Jenny flew in from London the day before the 6am pick up time for our Havasupai adventure. Adrenaline and excitement got her up before dawn to make sure her pack was ready with plenty of water and snacks for the long hike into the Grand Canyon to see the famous blue-green waterfalls of Havasupai.

It’s a 4.5 hour drive from Phoenix to the trailhead at Hualapai Hilltop via Route 66, and the hike to the campsite at Havasu Falls is 10 miles. So a pre-dawn departure time is essential if you’re driving and hiking in the same day.

The Grand Canyon!! We’re giddy because it’s our first time. The magnificence of this place cannot be captured in a photo. And words cannot do it justice either. It’s one of those places you must see in person to truly appreciate the scale and grandeur. 

Jenny, Missy and Dagmara are together on another hiking adventure. We’ll be meeting up in a few short months to hike Alta Via 2 in the Dolomites and we wanted to get a training trip in before then. We’ll have to negotiate some chain ladders here which will give us a feel for the vie ferrata we’ll encounter in the Dolomites.

Our campsite is beyond that curve in the canyon and it looks very far away (and exposed!). It’s difficult to imagine that a waterfall even exists in this parched desert canyon. We hope the gallon of water in our backpacks is enough for the hot and very dusty 10 mile hike.

Seeing the Grand Canyon is a wonderful reminder that we are tiny pieces in a much, much larger puzzle. And feeling small puts a lot of things into perspective. It makes time slow down so you can appreciate the present.

We descended 2000 feet in the first mile all via switchbacks and then we were on the floor of the Grand Canyon. It’s overwhelming to think that each sedimentary layer in the rocks is millions of years of history.

The high canyon walls provide some much-needed shade after hiking in the punishing sun.

After hiking miles through a parched canyon floor, we start seeing signs of life with this huge green tree. Water must be nearby!

Havasu Creek, a year round stream that will flow into Supai Village and form the 5 waterfalls with the improbable aquamarine water.

The entrance to the Havasu village is announced by two prominent rock spires, known as Wigleeva, which the Havasupai believe are guardians watching over their lands. As long as they remain standing, they will protect the Havasupai.

Entering Havasupai village, the most remote of the many Indian lands in Arizona. About 450 people live here in 130 homes. The Supai follow a traditional way of life, with few modern conveniences other than satellite dishes and air conditioning. There are 2 general stores, a cafe, a rodeo corral, a school and a post office, the only one in the US where mail is still delivered by mule.

The moon shines bright above Havasu Canyon

Everywhere we look, we are surrounded by high cliffs of Supai sandstone, a deep red rock found throughout the Grand Canyon and named after this location.

Our first look at the otherworldly turquoise waters that lure countless hikers to this spot year after year. The most challenging part of seeing Havasu Falls? It’s obtaining the mandatory permit. The widely-coveted and elusive permits have made a trip to Havasu Falls the ultimate bucket list trip.

Our overeager attempt at a waterfall selfie–we will try again later.

It’s hard to resist a look back at Havasu Falls on our way to the campsite.

We missed out on getting our own camping permit so plan B was to sign up for a group excursion with an outfitter. For 2019, the Havasupai tribal council put a moratorium on outfitter permits so we feel very lucky to have gone in 2017.

Location, location, location. A campsite right by the creek is prime real estate.

The Havasu Creek water flows from Havasu Falls right behind our campsite. These waters descend 1400 feet, passing over 5 waterfalls, the highest being Mooney Falls with a drop of 200 feet.

The red rocks alongside Mooney Falls look like they had once been flowing, but are now frozen in time.

Waterproof pouch necessary when you’re about to climb down to the bottom of a waterfall.

Access to Mooney Falls is a very tight squeeze through tunnels cut through the canyon walls by early 20th century miners

Good thing we are not claustrophobic! 

Framed by the tunnel. 

Emerging from the tunnel, you encounter a shower of spray from Mooney Falls, and descend via wet, slippery grooves in the rock with only a chain handrail for support.

Jenny making her way down the chain ladders to the base of Mooney Falls.

Mooney Falls is the longest waterfall in Supai! Stunning, gorgeous and powerful.

Dagmara and Jenny.

Wading our way to Beaver Falls.

The Grand Canyon is a good example of how travel gives you perspective.

Havasu Creek.

Give risk a chance.

A day of fun and adventure in the Grand Canyon.

Dagmara, Karen, Jenny and Missy alongside Havasu Falls.

The shallow pools in the upper part of Havasu Falls were once Supai Falls, but after flash floods it is more a series of cascading rapids.

We would not have been able to see the opening to a cave hidden behind a waterfall without a hand extended by our guides. 

We swam towards the base of the waterfall and held our breath against the spray from the waterfall and dove underneath to reach this cave behind the waterfall. This was a transformative experience for me. I have a claustrophobic fear of underwater caves.

Together in adventure! We just swam out from a cave behind the waterfall.

Havasu Falls, one of the most beautiful places in the world.

The view from our tent in Havasu Campground.

We started hiking out of the Havasu campsite at 5am, with headlamps, to beat the mid-day heat. We’ve only the hardest section remaining, a 1 mile 2000 foot ascent to the top of the trailhead.

The last mile out of the Grand Canyon was grueling. Jenny, Missy and Dagmara rest while waiting for the others. 

The Supai don’t keep cars on the reservation. 

The backpack inside a duffel has been our preferred method for checked baggage on airplanes.