We met snow on the side of the road while driving above the canyon off Highway 66 in Coconino country near the town of Peach Springs, Arizona. That time of year you have to prepare for very hot days and very cool nights. Our permit for hiking in the Havasupai Indian Reservation was for the end of February which is the earliest time of year they allow visitors.
Supai is one the most remote Indian Reservations in the country, entirely surrounded by the Grand Canyon National Park. The only ways in are by foot, mule, or helicopter. I would recommend reading more about the peoples' history as land claims, disease, and government relations are prevalent issues that are shaping which direction the culture is heading today.
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| Ranger style tent a few miles from the trailhead |
Give right of way to the mules as you descend in the canyon! Many of the dogs from the community will usually follow behind the herd also. The locals offer a service that delivers your overnight gear by mule to the campground. Another service avoids the hike altogether with the charter of the helicopter. All would offer a different experience and while I would choose to go self supported, the system for obtaining your hiking permit is very competitive, you may just have to take what you can get. In 2019 a walk in permit cost $200 per person for a 3 night minimum. And the tourism website on the day of launch kept crashing due to the amount of people trying to submit their itinerary. Apparently the whole season was sold out after the first couple hours so you can expect the prices to increase to meet the demand.
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| Flash flood evacuation route? |
Photographs are discouraged as you enter the community. Infrastructure includes a general store with food and basic supplies, lodging, elementary school, basketball court, helicopter landing area, church, first aid building, United States Postal Service, and tourism office. The locals acknowledged hikers and were respectful. Food vendors also sell frybread which was delicious.
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| Lower Navajo Falls |
The water is blueish green colour from the high concentration of lime.
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| Havasu Falls |
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| Tents pitched along Havasu Creek |
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| Mooney Falls |
There is an established trail northwest out of the campground that visits a series of waterfalls and eventually ends at the confluence with the Colorado River. It's fairly maintained until Beaver Falls which is more most people turn around. Otherwise you can continue following the Havasu Creek as the trail switches from one side of the canyon to the other. Expect to be wading through the water multiple times as bridges are scarce before Beaver Falls and almost non existent afterwards.
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| Confluence of the Colorado River & Havasu Creek |
I tried to research which fish species this is without any luck. Let me know if anyone has the local knowledge or can somehow identify them from this photo.
Glad you made it to the end! Above is my favourite picture from the trip: Amazon prime boxes packed on mules ready to be delivered as USPS cargo
