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| Hiking | 30.00 Miles |
2,400 AEG |
| | Hiking | 30.00 Miles | 72 Hrs | | 0.42 mph |
| 2,400 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | Three day trip to Havasupai with my wife and two teenage daughters. Mileage reflects hiking down to Beaver Falls, as well as a few side hikes.
Day 1: Departed Phoenix at 1:45 a.m.; arrived at Hualapai Hilltop at 6:20. We made great time due to lack of traffic  . Thought about driving up the afternoon before and either camping along Indian Road 18 or getting a motel in Seligman, but decided that a few hours of good sleep in my own bed was better than a few extra hours of restless sleep in a .5 star motel or the added hassle of setting up/breaking down camp. (As we were driving back on the return trip, I noted a side road off Indian Rd. 18 just beyond mile marker 27 on the left [as you drive toward the hilltop] that looked like it would make a nice place to camp overnight--however, I don't believe it was on the BLM land, but rather on the Hualapai Reservation, so not sure if you'd need a special permit to camp there[?]).
While driving down Indian Rd 18, we encountered about 20 elk, hundreds of jackrabbits and one big bull. Be careful driving this one--especially in the dark  . We began hiking down at 6:50 a.m. Perfect weather for hiking (a little cool, but a bit of hiking quickly did away with any need for a jacket) and the timing was great--the trail side of the canyon was shaded and, as we hiked down, we watched the sun gradually climb down the opposite canyon wall. After entering Hualapai Canyon, we continued to hike in the shade almost the entire way to its junction with Cataract Canyon. We didn't run into another soul until about 5 miles in, where we passed a couple of small groups on their way out and started to see some mule trains and sporadic horse traffic.
Eight miles from the Hilltop, we entered Supai village, where we picked up our camping permit at the tourist office and stopped for lunch at the cafe. We planned to try the frybread that we had read about. When we asked the attendant what she would recommend, we were suprised at her response: "Honestly, the hamburger."  We went with the frybread combo anyway. They were missing some of the toppings and it took forever to make, so they ended up not charging us. Overall assessment: Food was okay, but not great  . While waiting for the food, we had a chance to check out the store across the "street"; it generally had most of the necessities (in case you forget something important); the prices were high, but not as ridiculous as you might expect for such a remote location. We bought a postcard and sent it back home at the next door post office. FYIs re Supai Village: Tourist office, cafe, and store all take credit cards. Tourist office and cafe have flush toilets for visitors. Also, Verizon has cell coverange in the village.
After lunch, we hiked the final two miles to the campground, passing "New Falls" and Havasu Falls. Once we set up camp, we hiked back up to Havasu Falls and explored the abandoned mine about 200 yards up Carbonate Canyon. My teenage daughters thought that was very cool. Headlamp or other flashlight is essential, and be careful as there are some crazy drops--in one place about 20-30 feet straight down. After the mine, we returned to play around in Havasu Falls. The water was chilly at first, but not bad. We then hiked back up to New Falls. If you're into cliff jumping, this was the place to go. We didn't partake but there were others who were taking a 20 ft (or so) jump off one of the falls and highly recommended it. They reported that their feet touched the bottom when they jumped but "softly." We weren't that adventurous  .
The campground was not very crowded (and was even less so after a number of groups headed out the following morning), and we found a great spot right on the creek, directly across from Fern Spring (the source of drinking water at the campground). Bathrooms consisted of composting toilets, and were pretty nice as far as campground toilets go. The advice of bringing your own toilet paper is a good one, as finding a supply in the bathrooms at the campground was pretty hit and miss (mostly miss).
I'm sure the temperature did not get below 40 overnight; I never fully zipped up my sleeping bag, and on night 2, it was actually so warm that I had to start the night on, rather than in, my sleeping bag. Woke up in the middle of the first night to find one of the stray dogs curled up at the entrance to my tent. Besides dogs, various horses roam freely about the campground (and leave their droppings--which made some campsites a bit less desirable). We tied up our food in bags and hung them from rope in a tree; this seemed to prevent us from being victimized by the squirrels that are searching for easy meals from unwary campers. We were glad to have brought insect repellant, as the mosquitoes came out in force at the end of the day.
Day 2: Got up and headed out at 8 a.m. on a day hike down to Beaver Falls. From Mooney Falls on, we apparently had the entire canyon to ourselves, and did not see another person until we approached Mooney Falls on our return. The Mooney Falls' descent was a bit scary for my daughters but they managed just fine! From the base of Mooney Falls, we tried to follow some directions that we had read about, and there were also various ribbons tied to trees that I assume were intended to guide folks along the way, but ultimately, we just made our path as best we could down the creek (there are various paths and trails all over the place--not just "one" trail). We had to cross the creek a few times, but never more than knee deep. First creek entry was a couple hundred yards downstream of Mooney, where the run-off/spring water from Ghost Canyon joins the creek. There may have been a way to hike up and around, but this juncture created its own beautiful little falls/grotto that you would miss if you didn't walk through the creek to see it. After walking down the river a few hundred feet, we rejoined a trail on the left of the creek and followed it until the canyon makes its first wide turn to the right. I think this is the first place where you really "have to" cross, which we did. Once on the right side, we climbed a small hill and followed a short path that "cut the corner" off of the bend in the canyon. Once back down by the river, we came to probably the most important crossing, which put us back on the left side of the river, where we stayed for a good mile+, walking through the massive wild grape vine forest. This crossing was pretty clear, as the path comes right out of the creek. There was a large stump to the left of the trail as well that provided something of a landmark.
After traversing the grape field, we looked for a final crossing to the right side, which we had read would be marked by the one and only palm tree in Havasu Canyon. We eventually gave up on looking for this and just crossed where it seemed to make sense. Ultimately, though, we ran into the palm tree, which truly is unmistakable. The rope that used to be there to help hikers scale the short canyon wall to the trail has now been replaced with a fairly well constructed wooden ladder. We contined on the right side of the creek until we reached the down climb to Beaver Falls. We actually hiked a bit further down to the sign marking the boundary between the Havasupai Reservation and the Grand Canyon Nat'l Park. Glad we did, as the cliff next to the sign provided a great vantage point for pics upstream of Beaver Falls.
As noted, we had Beaver Falls all to ourselves, and it was stunning. After the 2008 flood, I think Beaver Falls makes the best "playground" for just swimming around and relaxing at the falls.
On the way back from Beaver Falls, we explored Ghost Canyon, which is just downstream from Mooney Falls, and took a look at the Cataract mine, with its 150 foot ladder to the mine's entrance. After returning to camp, we rested a bit and then made another trip to Havasu Falls to enjoy the view and relax a bit before dinner.
After dinner, we hiked back down the top of Mooney Falls to enjoy the sound of the falls,take in its dim outline in the twilight, and reflect on an awesome day in the canyon. A great setting for having a good chat with your teenagers about life  .
Day 3: Hiked out. Made it in under 5 hours. That last 1.5 mi. (1000+ ft. climb) is a bear--and as I recall, downright miserable in the summer. At the suggestion of others, we had stashed some extra water at the 1 mi. to go mark, and enjoyed the refreshment as we prepared for the final climb. As we got closer to the top, the wind picked up and was howling by the time we reached the parking lot. Rather than being whipped around by the dust and wind in the parking lot, we packed up quickly and decided to enjoy our victory in the car on the way home.
Overall, mid-March seems a perfect time to visit. It was not so hot as to make the hiking miserable, but it was not so cold as to discourage getting in the water and playing in the falls. Also, it seems we generally beat the "rush" of spring visitors . . .
Great trip. Will definitely be going again. |
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