backpack NOW in Banff National Park: North Molar Pass, Fish Lakes, Pipestone Pass
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- Approaching North Molar Pass
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- Descending to Fish Lakes
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- Upper Fish Lake
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- Enroute to Pipestone Pass
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- Molar Pass Alplands
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- Indian Paintbrush in Molar Pass
We recently hiked up Mosquito Creek, over North Molar Pass, down to Fish Lakes, then up to Pipestone Pass (Trip 80, page 278, in Don’t Waste Your Time in the Canadian Rockies). It’s a superb backpack trip, and now’s prime time to do it. Something we didn’t mention in the book is an alternate return route, which turns the traditional, one-way, out-and-back trip into a circuit, greatly boosts your scenic reward, and adds a pinch of adventure. To do it, bring the “Hector Lake” 1:50 000 topo map 82 N/9. On the map, look at the hourglass-shaped ridge between Molar Pass and North Molar Pass. See the “waist” of the hourglass? It provides a steep but non-technical passage between the basin south of North Molar Pass and the upper east side of Molar Pass. And when you crest that ridge — wow — the view south-southwest (across the meadowy expanse of Molar Pass, to Hector Glacier on Mount Hector) is stupendous. After descending off the ridge, continue cross-country (west-southwest) to intersect the trail piercing Molar Pass. Then turn right and follow the trail generally northwest into the Mosquito Creek Valley, where you’ll be on familiar ground. Want to see more photos of this gorgeous area? Go to the Photos page of our website, click on “Canadian Rockies” (http://www.hikingcamping.com/photos-rockies.php), and view images 58 through 93.