Mt. Christoffel, Curacao
February 26, 2024
Mt. Christoffel only rises 1220’ above sea level, but is the island of Caracao’s highest point. Because the days on the island become hot by noon, the national park requires you to be hiking no later than 10 AM.
At 2 miles round-trip, the hike is short but is enjoyable. It consists of both hiking on a good trail and a bit of scrambling for the last few hundred feet as you near the summit.
Laura, Hazel, Stan and I made the 45 minute drive from our hotel to the national park at 6:30 AM. We purchased our entrance tickets before driving up the narrow and winding road to the parking area at the trailhead. There were already 15 or so cars parked so we took what space we could find and shouldered our water filled backpacks.
The hike starts off on an easy trail, then quickly begins gaining elevation. The hiking is easy and the path very well traveled. Hazel and Laura were moving at a steady pace; I decided to run ahead and summit, then return to them and go up again.
It took me less than one hour to summit and return to where they were, meeting up with them as they neared the halfway point of the hike.
As I rejoined them, Laura told Hazel had been hiking the entire way and was doing a great job. She was earning a pack of fruit snacks every 500’ and was happy and said she was having a lot of fun hiking with Mommy. Stan had now gone ahead at his own pace and as we continued on, the hike became steeper. It was now more difficult for Hazel as the scrambling on rocks required a bit more work for her. As the hiking turned to scrambling, Hazel continued on without assistance as I only stood below her to catch her if she slipped.
Everybody on the mountain was very impressed and even surprised that she was doing it on her own. She was moving up as fast as some of the other hikers even though she’s not even 4 years old yet!
As we scrambled our way through the final several hundred feet of exposed and rocky part of the mountain, we all reached the summit together, Hazel making every step on her own. I am proud of Hazels determination and happy that she had a positive attitude the entire hike.
On the summit, we took a few photos and enjoyed the view before hiking back the same way we came up. As we worked our way back down the mountain, and after the upper scrambling section, Hazel hiked with Grandpa almost the entire way back to the trailhead, enjoying the scenery, and just loving being outside.
It took us just under 4 hours round trip and we now had the rest of the day to go exploring beaches.
