Sometimes you're cursed for no good reason. It's not because you stole an idol or failed to properly respect a vodouists, it's simply because you made bad choices.
Bad choice #1 was in 2010 when I tried to nightshoe to Para Point. Too cold, too far, too confusing.
Bad choice #2 was in 2012 when I tried to get the kids up Kachess Beacon from the same trailhead. Too far, too hot, too tired.
Bad choice #3 was just last year when I turned right instead of left and wound up on Easton Ridge.
So perhaps I was tempting fate going back to the same trailhead to try for Para Point once again. And even more so with Clara and Henry in tow.
But this time it was better. The weather was perfect for hiking: low 60s to start, low 70s on the summit. The M&Ms were plentiful and the dog was carrying her own water. We didn't get lost in the dark. We didn't turn the wrong way at the junction.
About the only thing that wasn't quite perfect was the lack of views to the north. Instead, we had to content ourselves with a spectacular vista to the south including both Mount Rainier and Mount Adams.
The way down was a dusty affair, but we rinsed it all off in Silver Creek. (The creek is really beautiful and amazingly refreshing.)
So the curse is broken and I'm considering other trips out there. Maybe the Kachess Beacon will be conquered or we'll go beyond Para Point to Mt. Baldy and Domerie or the other way to Thomas and Thorp. I bet I can get into even more trouble now that the easy monkey is off my back.
Who's in?
