I recently had a chance to explore one of the most gorgeous places in the U.S. It's Havasu Falls, Arizona (in the southwest corner of Grand Canyon National Park).

The trailhead is about 60 miles north of Rt 66, and then it's a 10-mile hike into the Canyon (each way) to reach the falls. Pretty spectacular, and viewable year-round. You can also take a packhorse or a helicopter down if you're not a hiker.

Havasu Falls, while photographed regularly in postcards, calendars, etc., only get about 1 percent of the total visitors that ever come to Grand Canyon--which means it's not that crowded, and a neat little "secret" worth making the effort to explore.

If you're interested in learning more, you might try www.havasupaitribe.com for details (I'm not affiliated with that website in any way). If you want to read my firsthand account and suggestions, there's a link in my signature to the article I've recently written about it.

Josh Roberts
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Read my recent travel articles

1. Grand Canyon's hidden treasure
http://rd.smarterliving.com/rd/?r=adv_gc_forums

2. Maui's 10,000-foot downhill bike ride
http://rd.smarterliving.com/rd/?r=adv_maui_forums

Chapter11, thank you. Have some friends that plan on coming to the US from Italy next spring. This will be of great intrest to them. They were asking me just about a month ago about any "special places" and I told them I would try to find out. This certainly sounds like what they had in mind. Thanks again.

Havasu was one of the most beautiful places we've been - and we've been all over the national parks of the US.

The hike down and the waterfalls made for one of the most unique and memorable travel experiences we've ever had.

In the future, I'd like to raft the Grand Canyon and hike Havasu Creek upstream to explore more of this area.

Hard to believe, but Havasu Falls was even more beautiful years ago, before a flood destroyed much of the calcium deposits.

Anyone going down to the falls should be aware that the temperature on the canyhon floor is MUCH HOTTER than at the rim.

bigtyke, you're right. Perhaps we should mention that this hike is NOT a stroll in the park. The first mile or so is steep, and then it's flat. But when hiking out, that last mile can be brutal. We went in late May and by 10:00 am it was already 90 degrees. It is something like 8 miles into Supai and another 1.5 miles to the falls. The lodge at Supai is like Motel 6, but worse.

That being said, Havasu is beautiful and was worth it!

I hiked down to Supai on September 9, 2001. I had two nights reserved at the lodge. Although sparse, it beats having to pack a tent down to sleep in. You're expected to pack all your trash back out as the only way in and out is either by foot or horse. I believe that there is a helicopter that delivers supplies twice a week. There is a large parking area at the top of the trailhead. The first mile or so is steep switchbacks, then the trail levels out. However, much of the level trail is loose gravel and even fine sand, which makes it hard to walk (think of walking on the dry sand of a beach). It's all worth it once you get to the village. You have to pay a fee to the Havasupi tribe at one of the first buildings you come to. A reservation at the lodge includes this fee (or it did in 2001). There is a restaurant across from the school. Hamburgers, fries, hotdogs... that kind of food. Looking over the village is two large rock formations called "The Watchers". Legend is if these two formations ever fall, the Supai people will cease to exist. There are three major falls past the village. The first is Navajo Falls, the second is Havasu Falls and the third is Mooney Falls. Navajo Falls is pretty, but a lot of it is obscured by all the plant growth. Havasu Falls is simply breath taking. The view from the trail along the canyon wall is classic. The pool at the bottom has a beach and when I was there, a rope was hanging from a tree to swing out into the pool. There are small travertine falls (a foot or two high) leaving the pool continuing on down the creek to Mooney Falls. Mooney Falls are considerably higher than Havasu, but it is much thinner. You have to climb down the travertine cliffs (through a tunnel with chains and steps) to reach the pool at the bottom of Mooney. Navajo Falls are about a mile past the village, Havasu about a half mile further and Mooney about another half mile past Havasu (if I remember right). The water in Havasu Creek is a beautiful turquoise color and stays a constant 70 degrees. As someone else posted, it is much hotter in the canyon than it is on the ridge of the canyon. Late on September 10, 2001, after walking back and forth between the village and the falls several times during the past two days (I probably hiked a total of 20 miles in those two days), I decided that I would not be able to handle the hike/climb out of Havasu Canyon. It just so happened that that day was one of the helicopter delivery days. I walked to the landing area, asked the pilot if he would fly me out and he said yes for $75.00. I ran back to the lodge, packed my stuff (even my garbage), went back to the landing area and flew out, giving up my last night at the lodge. The helicopter ride was worth the $75.00 even if I wasn't using it to depart the canyon as the views offered by it were amazing. Anyway, instead of spending that night (September 10) in Supai, I spent it in Kingman. I woke up the next morning to horrible news of events in NYC, Washington and PA. If I had followed my original schedule, I would have been hiking out of Havasu Canyon and wouldn't have heard of the 9/11 events until I reached the top. On another note, I headed to Las Vegas via US93 only to get to the Hoover Dam and be turned back as they closed the dam and wouldn't let traffic across. A few pics of my adventure are posted on my website at:

http://www.emservicesinc.com/keith/u...est_-_2001.htm

I highly recommend this hike/adventure to anyone who wants to see a truly amazing beautiful area.

Keith