Havasupai Indian Reservation

I originally heard about Havasu Falls & the Havasupai Indians from the Discovery Channel.  During a special one night they claimed that this area in northern Arizona was the "Jewel of the Grand Canyon."  I then began searching online and found that more information was a bit hard to come by.  The few personal accounts that I was able to read from sold me on the idea of a trip for my wife and I.  We had an incredible time and you can read my journal from that trip here.  Two years later I decided to take the men from the church to the reservation for a wilderness expedition.  The following is a edited version of my journal from that trip.

Friday, August 31, 2007

Well, we left yesterday morning basically on time (6AM). Trebe wanted to do the driving first. Our only real problem was the fact that the van was getting horrible gas mileage (like less than 6 miles per gallon). There were two issues... Firstly I had not accounted for the incredible weight of 11 grown men and secondly, we were driving the church trailer which is huge and taller than the van thus producing more drag. We stopped in Marion, Arkansas (I think) to see if we could get a smaller U-Haul trailer. Trebe ended up talking to a mechanic who said this wouldn't make any difference. With that we were off again. We had to stop every hour and a half to two hours for gas. This would end up probably doubling our gasoline expenditures. Everybody ended up watching a few movies. After 17 hours Trebe switched off driving with Dennis. I talked to Dennis for a while and finally I was out. After a couple of hours we stopped for gas but I went right back to sleep. About 5 or 6 hours went by and I was up. The TomTom GPS was definitely a hit and very helpful (though I think its arrival prediction time was a bit off). The laptop connected fairly flawlessly to my cell phone via bluetooth and I had a (fairly) high-speed internet connection. I checked my mail, the weather and then chatted with some associated over Skype for a few minutes. Anyway, after passing through Flagstaff, AZ, we arrived in the town of Segliman. At this point we stopped for gas (fearing this would be our last chance). At this point I drove and found the little gas station Shawna and I had stopped at on Route 66 two years before. We topped off the tank and filled our water bottles. We were then on BIA-18. For 60 miles we drove with nothing to see. The we came upon a check-point. It was Indian police checking for alcohol & illegal drugs. My thought was that they must be really busy over this Labor Day weekend. Soon we arrived at the hilltop and found a parking space. Then the repacking began. This process took a good while. Once all the bags had been carried to the check-in office (& tagged) we were off. I ended up carrying significantly more weight than I intended. Along with extra water I also carried the large first-aid kit (& more). As we started down the switchbacks everything was great. We talked, laughed and I could feel the excitement rising. Then as we got close to the bottom, we stumbled upon a dead horse. This beast had obviously fallen from the trail significantly higher above us. One of its legs was broken very badly at the upper joint (you could see inside it). It was obviously pretty fresh because the smell was not too bad yet. It was interesting watching a group of pack horses heading up the trail. They would not go near the dead horse. The owners had to force them up and over some rocks so they wouldn't have to pass their fallen comrade. Anyway, we reached the bottom of the switchbacks and took off. The helicopter (actually 2 of them) was flying by every couple of minutes packing things in & out of town with a rope & basket. I got a couple of good pics. Early on we also passed another horse that was standing in the trail acting funny. I would later find out that it had a broken leg and was left to die... How senseless..? Anyway, I really worked to stop every mile or so so that everyone could catch up, rest their backs & legs and get a drink. Eventually we came upon another dead horse. This one you could smell from around the corner. I had wondered how they would get a dead horse off the trail and soon found out. This one had actually been burned. Two buzzards were eating what was left of the carcass. At almost the same point, over half-way along the trail, we found some really large rocks that we started climbing while waiting for everyone to catch up. We really had to be careful but Steve, Dave S & I made it to a really good high one. By that time everyone had caught up and were taking pictures of us. Finally, after about 7 miles, we made it to the Havasu River. After waiting for everyone to catch up and a short rest we headed to rest of the way into Supai. My first stop was at Laren's house. I encouraged everyone to go in and buy at least a little something from him as a blessing since he's a good Christian guy. He informed me that the local pastor had left and that they were no longer having regular services. I asked if the Christians still got together regularly. His response was, "every once in a while." What a shame. It seems to me that if they really wanted it, a leader would rise up. Anyway, there was a peach festival going on in town & there was a good bit of tribal chanting & dancing going on. I did take a picture but encouraged the guys to keep going. We didn't want to participate in Indian practices. I had everyone stop at the camping office (or tourist office as it is now called) to check in. I got everyone's name filled out and made payment. Then we ran into a problem. The lady behind the counter told us that they weren't renting horses much anymore for carrying people. This could have been a real issue for us. Trebe & I both tried talking to her and I finally asked her to call my old Indian friend Sun Eagle and tell him we needed his help (as well as his horses). We also began negotiating with a helicopter pilot to charter a helicopter for Wednesday. Soon Sun Eagle called back & committed his horses to us (as well as one of his buddies). In the meantime we had sent everyone else on down to the campground to find us a site. Before Trebe, Dennis & I had made it a mile we caught up with the rest of the group. Man are they slow! Soon I was back at the head of the pack and we were looking over the edge at Havasu Falls. We made it to the bottom and headed toward the campground. Anyway, the camping area was very full. We probably worked for an hour to find a suitable site but Charles was the one that finally came through for us. He found a site on the river behind the new compost toilets. This worked well. As it turned out, the people in the camp next to us were hiking out at 4AM so we could commandeer their site as well. Tents were quickly put up (except for one... We didn't have room today). Dennis started dinner but I must mention that he wasn't looking too good... He was looking white and really needed sleep. Anyway, about this time several of our guys jumped in the water (this irritated me a bit). I helped Dennis get dinner going and cooked some brown rice for myself (while almost catching the JetBoil on fire!). Soon everyone was eating macaroni & cheese (brown rice for me) with tuna. Soon afterward I called everyone together for our evening ministry time. I decided to make it short and kinda wing it but first I went over a couple of things. The first thing I mentioned was my disappointment in everyone for leaving Dennis (the most tired guy among us) to cook dinner. Then went over some rules & the schedule. After that I talked for a few minutes about the process we had been through over the last 48 hours and equated it to perseverance. Everything went well & there was plenty of discussion. Dave expressed that he had an ear infection and it was obviously hurting pretty bad. That will make for a fun situation tomorrow I'm sure. After praying we ended and everyone went to bed. It was only about 9PM CST (7PM Mountain). Steve said he gets claustrophobic so he decided to sleep on his air mattress outside. Within moments I was out cold. It's was a long day (or two).

Saturday, September 1, 2007

This morning I tried to let everyone sleep in a bit (specifically Dave). Myself, Russ, Ron, Zack & Dennis got up at 6AM to see a meteor shower. After hiking down to the top of Mooney Falls (to get the biggest view of the sky in the canyon) we probably saw 20 shooting stars and it was pretty cool. One of them must have been coming straight at us because it was simply a big, bright flash right in front of us. As the others hiked back to the site, Dennis & I went about half-way down Mooney Falls (through the two tunnels to the drop-off). After that we went back to camp & got some oatmeal going. After getting recharged, David S & I made the trek back to Supai to find a Medic (even though he was feeling much better since our prayer last night). The hike wasn't too bad but it was 2 miles uphill. I did have to take a couple of breaks and was a little disappointed in my body but did okay. Once we got to town we went to the tourist office and were directed to the medic’s office. We sat in this little lobby for a few minutes and saw a cold water fountain. We quickly filled up our water bottles and DRANK! I think it was river water... YIKES! Anyway, a few minutes later the doctor came out and took me & Dave to a little examination room. He looked in Dave's ears and said they looked great. Praise God! He said it was probably just a little case of TMJ and nothing that ibuprofen wouldn't cure. Soon we were on our way... The doctor didn't even charge us! We went over to the grocery store to pick up some trash bags & paper towels and soon we were hiking back. Upon arriving back at camp everyone was ready to head off to Mooney Falls. I rested for a few minutes and off we went. Anyway, we finally reached the top of Mooney Falls & started our decent. Everyone made it down the 200 foot cliff fairly quickly & efficiently. I switched into sandals, took a number of pictures of various guys in front of the falls and then headed for the little piece of land in the middle of the canyon. A few guys jumped right and tried to swim right up to the falls but the power proved too great for them. After about an hour we were about to leave so I decided to take a few more pics. The guys were lining up and jumping off a waterfall into a pool below. Not wanting to be left out, I jumped in line too. Dennis ended up taking a picture of all of us jumping in at once. At that point we headed back up the canyon wall to the top. Then we went across to the ledge of Mooney Falls where the water spills over... More pics. We quickly headed back to camp & got dinner going. We had Riceroni with tuna and Oreo cookie pie. After dinner we went had our Bible study time. Dennis ended up sharing on perseverance and it was pretty good. We had some really good discussion. After that everyone started heading to bed. Soon it was only me, Dennis, Ron & David M up. I had a really good talk with David Myers before going to sleep. We had a good, long encouraging talk. Finally I decided to sleep in my hammock in the tree and I was out.

Sunday, September 2, 2007

Well, there was a big issue today... I was up two more times this morning with diarrhea. It was quite serious. By 9AM I had taken the maximum recommended dosage of the anti-diarrhea medication I had. I had oatmeal for breakfast (plain with honey) then we went right into the quiet time. Today instead of 20 minutes I gave them 30 minutes of personal quiet time... Then we came together as a group. Discussion went really well. Today the same people began speaking up but I began calling on others. I encouraged everyone to give an encouraging word to each of their fellow brothers over the next couple of days. Maybe I'll test them on that tomorrow... After this I told everybody to take things easy & let their bodies heal (which I am definitely going to have to do). Most folks stuck around camp today. I caught up on some journaling and began reading Derek Prince's biography. It has actually been pretty interesting thus far. Some of the guys started swimming this morning. You know it's kinda a love/hate relationship I have with that rope swing. It provides so much entertainment for our group but also for the other 200 people camping here. We're definitely meeting lots of people since the rope swings are in our camp. David M & Ron made friends with a really nice guy. I watch this guy climb WAY up the cliff (40ft ?) beside us and jump in the river. Seemed really crazy to me since the water was only about 8ft deep but of course Ron had to follow & then David M & then David S. Anyway, a little later the bulk of the guys headed up to Havasu Falls to swim. I got in my hammock & read. I must have also slept. When I woke up it was late afternoon and the sun was shining directly on me. I was absolutely soaked in sweat. Everyone was also back from Havasu Falls. Soon it was dinnertime. We had jumbolia and it was quite good. Then it was time to get into the Word. Zack ended up doing a little teaching tonight and I was quite impressed! He did a really good job. Steve ended up opening up and admitting to his own pride & worries and as did Russell. We prayed for them and headed toward bed. I was hoping it wouldn't rain tonight cause I was back in my hammock.

Monday, September 3, 2007

We got everyone up early (6:30AM) to get breakfast going & get on with things. We cooked up some pancakes & bacon. I also had a couple of packets of plain oatmeal. By this time I was feeling surprisingly good. Much of my soreness was gone and I was feeling much stronger. I knew I would have to be careful not to overdo things. We then went right into our quiet time. I told the guys they had 20 minutes of personal quiet time and 10 minutes that I wanted them praying for and with someone else. Finally we headed off toward Beaver Falls. The reservation said that it was only 3 miles from the Campground. What I didn't know until later was that I think that mileage was figured "as the crow flies." This trail was not as clear & easy going as the other trails we had been on. We went on and on. Twice we had to stop, take off our boots, put on sandals & cross the river. This was especially treacherous with my camera bag on me. A couple of guys actually decided to leave their boots behind and get them on the way back. The trail went up & down, under & over stuff. It was fairly slow going. We even crossed through a sea of ivy that seemed to go as far as the eye could see. Ron tried to play a little trick on me by getting well ahead of us and then crouching down in the ivy & hissing like a snake. Finally after a couple of hours we stopped and had lunch (peanut butter & jelly on tortillas... Spinach tortilla for me). About that time a couple came by and informed us that we only had about another hour to go. At this point I had to stop & reevaluate. I already had soreness in my legs, a little bit of light-headedness was coming & going and I was getting some muscle spasms. Because of my current medical condition I knew my doctor would not approve. I also had told several of the guys that if it was too long we would head back early. Unfortunately I had also forgotten my GPS. I ended up going with wisdom and heading back. I was a bit upset but I guess I'll live. On the way back we took things pretty slow. We had to make it back to a certain point where we had crossed the river the first time so Rich & Charles could get their boots. It took a little bit to find (without my stinkin' GPS) but finally we got them. Steve was the only other person that still had his boots sitting there but hey, he was with the other group and could get them on his way out. We got a lot of really pretty pictures on our way out. Before we knew it we were at Mooney Falls. I scaled that cliff with a bag on my back in probable 2 minutes flat. 10 minutes later we were back at camp. I was disappointed that I hadn't made it to Beaver Falls so I was ready to do something else. I jumped up oto the highest rope swing. It probably took me 5 minutes too make my jump (not that I was afraid of jumping... The water was just so darn cold. Finally (with Charles video taping) I made a huge jump. YES! I was right, the water was COLD! Then Charles informs me that he didn't get very good video footage.... WHATEVER! I did it again. This time the water felt considerably better. Well, I got out and began air drying. Soon the rest of our group showed up. They had made it to Beaver Falls, played and then run all the way back. Anyway, soon after, we ate dinner and then we went on into our time with the Lord. Trebe shared a word about us needing the giftings & talents in others. That as we deposited in others, others would deposit in us. It was really quite good. After that (he used an idea of mine) and we began complimenting one another. One at a time we would pick someone and people would speak up and share what that person meant in their life. It was really powerful. As a matter of fact Ron started weeping. He was touched by God in a major way. Anyway, finally everything was over & we all headed to bed. Feels like I'm gonna sleep good tonight.

Tuesday, September 4, 2007

Today I really slept in... It was so nice. When I finally got up I found my legs were a bit more sore. I'm really glad I had given them some time to rest. We were out of plain oatmeal this morning so a had a couple of packets of grits with honey. For devotional I had the guys go ahead & split up for individual time for 30 minutes and then brought them all back together. At this point I had each man share what God ministered to them on the trip. We got some really good answers. After devotions, most all of us headed down to the two mine shafts near Mooney Falls. It was pretty neat. The Indians called "Black Death" I guess because if you stayed in there for long periods of time and stirred up the dust, the lead & other minerals would make you sick. Dennis & Steve went on from there to look for Steve's boots from yesterday at the river crossing & found them. After coming back to camp, resting & eating some lunch, we hiked to a 3rd mine shaft near Havasu Falls. We were warned that they had mined specifically for lead in this mine and not to stir up too much dust. This mine shaft was huge. There were still original rail tracks and steep drop offs to different levels. We finally found some places we could descend on down & there was some rope along the way. It was a bit treacherous but we actually made it down 3 levels. There was even what appeared to be something similar to a really old MRE pack. Soon I was feeling grit in my mouth and there was a weird metallic taste. I had the impression that we had been here a bit too long. We quickly made our way out, hiked back to Havasu Falls and I went straight back to camp. Everyone else (but Rich) stuck around the falls and jumped into pools. I was really filthy and was a little concerned about this yellow dust which seemed to cover me SO... I did another big jump off the rope swing a camp. It seemed to get me clean enough for now. I got in my hammock and jotted down my notes for our meeting tonight. I also did a little packing since we're meeting up with the horses at 7AM. We then ate dinner and I shared the Word. I had a little mini-message I called, "What Now?" I wanted to give the guys every opportunity to go home and keep the growth they had obtained. The highlight was when David Meyers received the gift of Holy Spirit. It was a cool moment. Soon after this everyone headed to bed. We've got to be up at 5:30AM to pack & eat breakfast.

Wednesday, September 5, 2007

By 6AM & after a couple of servings of grits the serious packing began. This wasn't too bad and thank goodness we didn't have far to go with our gear to meet the horses. By 7AM we were at the top of the campground waiting on the horses. I had told everyone to expect delays. While we were waiting, I couldn't find my ID or credit card. I searched & searched. Finally I remembered that I had taken them into Supai with David when we went to see the medic. After looking through my bag I found the camouflage pants I had been wearing that day and sure enough, they were in the pocket. The horses arrived about an hour late but thank goodness they were there. One our bags were taken care of we jumped on our own horses. 15 minutes later we were in Supai. I stopped at the tourist office to pay and we were off again. As we were headed out of town, crossing the river, one of the Indians with us yelled up to Russell, "get up Big Butt!" My question was... Is he talking to Russ. He said no, that Big Butt was the name of Russell's horse. How funny! Anyway the ride out was pretty uneventful except for problems with Trebe's hip. It was hurting him quite badly (he took 3 prescription pain pills) but was glad to have the horse to get out. Anyway, David S, Charles & I ran our horses way ahead. I was much less nervous this time than I was 2 years ago. My horse was fairly responsive as well. As we ran on up ahead it gave us a chance to look around & even stop to go to the bathroom. Soon we could see the others catching up so we headed off toward the hilltop. The climb was a bit slow but definitely better than being on foot. Oh, I met a couple of teenage high school girls on the way up. They were from Supai and headed to the hilltop (& ultimately their car) to go back to school in Oklahoma. I got some riding tips from them that really helped. Finally we reached the Hilltop and waited for our pack horses to arrive. Then we waited some more & then we waited some more. It took forever. After another hour or so they finally arrived. From that point things moved quickly. The van was loaded in literally 10 minutes. I got a quick picture with Sun Eagle then jumped in the drivers seat & we were off. We made it 60 miles down BIA-18 in no time and soon we were headed to eat on old Route 66. We decided to go ahead and stop at that little gas station (& inn) to see if they would let us use some showers. Low and behold they had a campground that was completely empty and it had 6 or 7 nice showers. They also had a restaurant. We got our showers and headed to the restaurant. Finally we ate & got back on the road. Only 26 hours ahead and then we’re home!!! What a good trip.
 

DIRECTIONS

The trailhead begins at Hualapai Hilltop.  Hualapai Hilltop can be reached at the end of Indian Road 18 which is 68 miles north of Route 66.  The Parking Area is known as Hualapai (Walapai) Hilltop. This is where the trailhead is. There are no services of any kind. i.e. gas, food or lodging. There is no water available for hikers. Please don't forget to bring water for the hike and fill up your tank with gas.
 

WANT MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE HAVASUPAI AND THEIR BEAUTIFUL LAND??  HERE'S SOME GREAT RESOURCES...

http://www.havasupaitribe.com/ - Official web site of the Havasupai

HavasuFalls.net - One of the best, most informative web sites I read before I made my trip

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