Supai Village

June 15, 2015, Monday.
We waited this day for six months.
Our day, when we saw the waterfalls "Havasu Falls".

We decided to go down and go along the canyon to the village of the Indians and we had to hurry.
We had breakfast at the motel "Motel is 6", in the city of Kingman, AZ and then we drove along the route.
The road took a lot of time, because the cows graze near the road and you have to be very careful not to bring down the animal.

After 3.5 hours of drive by HWY 40, 66 and Indian road 18, we were on the "Hualapai Hilltop".
GPS-coordinates: 36°09'33.6"N, 112°42'33.5"W

The parking was on the hill, where we arrived...
There was no road ahead.
Only, a walking trail, along which mules and tourists descend and ascend...
On the hill there were many tourists with things, a lot of guys arrived together with companies.
They left large things on a hill to deliver them to the village by mules.

"Maybe we can send our bags down on the mule"? - my wife said.
Но мы не смогли договориться с персоналом.
We were offered a mule, but our bags did not take...
OK... We ourselves took our bags, sleeping bags, tent, food, water and approached to the edge of a cliff...

The Indian village of Supai was located over there at the bottom.
A distance to the village was 13 km.
But how long time you will take the road is hard to say.
It depends from your physical capabilities, from the heat, and how often you'll do halts.
The four hours and more.

The first part of the way - it's a steep descent along a narrow path, jumping from a stone to a stone.
We often stopped to miss mules and tourists who climbed out of the canyon.

The climb was much harder than the descent.
The guys were not smiled from fatigue, they have asked only: "How long to go to the top of the hill"
The animals were tired too.

The mules carried the load from the village to pick up the load from the mountain.
The Native American was on a horseback, he led the mules...

Finally, the 600-meter descent ended and we were on the bottom of the canyon.

Rocks and stones have been around only...

The path was along the dry bed of the creek.

Small pebbles and a sand interfere to go.
You need the suitable shoes.
We forgot about it and the wife injured her leg.

We were hiding in the shadows of the cliffs from the sun, leaning against the cold stone.

The vegetation was very scanty - a sickly grass, bushes, cacti, dead trees.

It was the kingdom of rocks and stones...

And the tourists have left here a stone "for luck."
We've done it, too...

The group of teenagers was ahead of us, we were talking in the moments of a rest.
All tourists rested often enough...
The sun was hot all the stronger, the stones were hot.

Even the mules, who were accustomed to the heat, looked for shade.

It was a good idea to hide in the shade from the sun, but we need to go further.

And when, it seemed that the road will never end, the landscape changed at ahead.

Rocks have changed, it were covered with green vegetation.

The murmur of the water could be heard behind a rock.

Ahead were the creek and...an oasis, which appeared out of nowhere.

We dropped our bags and rushed to the water...
We rested for at least half an hour and enjoyed the turquoise water of the creek "Havasu Creek".

So, the creek with green-blue water is born deep underground in limestone caves.
The high content of calcium carbonate gives to the water a bright blue-green color.

The village of Supai, of the Indian tribe of Havasupai is located on the bank of the creek.

And tribe name "Havasupai" is translated - people who live near the turquoise water.
The village is located in the canyon between the rocks and looks very impressive.
GPS-coordinates: 36°13'55.0"N, 112°41'28.3"W

The village of Supai is small, but there are a school, a church, a couple of shops, a restaurant and a police station.

There is also a field for helicopters with a "loud" name "West Line".
Helicopters carry villagers and tourists, their loads, and everything that is necessary for life in the village.

Here there is also a motel - Lodge and the office of campground, where we went.
GPS-coordinates: 36°14'14.7"N, 112°41'30.9"W

The village reminded me summer villages in our country.
Native Americans live in houses made of plywood, they bred horses, grow a corn, are engaged in the tourism business.

There were a lot of horses and mules, the animals were in pens or just on the street.

In the office, we paid for the stay and went to the campground slowly, the way was 3 km.
The road went downhill...

The creek flows along the road...

The creek "Havasu Creek" is born deep under the ground, it flows through the village, the campground and empties into the Colorado River.

The creek overcomes cliffs and rocks in its path, forming the waterfalls and the cascades.

There are a lot of small rapids on the creek, but only five waterfalls...
We saw the first three waterfalls when went to the campground
Waterfalls near the village - the "New Navajo Falls".

The waterfalls that are a little further away from the village - the "Fifty Foot Falls".

The Havasu Creek ran on, and we followed him ...

The stream was wide and shallow, sometimes - violent, in the embrace of the rocks.

The water of a stream helps the trees to live, but the trees dry out in the sun.

After a relaxing near the bridge we went further...

The mules overtook us, raising a cloud of dust...

Well, where was the campground?
Suddenly, we saw a waterfall...
Havasu Falls!

We were standing near the cliff and looked at the giant waterfall.

We also saw the campground from here.
GPS-coordinates: 36°15'25.0"N, 112°42'06.4"W

There were a lot of empty sites, we chose a place near the creek and the tent was set.

The day passed quickly, it was already 7 pm.
We swam in the creek, had a bite and decided to rest.

The whole body and legs ached, and the face burned by the sun.
We sat on the bank of the "Havasu Creek" and we looked at the turquoise water of the stream...

And it was so great ...