Havasupai Campgrounds Re-opening?

[Suz]

Anyone got the inside scoop on permits, the falls or a reopening?

I heard there is a May 1st date with phone reservations starting up this past Monday 1/12.

I'm looking for an insider scoop on the newly reconfigured falls and the whole area for that matter......any beta connections?

Dang that was FAST! Finally on high speed! and a hotrod computer.....and saving myself 6 bucks a month by switching from dial up......LOL

[dabreeze]

As you hike to the campground from the village you'll find some rather significant changes:

1. two new falls (80' & 30'--no official names yet other than Fifty Foot Falls, which are shown on any 1983 USGS-based topo software if you're interested in the exact location in the watershed) about four hundred yards upstream from . . .

2. Navajo Falls which sadly is completely dry with no return in sight;

3. a major re-routing of the trail in spots;

4. entirely new foot bridges;

5. a slightly lower (5'-8') and more singularly channeled Havasu Falls as it tumbles over the ledge; brand new, rebuilt travertine pools and tubs immediately below Havasu Falls;

6. far fewer trees around those pools and throughout the length of the creek below the new falls;

6. for now, a campground much flatter and uniform as a result of 4'-6' of deposited silt that has also, for now, buried almost all of the wonderful pour-offs, riffles and grotto-like reflecting pools that used to characterize the creek as it flowed thru the campground. to give you an idea, the building next to the spring water outlet which used to stand about seven feet high now has only the roof exposed!!

7. Not much visible damage to Mooney Falls other than one fairly large travertine curtain close to the top of the falls that had a good section sheared off.

8. The large pools under both Havasu and Mooney Falls lost about a third of their waters due to silt build-up.

Didn't get a chance to get below Mooney in November when I saw all this so I'm not sure of the impact downstream to Beaver Falls. My educated guess is that while there will be debris piles in places and some trees gone, that most of the worst damage was between Fifty Foot Falls and Mooney Falls.

The Havasupai are working round the clock to clean up debris piles in the campground, restore the pools, re-install picnic tables. This was proceeding nicely.

The toughest job looks to be the re-routing of the trail away from some geologically unstable areas (erosion, vulnerability to any future flooding, underground springs) and rebuilding the various foot bridges.

Even though all were evacuated safely during this past summer's flood, still more and improved evacuation proceedures and advance warning systems are being put into place.

The Tourism Office (928 448 2121) remains confident they can re-open to hikers and campers by May 1 and are planning to start taking reservations again sometime in February or March. The canyon suffered some pretty significant damage so you can expect it's gonna take a while to return to its prestine, pre-flood state.

But it's also good to remember that 1993 & 1997 were also huge flood years and probably almost all the incredible pix you've seen have been taken in the years since those floods. Floods are part of the life cycle in the Grand Canyon and recovery is often much quicker than one would think!!

PS: NOw available at Amazon and on the Tribe website is Greg Witt's wonderfully written, informative official 'unofficial' hiking guide for the entire area called Exploring Havasupai. I shot the cover and all the pix of the new falls, as well as a series of "Pro Photo Tips" sidebars throughout the guide.

PPS: Suz, send me a PM and I'll give you a peek. Sorry, I can't for now put them up for full public viewing. Soon though.

[Davis2001R6]

[dabreeze]

in referring to its "prestine, pre-flood state," i would hope you'd understand i was describing the watershed, waterfalls, pools, foliage, etc. & not the village and the campground.
lots of good info for those interested; is there really a need here to take the original post so off-topic just so that you can express your opinion about the Havasuapai Tribe's stewardship of the canyon?
For what it's worth, from Mooney to the River is pretty 'pristine' to me whatever state it's in. A simple, polite 'thank you' for the good 411 might have sufficed!!

[Davis2001R6]

Sorry for commenting on the subject. I don't believe talking about the condition of the canyon is off topic though. I hope they do make some changes to keep it cleaner for future visitors.

[oliverr99]

That is good to know they are working to get things back together for us to enjoy the beautiful waters and falls. I wouldn't mind going back, but I think I will wait for others to go ahead. Thanks for the update!
_________________
Anne
"Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened" -- Dr. Seuss

[paintninaz]

I'd like to go and see the changes...I feel lucky enough to have seen the "before", and I'd love to go see the "after" I think it'd be really cool to compare.
_________________
~Tracy

“Friends make the bad times good — and the good times unforgettable.”

[azhiker96]

I'm excited to see mother nature's changes in that canyon. I think it's cool that we're in a changing world.
_________________
It is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring. -- Carl Sagan

[Suz]

[oliverr99]

I might! Depending on my financial situation!
_________________
Anne
"Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened" -- Dr. Seuss

[GeorgAz]

I remember it in the 'way back" 1979 and 1981 when it was really awesome! Nature keeps re-doing herself. I'm sure it will always be amazing! Thanks for the info,Derek!

[Suz]

It looks like it would be around a 100 bucks per person for a couple of nights.

[Erock]

What days do you have in mind?

[Suz]

I just took a peak at Derek's pictures and I'm not sure I want to go anymore. Might put this one on hold for a decade or 10!

[Hnak]