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| Backpack | 29.10 Miles |
2,985 AEG |
| | Backpack | 29.10 Miles | 3 Days | | |
| 2,985 ft AEG | | | | |
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| partners | | HAVASU CANYON NOVEMBER 2011
After the early October backpack overnighter up Mt. Humphreys via Inner Basin (see => [ photoset ] ), a group of us had agreed that Havasu Canyon (see => [ Havasu Canyon Trail ] ) would be the next backpack destination. Come Friday 11/11 that group had dwindled to just two, critical mass to make the trek. With a less than ideal weather forecast, hotel reservations made at the Historic Route 66 Motel in Seligman AZ and camping permits made at the Supai AZ Tourist Office, Mike Mattes and I were ready to hit the road...
Friday 11/11 - We were able to get away from work early afternoon and were making good time on the I-17 when the electronic sign indicates traffic lanes closed near Black Canyon City due to a crash. With a sea of red lights and stopped vehicles near Anthem, we double back and head towards Wickenburg and Kingman via AZ93. Check in with Barbara at Historic Route 66 Motel and pick up the keys for our $67/night "digs" in room 102. We dine at the Roadkill Cafe and meet Mika whose photo trekking all the remnants of Route 66. Roadkill Cafe lives up to its name with a variety of "kills" up on the walls. Game is also on the menu and I end up ordering a buffalo steak. After lifting a few brews with Mika, it's time do some final packing and call it night. A startling discovery as one of us has left their sleeping bag back in Phoenix! It's 11pm and we're in Seligman AZ. How can we replace the missing sleeping bag? A quick consult with Barb the Route 66 Motel proprietor, and she indicates Kingman or Flagstaff are our best bets. I recall there's a 24hr Walmart in Flagstaff and look up the phone number confirming yes indeed it is open 24 hours!
Saturday 11/12 - A before dawn trek to the Flagstaff Walmart to purchase a 0deg Coleman sleeping bag and back to Seligman in about 2 hours. This puts us back on our original schedule to have a 7am breakfast at Westside Lilo's. We hear the Supai weather forecast => Hi 60, Lo 35, and chance of precipitation 30% to 60%. We bid Seligman good-bye and travel about 25 miles along Route 66 to the intersection of Indian Road 18. IR18 is 60 miles of paved road that suddenly ends at Hualapai Hilltop parking lot and heliport. I was quite surprised to be driving through a snowy ponderosa pine forest populated with suicidal turkeys darting out in front of my F-150 (making a bid to be the Thanksgiving spread?). We take our time at the TH parking lot finally getting organized to hit the trail 10:30-ish, in the Supai Tourist Office 2:30-ish, set up camp 4-ish, dinner 6-ish. On the trail to Supai we only encountered a small group from Florida making their way to the Lodge in Supai. We only saw a single mule train. Outside of Supai on the way to the campgrounds we take in dry Navajo Falls, New Falls, and Havasu Falls. I'm surprised by the complete lack of people in Havasu Campgrounds on a Saturday night. We have 2 couples camped nearby and that's about it. Maybe the horseshit dropped by the campground pests kept the numbers down? Thank-you to the beast that dropped a load by my tent when we were checking out the Falls! Clear skies tonight, temps maybe get down to about 35deg with a spectacular, almost full moon. Only thing missing is a campfire (not allowed in Havasu Canyon)...
Sunday 11/13 - Up at dawn, Mike prepares our camp breakfast. Leisurely Sunday morning coffee and we meet the Camp Ranger checking out our permits. She indicates that there will only be one other party in the campgrounds today. After finish chatting with the Ranger, we assemble our packs to trek down to Mooney Falls, Beaver Falls, and onto Grand Canyon National Park beyond Beaver Canyon. The trek from above Mooney Falls to the Blue Pools near Beaver Canyon is absolutely jaw dropping! The aqua-socks suggested by Mike were absolutely brilliant. You can't do this section without entering the water multiple times. I'm surprised by the water temperature - completely unnoticeable - neither warm nor cold. Complete solitude in this section as we see absolutely no one until our way back down the rope climb at the lone palm tree. We meet a guy from Finland (now living in California) who's making a day trek from Hualapai Hilltop to Beaver Falls and back again! My math says 26 mile day trip. When Mike and I have returned to our campsite enjoying a snack at the picnic table, we see our day trekker running by at an insane pace. I forgot to mention our Big Horn Sheep encounter in the vast Canyon Grapevine fields between Beaver and Mooney Falls. This was just icing on the cake. As daylight transitions into dark, we break out our Mountain House dinners and swap some stories. I feel a couple of rain drops and we decide to call it a night...
Monday 11/14 - Get-away day. We break camp 8-ish, Supai 9-ish, back at my truck parked at Hualapai Hilltop 3pm sharp. We encountered our Florida trio along the trail and proceed to play leapfrog depending on whose turn it is to take a break. Monday seems to be a "supply day" for Supai as we encounter at least a dozen mule trains heading down trail. Helicopters are buzzing back and forth from Hualapai Hilltop to Supai with goods suspended with large netting. On the road we add to our wildlife encounters viewing a couple of herds of antelope along Route 66 near the IR18 intersection. Supper at a Ash Forks Diner, home by 9:30pm, get ready to catch 6:50am flight to Minneapolis Tuesday morning...
After-Thoughts - What is the source of the perennial waters in Havasu Canyon? Seems odd that all the side canyons are bone-dry, yet Havasu Canyon has a sizable flow. Are there massive caverns associated with the water source and high mineralization? Havasu Canyon seems to have all the requisite requirements for Anasazi Ruins and Rock Art yet we were unable to find any evidence - that's what really puzzles me...
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