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Published: November 5th 2011
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Hello friends and fam around the world! This entry is a little closer to home but just as eventful as our many trips abroad. One picture..is all it took...of turquoise blue waterfalls cascading into pools and more pools at the bottom of massive canyons. These pools connected by winding stretches of shallow rivers running just fast enough to freshen life around them. Just as the one photo had sold us..so too had it worked for our friends in Seattle and Portland. Howie and Tara, Kieth and Leah and the always-trip-ready Pauly joined us for our 2 night trip out of Phoenix. Knowing that we had one mule with stingy pack limit, food and supplies was the biggest concern we had beforehand. Powdered this and dehydrated that made up our shopping list and we set off on the 2 hour drive to Flagstaff where we stayed for the night. Next morning's 2 hour drive onto tribal reservation land passed quickly with the amazing scenery changes from pine trees into jagged red rock that seemingly spanned forever. The cliff side tribal roads finally ended and you're nostrils are met by the smell of warmed over horse and mule manure. The horror stories of
lost bags had scared us a bit so we leaf bagged, labeled, and piled everything to be mule hauled and set off. Passed on the hour, trains of mules and donkeys trotted behind tribal horse riders delivering town supplies, tourist bags and yes..U.S Mail...the last place in America still serviced by beast. What should have been a 4 hour hike on average took us a solid 6 hours due to the breathtaking scenery and picture taking. Thanks to Howie and his trekking GPS gizmos...we knew throughout the hike just how slow we really were. A lone helicopter could be seen every 15 minutes overhead dropping supplies and canyon goers that can afford the pricey option. The final half mile gave us glimpses of the blue waters we would eventually camp next to. We arrived in Supai at dusk with our bags sitting in a pile well in advance of us...the outer layer of leaf bags saving a lot of wear and tear. The easy and nearby riverside camping spots were taken quickly by the early birds but luck shined on us for a moment as we managed to “borrow” a wheel-barrow for our mule travelled bags for which Pauly stepped
up in amazing fashion to take across the finish line the final 600 yards….no small feat after that day. With sun setting, we found a beautiful and rather private area to set up camp and rest our weary feet. We filtered water (okay, mostly Tara) set up tents and slid into clothes we could stand smelling. Dinner was a sharing occasion with everyone testing each other’s experimental concoction and casting nods of satisfaction….some convincing..some not. We finished with a community chocolate bar over tea light candles and a boxed wine..thanks donkeys! After-dinner star gazing was epic next to the edge of the falls.
Next days plans were easy..find water, find sunshine..sit in water in the sunshine. After breakfast we climbed the canyon walls to the pools below Mooney Falls. This is not a Disneyland descent although at times when feeling your way through cave walls…it feels like it. A day earlier while we hiked in, we wondered which folks were getting the bird’s eye view by helicopter into the camping area…after witnessing the half hour descent of many down to the Falls by shaky ladders, chain holds and slimy steps…you had a good guess of those that were activity-challenged. I
was rather impressed only one person had died on the route in the past few years. The sun had yet to really peak above the canyon walls so comfortable swimming was out of the question but Pauly, Keith and Howie did their best to battle the plunging water head on..never making it closer than 6 feet out due to the power. A quick lunch and we headed to the upper Havasu Falls where we marveled at yet another set of perfectly blue pools that would be fitting for a manmade resort area. The sun peaked allowing us to relax in the cool water around the Falls but even then, the tall walls of the canyon kept us moving to where the warm rays could reach us. We eventually settled in down river a bit from the falls where the sun was hot, people were few and we could sit on hot rocks jutting from the water’s surface. A photo shoot ensued with the help of a single REI bottle of vodka and a 5 calorie citrus drink mix.
Once the sun set below the canyon walls we decided to explore the many cave openings that could be seen from the
trail. Dinner was swift and bed time came early as we had to break camp in the wee hours while it was still dark and get our bags to a drop site for the mules to pick up. We then set out for our return trip determined to make it in the 4 hours that most guide books specify. Only once on the return trip did we break for a significant amount of time and eat..we were on a mission with Howie keeping track of progress for us. The final push up the canyon switch backs were a relief and the view again behind us was amazing. Although we have read of horror stories from others taking this trip, we didn’t experience nor hear of any trouble of the sort. The tribal folks we encountered were welcoming and we were generally impressed with the condition of the campground itself. The sites were clean, the restrooms surprisingly well maintained and the only real garbage to be found was on the hiking route itself.
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George McIntosh
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Thoroughly enjoyed Havasupai
Erin- What a spectacular trip. This was of special interest to me because Ann and I have spent time in that area on a couple of occasions. Ann has always been interested in the Anasazi cliff dwellings, of which there are several in the Sedona-Flagstaff area. I only wish I had discovered the area earlier in life. At our age, we probably saw about one-tenth of what you discovered. George