I am going to call this my annual backpacking trip although I am not sure I am going to do this every year. Last year in July, I had my first backpacking experience at the Enchantments (not recommended for a first backpacking trip BTW), and this year, we went to the Havasu falls in the Havasupai Indian Reservation. We have been there exactly 3 years ago (see post here), but instead of camping, we lodged, and we only spent 2 days hiking in and out, and therefore did not make it to the Beaver falls, which was the main reason we decided to go back!
Day 1 - Hiking in
After spending the night at the closet hotel possible, we drove to the hilltop trailhead and started hiking in at around 8am. It is a 10-mile hike, downhill at first for about 2 miles and flat the rest of the way. It took us about 5 hours to reach the campsite (which is additional 1 - 2 miles after reaching the village) with our heavy backpacks.
The campsite is conveniently located quite close to the Havasu fall, so after we set up our camps, we went there for a swim and chill for the rest of the night.
Day 2 - Hiking to the Beaver falls
The hike to the beaver falls will pass by the Mooney fall (~1 mile), and it is quite a climb down, so be prepared to pack light and have shoes with good traction.
It is about another 2 miles from Mooney to Beaver falls, and there are 3 water crossings, which we got used to at the end, but it would be nice to have water shoes with you as the rocks in the water are quite uncomfortable or painful to walk on. When we finally reached the beaver falls, it was all worth it! It is absolutely gorgeous. It was a beautiful hike to the falls and the view at the end was just breathtaking.
Day 3 - Hiking out
Based on our last experience, walking back up that hill in the sun was excruciating. So, we decided to start the hike really early to avoid the sun (and also to give ourselves enough time to catch the plane). We started hiking out from the campsite at around 4:30am, and most people (I was super slow probably to begin with, but I am blaming on the heavy camera and tripod I was carrying on top of the camping gears) got back to the trailhead at around 9. Turned out, it wasn’t sunny at all, and instead, it was all rainy and cold, which to be honest, is a better deal than the sun. Unfortunately, for people who were hiking in, the view of the falls might not be as pretty due to the rain.
Due to the gain in popularity, it is super hard to get the permit, and the price has now gone up quite a bit as well. The reservation is for 3 nights (that’s the minimum length for the reservation), and it costs $375/person (and yes, it is for a camping spot). However, it is unlikely for a person to go more than once, so I think it’s worth checking it out!
For those who want to go, a couple things that you might want to know:
1. They have fresh spring water, so you will only need to bring enough for the hike in and a filter to turn the spring water into drinkable water (although there are people who drink straight from it)
2. They also have a bunch of leftover propane gas for cooking, so you might not have to bring one in
3. They have bathrooms with toilet paper, and to be honest, their bathrooms are quite nice in comparison to what I have seen in other national parks