Havasupai Trip in 3 Days

Length: 26.66 mi
Elev. gain: 8386 ft
Total moving time: 13 hrs 3 mins

The hike:

https://www.alltrails.com/explore/recording/havasu-falls–38

Havasupai is a Native American Reservation surrounded by Grand Canyon and is famous for its aqua-blue waterfalls (Havasupai means people of the blue-green water). It had been on my bucket list for many years. It was a long hike and I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to do it in one day and the only lodging option I knew then was camping which I wasn’t very fond of. So I had put off the trip until I heard they also had a lodge.

In order to hike this trail, you need a hiking permit. The permit was only issued for booked guests (either campground or lodge). This place was so popular it was almost impossible to book. I had to keep calling them (online booking wasn’t available then) but the line was always busy. I was finally able to get thru after numerous tries and luckily scored a room in about a month. I was so excited!

Most people that hike this trail take a 5-day trip.

• Day 1 – Travel to nearby city/town
• Day 2 – Drive to trailhead, then hike 8-10 miles (depending on where you are staying, 8 miles to the lodge and 10 miles to campground) into the canyon
• Day 3 – Hike 11 miles to explore the canyon and the waterfalls
• Day 4 – Hike 8-10 miles out of the canyon and drive back to nearby city/town
• Day 5 – Travel home

But 5 days was too many for me. Besides, hiking 8-11 miles a day meant there’d be a lot of time left each day. Since there wasn’t much else to do, I was worried I might be too bored. So I decided to do it in 3 days instead.

Day 1 (10/29/2016): Drive to trailhead.

I originally planned to stay in Kingman overnight. But if I wanted to finish the hike in one day, I had to start at first light. It was a 2+ hr drive from Kingman to the trailhead and there was about 60 miles of the road that was dangerous to drive at night (dark, wild animals). If I stayed in Kingman overnight, I would have to wait until there was daylight to drive the last 60 miles, which meant I’d have a late start and wouldn’t be able to finish the hike in a day. After evaluating pros and cons, it was obvious that my only choice was to drive to the trailhead on first day and stay there overnight.

On my way to the trailhead, I stopped by Oatman to see the burros.

After Oatman, I headed to the trailhead. Sure enough, there were some wild horses on the road.

I arrived at the trailhead before dark. Fortunately, there were some other hikers camping at the parking lot too. Instead of camping, I slept in my car. There was also a bathroom at the parking lot but with no water (I had to use drinking water to brush my teeth in the lot), no light and some flies.

Sleeping in the car wasn’t comfortable. But it would have to do.

Day 2 (10/30/2016): Hike down to the canyon and see all the waterfalls.

I headed out at first light. It was a mile and a half to the bottom of the canyon and another 6 miles and a half to the lodge where I was supposed to pick up my hiking permit.

Arrived at Supai Village, where I was staying for the night.

I was already tired by the time I picked up my permit. I wasn’t allowed to check in yet which means that I had to be back by 5pm when they closed to pick up my room key.

So I didn’t waste any time and continued my hike.

Soon I saw Navajo Falls.

Then kept going.

Soon I could see Mooney Falls. But reaching Mooney Falls wasn’t easy. There were lots of warning signs.

Sure enough, the descent was pretty much vertical, and slippery too due to the mist from the falls.

Looking back

Beautiful Mooney Falls

Many people turned around after reaching Mooney Falls. But there was another beautiful waterfall ahead. So I kept going.

The rest of the trail were mostly done wading in the the water (I brought water shoes). The whole place was like heaven.

And then, the beautiful Beaver Falls.

If you continue on the hike, you could reach Colorado River. But I had to be back by 5pm to pick up my room key. So I had to turn back.

I missed Havasu Falls on the way out because it was facing the direction I was going. But it was hard to miss on the way back.

Saw some bighorn sheep and a roadrunner on the way.

Back to Navajo Falls

I was able to finish everything before 5pm and get my room key in time. It was a long day with 19.9 miles of hike, 5340 ft total ascent and 7284 ft total descent.

Day 3 (10/31/2016): Hike out of the canyon and drive home.

The hike out (8 miles) wasn’t easy. The last mile and a half of uphill climb was a torture. It took me over four hours (less than 3 hrs on the way down).

This was my first solo trip ever. In three days, I drove 852 miles and hiked 27 miles. I consider that a very “efficient” trip 😄

My route: