A Havasupai trip requires quite a lot of planning.
First and foremost, permits go on sale February 1st. Three of us logged on separately, and each spent three hours requesting permits before one of us finally got through - the servers were jammed! I suggest having a date range that works for your group and playing around with the dates until one succeeds.
Getting to and from the trailhead also requires some planning. I went with a group of 5, most of us coming from different places across the country. We had to coordinate flight times into Las Vegas, and renting a car (or in my case, a van!) to drive the 3 hours to the trailhead.
We landed early afternoon, two of us had a van rental for the week, since we were continuing on after Havasupai. The others picked up their rental car and we met at the grocery store, where we picked up our rations for the next 4 days. We had already discussed meals and who would share what, so we were fairly quick at the store. Then we went out for a thai dinner before hitting the road.
Along the way we stopped in Peach Springs to get gas, the last opportunity before turning onto Indian Highway 18. The last hour of the drive is secluded; it was a very dark drive with plenty of wildlife, be careful! A much more enjoyable drive in the daylight.
When we arrived at the trailhead, we settled in and slept for a few hours. We set our alarms for 3:30 am. Feeling very groggy, we gathered our packs, donned some warm layers, and hit the trail. The sun eventually came up and the surroundings were beautiful. At this point we were just walking along the mostly flat bed of the canyon. We arrived at Havasupai village at 9:30am. We all shared a serving of fry bread while taking a rest before continuing on to the campsite. We checked in at the station in town and received our wristbands and tent tags.
The last two miles from town to the campsite are mostly down hill. Here you start to get glimpses of the most beautiful blue water Havasu is known for. Finally, we came around a bend to a steep descent and got our first glimpse of Havasu Falls.
Breathtaking.
The photos don’t do it justice.
Spectacular.
We were all anxious to find a campsite and finally take off our packs. We nearly settled into one of the first campsites we came across. It was along the stream and seemed like a good spot. But we carried on, of course to one of the furthest spots, but it was worth it. The stream opens up wider the further you go and there’s less foot traffic (which to be honest isn’t much anyways).
We set up camp and strung paracord over nearby tree branches. The squirrels and raccoons are NO JOKE. We were warned on our hike in, by other campers hiking out. Everything must get hung, and anything scented must go in the bins provided; food, toiletries, everything. Several people had squirrels or raccoons rip into their tents.
We used the bins and had zero problems. We certainly had squirrels and raccoons come through our campsite, but nothing to find here!
After we set up camp and had a snack, we took naps. That early wake up followed by 10 miles of hiking took it out of us! After napping we walked around the campsite and got our first glimpse of Mooney Falls. We only looked at it from above, knowing we would be descending the falls in the morning. Then we went back to Havasu Falls before cooking dinner.
Day Two:
We attempted to get an early start. We had our sights set on The Confluence.
Typically day 2 people go to Beaver Falls, a 4 mile hike, 8 miles roundtrip. We decided to go to The Confluence, which is an additional 4 miles - totaling our hike at 16 miles.
The Confluence is where the beautiful waters of Havasu meet the brown waters of the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon.
The day began with descending Mooney Falls. It is best to get an early start because the descent only allows for one way traffic and you rely on chains for support as you descend the face of this 180 foot waterfall. This descent is definitely scary for some. The waterfall is spectacular and powerful.
*Something I did not see mentioned on any of the many blogs I ready in preparation: it is wise to bring gloves for the Mooney descent. The rocks and chains are slick from mist of the falls. Luckily some friendly campers passed along their gloves to us as they were leaving Havasu (which we then also passed along).
From here we carried on, the scenery changing often and always beautiful. There are only a couple spots where there are signs, but generally there is only one path to follow. There are several water crossings on this hike, you definitely need to wear water shoes. I wore my Salomon Outline GTX sneakers for the descent then switched to my Chaco ZCloud sandals.
Eventually we came to Beaver Falls. Endless cascading pools. Absolutely stunning. We quickly moved on, Confluence bound. However, we did not realize that the path to the Confluence continues on before the descent to Beaver Falls. Rather than backtrack we decided to rock climb up to the spot we figured the trail must be. Once we were finally back on the trail the only sign we came across stated we are leaving Havasupai and entering the Grand Canyon. At one point we saw that the trail continued across the river, and there was seemingly a path used to get down to the river… turns out we had to rock climb down the face of the canyon. I was not expecting that!
Because we didn’t get the early start we hoped for, and we stopped so many times to take in the surrounding beauty, we realized we were a bit strapped for time. We wanted to ascend Mooney Falls (the chains) before sunset. We forged on, and eventually made it the The Confluence. We knew we were close when we started seeing lots of tourists and rafters, all coming from the Grand Canyon side, hoping for a peak of the beautiful blue waters of Havasu.
Honestly, our group was tired and hangry at this point. We found a spot to sit and eat lunch (wrap sandwiches). After refilling (and treating) our water reserves, we made our way back to Mooney Falls. It’s a shame we didn’t have more time to enjoy Beaver Falls and go swimming; if only we had gotten the early start we had planned for! We got back to camp just as it was getting dark, cooked dinner, and settled down. We had hiked over 28 miles in the first two days. We were pooped!
Day Three:
Two of our friends were very ambitious and got up early to hike back to Beaver Falls to go swimming. Three of us opted to go to the other falls at the front end of Havasu. We hiked around to Fifty Foot Falls and Navajo Falls, where we went swimming / bathed ourselves. We layed around for a while, soaking in the sun. Eventually we made our way back to Havasu Falls where we swam again and ate lunch. The weather turned a bit and we rushed back to camp to make sure everything was packed away for the rain. Fortunately it only drizzled. We spent much of the afternoon at Havasu Falls, eventually we went back to camp for dinner and to organize our things for a morning departure.
Day Four:
We were very unsure of our exit strategy. People generally leave VERY early or in the evening, to avoid hiking out in the direct and unrelenting sun. Since we all had a couple hours drive after the hike out, we decided to hike out in the morning. However we did not leave very early… instead we left around 8am. Consequently, much of the 10 mile hike was in direct sunlight with hardly any shady spots to seek refuge. It was brutal. The last two miles of uphill switchbacks was one of the hardest things I’ve ever experienced. Because we had descended this part of the trail in complete blackness, we didn’t have any indicators of how far we were from the trailhead. Just endless uphill in the blistering sun. If (or rather, WHEN) I hike Havasu again, I will certainly plan a better exit!
All in all, this trip was magical. I hope everyone gets to experience this heavenly place! Just remember: leave no trace! And, I advise against pack mules; pack in/out yourself, it’s part of the experience!
See video page for a full video recap!
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