I have never been much for daydreaming. It seems like a waste of time or just more of a let down more than anything else. Instead I am more of a do-er. I inherited my father’s obsessive need to complete things. I am also a compulsive list maker. So when I add things to my Living List, it’s not to just sit there for 10 years and collect dust. Now I know that a list such as that cannot be accomplished in a year or several for that matter (i.e. I think I will forever be learning to speak Spanish) but I am always looking to cross something off and making room for new goals or adventures because a list like that is ever-growing so you always have to be chipping away at it. I don’t want to look back in 10 years and see that I spent most of my time dreaming or talking about doing something than actually making it happen.
A couple of years ago I saw an article about Havasupai Falls being one of the most remote towns in the U.S. The pictures alone were inspiring and I truly couldn’t believe that a place like that existed in our own backyard and I knew I was one day I was going to have to see for myself! Last December the article was recirculating it’s way through the internet and that’s when I decided, ok, now is the time. I had only been home from Belize for a few weeks so I was still riding that vacation high and was jonesing for another travel fix. I mentioned it to a friend that lives here in Birmingham and she was all about it and within two days I had completed all the research and we were booked! I was both excited and a little nervous about traveling with a friend… I have been traveling solo for so long, I wasn’t really sure if I was even a good travel buddy? I kind of like to do things at my pace and on my own schedule so this was going to be a challenge. Spoiler alert: we were good travel buddies!
Havasu Canyon is home to the Indian tribe known as Havasupai which is located deep in the Grand Canyon. It is considered one of the most remote towns in the U.S. where mail is still delivered via pack mule. Havasu means “blue-green water” and pai “people” so it is no wonder that it is also home to some of the most beautiful waterfalls you will ever lay your eyes on! The color of the water is something completely unreal and you would never expect to see something like that in America, let alone in the middle of the desert!
We went over Memorial weekend which I can only believe to be the best time of year to go (I have no comparison but it was awesome for us!). The weather was perfect, hot but only topping out in the low 90s and dry. If you are from the South and or anywhere with humidity then you will think its glorious. To my Northern friends, it’s probably going to feel pretty dang hot! At night the temps got down into the 60s and was perfect sleeping weather. We signed up for the hike with an outfit called Arizona Outback Adventures. They handled getting all the gear and food to camp, set up and take down. They prepared three meals a day for us and had plenty of snacks and cold and clean water. Also, probably the best part, is they handle getting your permits to go on the reservation. Getting a permit to Havasupai Falls is hard and you have do it pretty far in advance. This really just took the guesswork out for us and made it really easy. I have also heard good things about R.E.I’s guided tour as another option. You could also do it on your one – there were lots of people camping out with a friend or solo but honestly, I could not imagine having to carrying all that gear in and out of the canyon! (P.S. you can also take a helicopter!)
There were 27 people in our group, and we started out at the trailhead after lunch around 2pm – in the middle of the day in the high heat. The hike into camp is a little over 12.5 miles (though advertised as 10!). For the most part, Day 1 is pretty easy. It starts off with switchbacks down the mouth of the trail and then levels off in the valley with some downhills spread throughout. Unlike the decent for Kilimanjaro, it was not very steep and a much more gradual decline. I did not use trekking poles for this part of the journey. Really, the key to Day 1 was to stay hydrated. Drink. Drink. Drink! Our group had three American guides that shared the history of the Havasupai tribe and their longstanding riff with the U.S. government for essentially stealing their land. We heard old tribal stories about brave warriors and the history and hypotheses of how the Grand Canyons were formed. We arrived at camp just before dusk to be greeted by one of the most majestic waterfalls I have ever seen. Our campsite was about 200 yards from falls and while were tired we were also so pumped for the next day!
Day 2 was my favorite! This is where the group kind of split up based on what people wanted to do. For some they wanted a more leisurely day and just hang out. 6 of us wanted more adventure and we went on a 10 mile hike to see Mooney Falls (the tallest waterfall in the Grand Canyon) and go swimming at Beaver Falls which are these beautiful cascading waterfalls with amazing swimming pools. It’s a mile walk from the campsite to Mooney and they don’t really prepare you for what you are about to see or do! When you first see Mooney it takes your breath away. You are standing on a ledge almost the same height as the top of the falls looking down into this beautiful pool of aqua colored water. Then you realize that the trail you are following doesn’t end and you have to go through a system of caves and climb down rope and wooden ladders while hanging on to chains. I suppose if you are afraid of heights or claustrophobic this would be scary but I absolutely loved it! Definitely the kind of adventure I was hoping for!
From Mooney we booked it down to Beaver Falls. We walked through fields full of grape vines (very weird for the desert!), and had to cross through the river in waist deep water several times. It was about 4 miles to get there and it was totally worth it! The pools were gorgeous and of course, we went swimming! The water was FREEZING but I certainly didn’t travel all this way to let my aversion to cold water keep me from getting in!
After we arrived back at camp around 1pm we took a nap and then spent the rest of the afternoon playing around in the pools at the Havasupai Falls. Day 3 we hiked out. Since our group was so large, we were told that everyone had to be out of camp by 6 a.m. and we could leave whenever we were ready and hike out by ourselves! I have been on many guided tours all over the world and this seemed really strange and like a huge liability. But I suppose since AOA is the longest running tour operator out there, they know what they are doing. My friend and I left with some of the people that went to Beaver Falls around 4:45 a.m. The sun comes up pretty early so we only needed our headlamps for about an hour or so. We followed the same trail out that we took in. But going in the other direction you saw all kinds of things you didn’t see the first time. Our group was booking it pretty fast. The hardest part was when we got to switchbacks at the top. They are steep and by that point in the morning it was getting pretty hot. My hips have been giving me a lot of trouble and I was putting off going to ortho until after this trip (super smart, I know), so I kept a pretty steady pace and avoided stopping for fear that I might lose my momentum.
And while I know we said it wasn’t a race, internally I was super excited we finished in the Top 10, we did it in sub five hours and we beat the horses that were carrying all of our gear! (FYI, my friend Melissa had just hiked 26 miles in like 10 hours two weeks prior to this so I am pretty sure she could have done this in like 3 hours! She rocks!) This was seriously one of the coolest places I have ever been. While I tend to go on a lot of adventures that involve sleeping in tents and using outdoor facilities, it’s not really my thing but this was perfect. Two nights in a tent is completely doable and the bathroom facilities were by FAR the best of any place I have been like this! Hats off to you, Havasupai! It’s also a great intro hike if you are not sure about how you would handle a trip like this or are unsure about doing a destination hike and going out of the country. I definitely recommend it but just remember you need to plan well in advance to get those elusive permits!
