Havasupai Falls

Havasupai Falls is located near the Grand Canyon, on Havasupai tribal lands. Despite being relatively close to Southern California, it's come as a surprise for me to learn that not many people know about these falls. It is one of the most breathtaking places in the world to visit. There are a total of five unique falls located in this area, and you must visit them in order. We took the 10 mile hike in, but you also have the option to pay for a helicopter ride in, which takes less than 10 minutes. Once inside, you have the option to stay in lodgings in the tribal town of Supai or to camp in the designated campground between the second and third waterfall. If you stay in Supai, all of the 5 falls are within 3 mile hikes.

I recommend anyone who wants to see Havasupai to make reservations with the tribe at least a few months in advance as they only admit a limited number of visitors at a time and fill up early!

The Upper Navajo Falls is the first waterfall you will reach if you lodged in town. It was created by a flood in only 2008. The pools beneath this fall is not deep so do not dive. In fact, I do not think diving is even allowed at this particular waterfall. There are large boulders just below the falls which create a visual barrier, but they are passable and I highly recommend traversing through it to get the full effect.

The Lower Navajo Falls is the second waterfall created the flood of 2008. This waterfall is about 100 feet wide, and I later heard that it has a ledge to access a swimming hole, although I did not see it.

Lower Navajo Falls also has cascading stones which create natural steps.

The third waterfall, Havasu Falls, is the most well known of the lot and has been featured in magazines, tv, calendars and photos. The water here is crystal blue and contrasts nicely with the surrounding red rock and vegetation. There is plenty of room here for swimmers. Quite a few people climbed up the mossy walls to a ledge halfway up the waterfall to take a dive. The rock there is slippery and the sheer force of the waterfall makes it difficult to even keep your eyes open if you are too close. The falls is 100 feet high, and the water cascades into another nearby pool that is also great for swimming.

Mooney Falls proved to be the bane of my trip. This waterfall is even higher than that of Havasu Falls as it plunges over 190 feet into the ground below. Mooney Falls is the gateway to the fifth and final waterfall at Havasupai, which can only be accessed by descending (mostly vertically) down the adjacent rock wall. This was a daunting task. Be mentally prepared for this one as once you begin, as there's no rest for the weary.

Having typed this post after going up and down Huayna Picchu in Peru, I would say that Mooney Falls is far more difficult even though it is not nearly as high. The pathway is VERY steep, often times with no protective barrier between yourself and the straight drop to the ground below. More often than not, there was no chain to hold onto. Also be prepared to go through tunnels and use precariously placed ladders toward the bottom. Unfortunately, the photo below does not quite convey the danger of the climb. That being said, it was a good work out!

Unfortunately, I visited Havasupai during monsoon season (July-August). While the mornings started out deceptively clear and sunny, it would become overcast and begin raining by early afternoon. The rains swept a torrential current of mud downstream, turning the beautiful clear waterfalls brown. This became a definite safety situation for any persons who were in Mooney Falls and Beaver Falls because that area is essentially a basin which can get entirely flooded. The only way back would be to climb up the Mooney Falls rockface. Coincidentally, I was halfway down the Mooney Falls climb when it began raining and the waters started turning brown. We had to turn around and climb up - not an easy feat to do when the rock was muddy and slippery. I was grateful that my friend was behind me to catch me in case I slipped. Up above, the mud current moved so quickly (they can reach up to 30 mph) that people's camp sites were actually being swept downstream. Stranded campers had to seek shelter on higher ground. We crossed through these muddy currents and were fortunate to find a cave in which to seek shelter and ride out the worst of the monsoon.