Mesmerizing waterfalls

Like an artist's palette, this Arizona creek offers a multitude of colors for the discerning eye

TRAVEL

It is quiet as I leave camp and start up the trail, a pack full of camera gear on my back. I don't need sunlight to feel my tight calf muscles or my aching shoulders, just some of the many body parts that are stiff and sore from my first backpack trip of the season. I figure it's better than feeling like a slug, as I walk into the wee hours of dawn.

I think of the words, "Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse," as I float past sleeping campers. They are someplace in dreamland, and I'm walking a dream, delighting in the ever-present song of Havasu Creek. I think of missing a morning such as this and feel thankful that I am an early riser, one who always enjoys the dawning of a new day.

The symphony continues as Havasu Falls bids me a hearty hello. I stop in reverence, then eventually take off on a side trail leading to Navajo Falls. I was too tired to enjoy Navajo Falls the day before, so I'm making the trip now. Besides, I think it's more of a morning place. And I am right.

As I crouch beneath the branches of a scrawny tree, mentally immersed in the falls, the first rays of sunlight touch the cliff behind the falls painting the water with gold en glitter A minute or so later, after making several images, the light changes and the scene looks like any other I mosey back to camp, but I want to hurry to tell my friends what they've missed. Perhaps I can convince ther to join me the next morning The days pass, and I never do but we have fun exploring thf area just the same.

My Kansas friends, Caro and Bill, were the first to tell me about Hualapai and Havasu canyons, both branches leading to the bigger and grander Grand Canyon. They spoke of blue-green waters, too strange a color to describe; they told of waterfalls worth countless rolls of film; they promised Indian fry bread.

We began our journey on the edge of the Coconino Plateau, a place where the land literally slips away, sharp cliffs plunging more than 1,000 vertical feet to the depths of Hualapai Canyon.

At first glance, I thought a descent into the canyon nearly impossible. At the north side of Hualapai Hilltop trailhead, however, a trail zigzags down the dry canyon, tumbling at a steep grade for the first mile before descending gradually to Havasu Canyon and Supai Village. The morning of our descent, the trail was alive with hikers trekking down and a few early risers hiking up. Most exciting was watching the Native Americans ride up and down the trail on horseback, long trails of mules bringing up the rear.

A large portion of both Hualapai and Havasu canyons are located on the Havasupai Indian Reservation of northern Arizona. (The name Havasupai means, quite suitably, "the people who live where the waters are blue-green.") Reservation boundaries join those of the more vehicle-- accessible Grand Canyon National Park. Before Havasu Creek unites with the Colorado River portion of the park, however, you'll find Supai Village, secluded home of the Havasupai Indians, accessible only by foot, horseback or helicopter.

The Havasupai have always been a peaceful people. Once dependent on hunting and farming, today they raise livestock instead of hunting. Living in one of the most "remarkably beautiful locations in all of Arizona," has also given the Havasupai the opportunity to reap the benefits of tourism as well.

We spent a couple hours in the village, talking to the children and watching as they played wheelbarrow with great joy. We bought a few treats at the local store, ate delicious fry bread and Indian tacos, then hiked out of the village, paralleling Havasu Creek off and on before reaching 75-foot-high Navajo Falls. Certainly one of the most beautiful of waterfalls, it was named for a famous Havasupai chief who died in 1898.

Next, we hiked past Havasu Falls and watched from the trail above as people swam in the blue-green waters below. My friends, as well as the local Native Americans, told me of a major change in Havasu Canyon in recent years. Unfortunately, two major floods ravaged the region in the early '90s, tearing out some of the travertine pools and changing the course of some of the waterfalls. At one time, Havasu Falls, nearly 100 feet high, was one large spray of water: Today it is two.

Travertine pools are intricate affairs bestowing a mysterious beauty to the desert. Created when water, laden with calcium and magnesium carbonates, as well as magnesium chloride and calcium sulfate, blends together, the matter covers whatever it touches and forms a medium called travertine. Spray from the waterfall blankets nearby trees and plants; twigs, leaves and other debris are also coated with the stuff, forming dams and creating lovely blue-green pools. Also, travertine covers the limestone rock near the falls, fashioning lacy travertine curtains.

Although some of the pools have been destroyed by the floods, efforts have been made to reconstruct the pools. People are paying nature back, helping it to heal at a faster pace than would normally allow. Don't worry, though, as while these pools are forming, there are plenty of others to enjoy. Favorite activities include swimming, frog watching, photography and just plain relaxing.

On our second day in camp, we hiked past the north end of the campground to Mooney Falls. Named for Daniel Mooney, an American prospector who fell to his death in 1880, you can view the falls (at 196 feet, the highest falls in the canyon) and travertine curtains from up above, or descend the steep cliff for a close-up view of the falls.

If you haven't had enough hiking, you can always explore the likes of Fern Canyon, or you can hike along the rim, where there's a bird's-eye view of both Havasu and Mooney falls. And if that isn't enough, there's an unmaintained trail leading to the Colorado River. Hike it and I can guarantee you won't feel like a slug in the morning.

WHEN YOU GO

If transporting your gear or hiking long distances worries you or your children, worry no more. You'll find several methods of travel that allow one to enjoy Havasu Canyon.

The easiest, quickest and most expensive method of travel is via a combination of helicopter and horseback. From Tusayan, three miles south of the Grand Canyon South Rim entrance station, you can fly to Supai Village for a guided horseback ride to the falls. After spending about five hours on the ground, you'll be whisked away for a flight along the North Rim and back to Tusayan. Cost is $440 per person (adults and children are the same price) and includes round-trip helicopter ride, entrance permit and horseback ride. Call Grand Canyon Helicopters at (800) 528-2418 for more information.

You can also drive to the Hualapai trailhead for a short helicopter ride to Supai Village. Current cost is $55 for the one-way pleasure. Reservations for a helicopter, a mule and campground or entrance permits, should be made through Havasupai Tourist Enterprise, Supai, Arizona 86435; (520) 448-2121.

Hiking is undoubtedly the most popular method of canyon travel. Although mules and horses are available for transporting both people and gear to and from both the village and campground, most people choose to backpack their gear to the campground, and then hire a mule to carry it out. Cost is $55 one-way per mule with a limit of four backpacks per animal.

Another method of involves hiking eight miles to Supai Village, with a light pack strapped to your back Inside, you'll carry all the necessities for a stay at the motel. (If you're camping, the campground is another two miles from the village.)

Hikers must obtain advance approval from the Tourist Manager before starting into Havasu Canyon. Advance reservations are recommended. Each person pays a $15 entry fee upon arrival and then it is $10 per day for each camper. Motel rooms vary in price.

In addition to the motel, Supai Village offers a market, a post office (all mail is marked with a stamp stating that the mail was hauled out by mule train) and a cafe where they serve good food, including such specialties as Indian fry bread.

The trailhead is best accessed from Interstate 40 at either Kingman or Seligman, both of which offer KOA campgrounds. Kingman boasts of several RV parks as well. From either town, hop on State Highway 66 to Peach Springs. Seven miles east of Peach Springs drive north on Highway 18, a 60-mile-long paved road, which ends at the trailhead. (Some folks choose to camp overnight at the trailhead and begin hiking first thing in the morning. You can do the same if you're staying in a van, camper or small motorhome. There are pit toilets at the trailhead.) Gas, water and other services are nonexistent along Highway 18.

Temperatures are extreme in summer with highs reaching 110 degrees F-- plan accordingly. Visit earlier or later for cooler temperatures, and remember to carry and drink plenty of water.

Copyright T L Enterprises, Inc. Jun 1999
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved