2014 Havasupai Falls Trip / GoPro / Start to Finish w/ Everything you NEED to know!

A true bucket-list, must-see wonder of the world! My first time out to Havasupai and it absolutely leaves you breathless.

HOW TO GET THERE
Find Kingman, AZ and locate the 40 Freeway and head EAST. Take Route 66 EAST until you hit Indian Road 18 and follow that road north until it ends. The drive from Kingman, AZ to the trail head is approximately 1.5 hours.

THE HIKE (Trail-head starts @ 36.1598594,-112.7090437)
The hike itself is approximately 10 miles each way and will take anywhere between 4-6 hours to the campground and probably 4.5-7 hours back to the trails base. Reason for the difference is that on the way to the campgrounds the trail is primarily downhill with the first mile being fairly steep. Elevation drop from the start of the trail to the campgrounds is approximately 2000 ft with the campgrounds situated at approximately 2800ft MSL. For the elderly or for those who cannot make the hike, there is a helicopter option that will drop you off 2-miles south of the campgrounds in the Havasupai Tribe's village. To ease weight, you can also opt to have mules transport all your gear. Recommend starting the hike at 0300 to beat the sun's heat!

COST
For the 2-night/3-day trip, each person paid $81. I hear this price changes so it's better to call ahead and get the latest information. In addition, these are prices with reservation. Supposedly there is a maximum capacity of 250 which requires at least a 2-3 month reservation. When we were there, they were "mistakenly overbooked with 500 people." Without reservations, the price will be double so if you can't make the reservation list be sure to call ahead and ask for the current prices. The campgrounds and falls are all on the Havasupai Tribe's land so they have the final say. As mentioned above, if you can't make the 10-mile hike, you can opt to take the helicopter which picks you up from the trail base and drops you off at the Havasupai Village which is still approximately 2-miles out from the campgrounds. When I was there, I heard it was $90 each way. Again these prices may change so call ahead. The tribe also run "mule trains" back and forth from the trail base to the campgrounds that can take all your luggage. I'm not sure how the pricing works but I've heard somewhere around $25 each way.

WHATS THERE
The main attraction are the waterfalls -- Navajo Falls, Havasu Falls, Mooney Falls, and Beaver Falls. Havasu and Beaver Falls are within 15-minutes from the campgrounds and both are amazing. Mooney Falls is the highest of the falls standing at 190ft and the way to get to it is an adventure in itself requiring you to go through a couple tunnels and manage to "walk" down an extremely steep and narrow path with chain links to help and prevent you from falling to your death. Use extreme caution when going down this path as its wet from the waterfall's mist and there's two-way traffic when it's only narrow enough for one person.
For those of you looking to jump off waterfalls, Navajo offers a 40ft jump. Havasupai has a 30ft drop but you'll need to "rock climb" along the left (if you're facing the falls). Mooney falls has a rope you can swing yourself off of. Beaver Falls supposedly has a 50-60ft jump but I was too tired to hike another 14-mile round-trip to get there.

RECOMMENDED GEAR
Water, water, water. At least 100oz. This should be enough to last you the 10-mile hike. The water from the river is not potable. However, at the campgrounds there is natural spring water that is safe to drink from. During the day the line can get extremely long and you can expect to wait up to 15-20 minutes to get through the line. If you have a fairly large group, I'd recommend bringing one of those collapsible water jugs to hold a lot of water so you don't have to constantly go back and forth to the spring water.

A tent is recommended but if you want to shed weight, a small hammock will suffice. There are plenty of trees at the campgrounds and you can easily string up a hammock and use that for your sleeping needs. There are generally no mosquitoes (there was ONE one night) so a hammock option is okay. Even if you bring a tent, having a hammock is a good way to just relax.

Flashlight is important. No electricity down there.

Food -- to keep it light I'd recommend MRE's or those dehydrated food packs. If food is important to you, bring a stove because campfires are not allowed here.

Clothes -- Keep it bare minimum. (2) shirts, (1) shorts, (1) bathing suit, (2) socks, (1) underwear.

Shoes -- Running shoes are OK but I would strongly recommend a nice pair of hiking shoes. The hiking path can get very rocky at times so having good shoes will minimize the risk of getting bad blisters. Sandals are good to have but I would strongly recommend some wet shoes. The river bed is very rocky with a lot of sharp rocks.