This was a trip I planned and took with my 2 brothers in late September 2023. I had done overnight trips before such as Mt. Whitney, but never a multi-night backpacking trip. Havasupai was a great place to do this for the first time because while remote, you are near a small village, there are plenty of other campers, there are toilets, etc. But having to lug all your gear and all your trash 10 miles in, 10 miles out, with over 2,000 feet of elevation, you are aware of every ounce in your pack.
One cool thing about this trip is that this was the first year since early 2020 Covid halted the Tribe from letting anyone into the area. For about 3 years the public/hikers were not allowed to visit the waterfalls. Our permits were actually for 2020 so each year I waited for news on this until finally we knew in 2023 we were going.
GEAR –
Since this website is specifically about gear recommendations, I’ll talk more about that. I think each of us were happy with what we brought. I overprepared by having things like a small roll of duct tape, extra batteries, things that I ultimately didn’t end up using, but was happy to have at the cost of a few ounces. Even though I brought a tent to sleep in I also brought a hammock just purely for comfort and “camp life”. An extra set of camp clothes. It was VERY nice having this since a good amount of time was spent around camp when we weren’t out exploring the waterfalls and trails. With all food and water hiking in I was right around 30-31 pounds. I personally use a Osprey Atmos 50L backpack and I would say much more weight would be pushing the comfort level, but it did great. I have dreams of going ultralight and getting a different backpack sleeping bag etc, but money wise you start to run into problems. One buy I did for this trip and absolutely loved was the super lightweight TOAKS Titanium 750ml Pot. This worked for boiling water for all 3 of us, and used it for coffee as well as hot chocolate. The thing weighs so little compared to my previous pot.
All in all it was the trip of a lifetime, a lot of work, a lot of walking, but 100% worth it. Please use the Cotact section and let me know if you have any questions about this trip or if you are planning your own.
