abennis

Hello,
My husband and I are in our late 20's and are planning a trip to Arizona this October. He read about the Havasu waterfalls and would really like to go, but I am a little aprehensive. A few questions for anyone who has been there...

- How long will it take us to reach the hilltop parking area from the south rim of the grand canyon?
- How safe/reliable are the helicopters out of the falls?
- Will it be warm enough to swim in mid October?
- Since you have to hike 8 miles from the parking lot to the lodge, I am assuming we will be leaving a lot in our car. I have heard that there has been increasing crime in the havasupai village. Will our car and belongings be safe?

Any other info or advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

CarrieS

abennis-

My husband, son, and I included a visit to Havasu in our Grand Canyon trip this past June. I can help you with some of your questions.

We did not make the trip straight from the south rim to the hilltop because the drive is several (I think about three) hours long, and we wanted to get there as early as possible to get on the helicopter. They say they start taking people down at 8:00 a.m. but we arrived right at 8:00, and they had already taken several trips down. We stayed in Peach Springs at the Hualapai Lodge the night before. It took about 30 minutes to get to the hilltop from there. I did not fear for my safety on the helicopter ride. FYI: If you want to ride the helicopter back up, get to the landing strip very early, and write your name on the list. We waited for about four hours to get the helicopter back up to the hilltop because we kept getting bumped by the tribe members who have priority over tourists (obviously).

I can't answer your question about temperature in October, but the falls are FREEZING. It was a great relief from the heat in June, but I can't say how it would feel in October.

We left everything in the trunk of our rental car. I was worried about this too, until I arrived at the parking lot. I had imagined it to be a small parking lot which didn't see a lot of traffic. There are a ton of cars/people in the lot who are traveling to the falls, and I didn't worry so much about the car/belongings.

Here is what I wish I had known before I went: the falls are beautiful, but once you have seen them and taken a dip, there is really no reason to stay any longer in the village. People will probably disagree with me, but the village was kind of depressing with all of the garbage and stray dogs. The tribe members working the lodge, grocery, restaurant seemed completely unconcerned about making your visit an enjoyable one. IMO the best day trip to the falls would be to hike down very early in the morning, go straight to the falls (we did Havasu and Mooney), and then head back up to put your name on the list to get a helicopter ride back up. You might have to wait a while for the helicopter, but it would beat the expense of staying overnight. Also, the helicopter only travels down to the village a couple of days a week so make sure you check on that in advance.

Connie

I read an article in Backpacker magazine last summer about how dangerous the area has become. People have been robbed and even killed. A woman from Japan was killed while visiting there alone. Men reported young tribal men coming into their tents while they were there and stealing their food and other things.

Do NOT go anywhere without your husband while you are there. It seems the tribe isn't very happy about tourists coming but has to allow it. Some of the young people are taking their anger out on the tourists.

The article also said the same thing CarrieS said about the area looking like the slums, with junk laying around everywhere.

bigtyke

I remember swimming by the falls at Easter time and thinking the temperature to be ok

Dayle

Wow, I'm so glad I packbacked down to Havasupai in 1972. 4 day trip. Then the choices were hike or ride a horse with Supai as guides.

I can't imagine how it must be now with helicopters.

EllieMayLynch

I was there with a small hiking tour group in May 2005; I agree with most of what has already been posted. The parking lot at Hualapai Hilltop is very active (not that that necessary means safe...) but it's not as isolated as you might think. We hiked in and out so we stayed overnight at the Havasupai Lodge in Supai Village for two nights so we could spend one full day exploring the falls. I cannot comment on the helicopters except to say we saw mail and supplies arriving by mule so the helicopters were an interesting contrast. Mooney, Navajo and Havasu Falls were absolutely beautiful and the weather was quite warm even in May so the water was refreshing. I imagine it could be warm in Oct. also... I'd say as long as the air temps are warm you'll enjoy the water. The area around the falls is truly stunning, so I'm glad I went, but I would also agree the Village itself is depressing and the people were vacant, at best. I don't know if we were welcome or not - perhaps it's just a cultural difference - but I actually felt like I was trespassing. We tried to be good visitors by being quiet, curteous, respecting the land and patronizing the cafe and store. Still, I was glad I was part of a group while there and was a little releived to leave the Village behind as we hiked out.

spirobulldog

I think Papillion offers a full day tour from the South Rim. It is pricey, in the $400 range. I have considered going to Havasu Falls, but haven't decided on which option to go with. The helicopter that the tribe uses sounds like you might be there for a couple of hours waiting. The hike itself doesn't sound that spectacular. I had originally wanted to camp there, but I am having doubts now. I think that if I could just spend 4 or 5 hours there I would be satisfied. Can you see all of the falls in 4 or 5 hours?

EllieMayLynch

spirobulldog: I suppose you could do it in 4/5 hours, but depending on how fast you hike, it may not leave you with much time to relax and enjoy the scenery. From the Village I beleive it's 6 miles roundtrip to see all the falls.

fodor_jrc

Don't go!

My wife and I went in the fall of 2006 and didn't have a clue that a murder had occurred in May of that year. The tribal council basically had a news blackout of the murder.

And that's not all. We stayed at the lodge. When we tried to check-in they wouldn't let us "because the power is out."

Since we had no camping equipment, I arranged for us to take the next available helicopter out. We had a couple of hours to wait for the helicopter, so we hiked down to the falls.

After we got back to the Supai Slum, my wife talked me into making another attempt to check into the lodge. They said, "you can but there would be no running water"!

Since the wife wanted to stay, I checked-in and cancelled the helicopter flight-out. Big mistake!
That night you could hear screaming and all sorts of carrying-on throught the valley. And, even gunshots!

The red rock and the waterfalls are drop-dead beautiful. But, having to walk by the local methodone clinic reminded me of being back in a bad part of Chicago.

I couldn't imagine camping there. I'm run across some four-legged predators during my camping days.
But, the two-legged versions I saw in the village got my hackles-up. And, I'm six-foot three and born and raised in Chicago!

Go to Sedona and hike the West Fork of Oak Creek Canyon. It doesn't have the blue-green waters. But, it also doesn't have garbage strewn everywhere either!

Connie

My sister had the same trouble checking into the lodge. They just wouldn't come to the door. She could hear people inside but it took hours of going back over and over and knocking before someone finally came and let her into her room. She had hiked down and was ready unload her pack. She felt like she was very unwanted and unwelcome.

enzian

Like Dayle, I am very glad that I went a long time ago, hiking down and camping 4 nights there. It was paradise then. . . .

If you do go, just remember that this is tribal land. The Havasupai do not "have" to let outsiders come there---it is their choice, out of need for the income it brings. They are a reserved and private people, and not everyone is happy about the influx of tourists who want to see the waterfalls.

As for the trash around, remember that the only way to get stuff out of there is by horse, hiker, or helicopter. The city trash collectors don't show up down there.

If you do want to see the waterfalls, I would think the best way is to go with an experienced outfitter, hiking in and camping. The Grand Canyon Institute offers guided backpacks there in May and October, spending 4 nights at the campground with lots of time to enjoy the waterfalls:

http://www.grandcanyon.org/fieldinstitute/

enzian

Check the news---a dam upstream broke, flooded the river and the village of Supai and campground have been evacuated by helicopter.

Nora_S

I don't think anyone will be going in October. It may be some time before the village recovers and the campground is habitable again:

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articl...817online.html

WhereAreWe

Not sure why it would take that long for the campground to be habitable again. It's not like it was a 5 star resort.

I'd keep an eye on their website.
http://www.havasupaitribe.com/home.html

Bill_H

Not sure why it would take that long for the campground to be habitable again.

Maybe you're right, but sometimes the access bridges wash away and it's slow to re-build them since there is no heavy equipment, so it takes longer than expected.

There was a much worse flood about 15 years ago that washed away all the beautiful travertine pools and many houses and it took about 6 months before they re-opened the campground, IIRC.

Bill

Bill_H

Also the dam upstream washed away so now the streams are draining a much wider area, making them more prone to future flooding with each monsoon storm. So maybe they'll be very cautious until the dam is repaired, at least during the monsoon season.

Nora_S

I was thinking of bridges washed out, trash strewn everywhere, and contamination from sewage overflow(imagine those outhouses at the campground which would have washed away, as well as the village septic system which must be flooded).

It is going to be a major clean-up job. Given the difficulty of getting materials and supplies in and out of there, I think it will take some time to clean restore the campground to habitable condition (and provide safe and clean drinking water).

Connie

It looks like major trails to the village and to the campground from the village were washed out.

http://news.yahoo.com/story//ap/2008...anyon_flooding

abennis

Wow, thank you so much for all of the helpful replies. Because of the recent flooding, we will definitely not making the trip to Havasu falls this year. After reading all of your responses, I'm not sure we would have wanted to make the trip by ourselves anyhow. Thank you again!