Havasupai

Pete and I recently went on a vacation with our friends Cody and Carli. We went to Havasupai. I have been wanting to go there for years but we just hadn't gotten around to it. The hike to Havasupai is about 10 miles and really wasn't all that bad. It is flat for the most part. We hiked in on a Thursday and on the way in it snowed on us. Not what I was expecting from Arizona in April. Even though I was looking forward to being nice and warm in Arizona, the snow was nice for the hike in. It kept us from getting too hot.

Along the way we meet "Buddy" (Pete named him-I wanted to call him "Rascal"). He was just hanging out on the trail. He hiked with us for quite a while but each time a we passed a different group of people he was torn between us and them. Eventually he chose to hike with someone else. I guess it's for the best though because Pete wouldn't let me pet him because he said he probably had worms.The hike in was really pretty. Lots of red sandstone with lots of unique features. At 8 miles in we ran into a small Indian village. It is the only place in the US that still gets mail by the pony express. Pete and I really wanted to send all of our friends and family post cards via the pony express but when we got there they where all sold out of post cards :( We were just a little disappointed to say the least.Our friend Cody, who came with us is an amazing photographer and along the way we often stopped to take pictures. While he was instructing his wife on how to make the perfect pose Pete was instructing me.Needless to say I think her poses might have been slightly more becoming.At least I've learned that batting your eyes really fast is never a good look for a camera. :)

After we left the village we had just 2 more miles to go till we made it to our camp site. At this point we were hiking along side the river. The water was so clear and green. It was rad but I was getting tired.

I was so relieved by the time we made it to Havasu Falls because that meant we were nearly there. This falls was really cool. I guess a few years ago there where 2 water falls side by side, however, there was a massive mud slide that wiped out the other falls. I wish I could have seen it before the slide but it is still amazing.

By the time we set up camp I was exhausted and went right to sleep.

On Friday we decided we would hike down to the where the canyon we were in meet with the Grand Canyon 8 miles away. At the very beginning of the hike there was a large cliff that had a steep trail etched into it's side. I thought it was more like climbing then hiking. But after that things mellowed out.

Along the way there were lots of really scenic areas. Here is a picture of Carli and Me at one such scenic stop.

Below is Beaver Falls. It was my favorite waterfall.
We stopped her for quite some time while Cody worked on getting the perfect picture.
We all helped out.

(The above picture was for my mom who decorated our home with an Indian/Desert theme when I was little. I saw this cactus garden and thought of you.)

After we finished our escapades at Beaver Falls Carli and Cody headed back to camp and Pete and I pressed forward in hopes that we might reach the grand canyon. As we hiked the trail often dead ended up against the river and we were forced to ford the river to get back on the trail. I didn't feel like hiking in soggy shoes so Pete came to the rescue and carried me across the river. By the time all was said and done Pete carried me across the river 17 times. My husband rocks. He only got me wet once and I dried off pretty fast.

We hiked for a couple more hours before we realized that if we didn't turn back we might be hiking in the dark and we didn't have head lamps. Pete had me pretty convinced that we might have to sleep on the trail because it would be too dangerous for us to continue to hike in the dark as there were some steep cliffs and some areas where we had to ford the river. (I decided if we did have to sleep on the trail I was going to take pictures of me signing messages to my family just in case I got hypothermia and didn't make it.)

Luckily that didn't turn out to be an issue. We made it back with time to spare. We had spent so much time taking pictures during the earlier part of the day that we hadn't covered too much ground so we made much better time on the way home. I must admit that I was relived we didn't have to go up the cliff trail in the dark or sleep on the trail.

I was a little disappointed that we didn't make it to the Grand Canyon and the Colorado River but I guess there is always next time. Better to be safe then sorry. When we got back and talked to other people who had done the hike in the past we learned that we were likely just a ridge or 2 away. We were nearly there!

On Saturday we just played in the water, soaked up the sun, and goofed off.

I even got Pete to participate in a dance party at the base of a water fall with me which was a lot of fun!On Sunday we hiked out. The hike out was not too bad until the last 2 miles. At which point there was no more shade, it was HOT, and the idea of the massive hill at the end was nearly unbearable. Lucky for me Pete was super encouraging and let me hang on to one of the straps on his backpack for a little extra motivation. A lot of other people were hiking out at the same time we were. They all looked pretty tired too, but they had all paid to have horses haul their bags out so they didn't have the extra weight we did. The horses hauling there bags seemed just as exhausted as me. Some times they even looked a little delusional. I felt bad for them. Once I finally reached the top I rewarded myself with a popsicle which someone was selling out of their car. A popsicle never tasted so good.

On the drive back to Vegas stopped to check out Hoover Dam. I thought I had been there before but I called the only people who I would have gone there with and they both told me I had never been there. I guess it's another one of my false memories. I have many. The dam was really cool and it was fun to walk across.

They are building a bridge just down stream from the dam. It is such a pretty bridge. This picture really doesn't do it justice. Pete thinks this bridge might have the largest drop in the US when all is said and done.