Backpacking into Havasu Falls is a complete dream, and was a big check off my bucket list when I completed it in May of 2024. You are on your own (with some exceptions) for 4 days and 3 nights on the Havasupai Reservation in northern Arizona. As weather can vary, you should be prepared for everything, without bringing too much stuff to weigh you down.
If you are carrying everything on your back, you have to be very efficient with what you bring and can’t overpack. If you are getting a mule to carry down bags, you can bring a few extra things you think you may need or want to have.
To reserve a mule, you’ll be paying $400 for 4 bags, each weighing under 32 pounds. Split between a group, the price isn’t that bad, so I’d consider this option if you aren’t super experienced backpacking or want the luxury of bringing a few extra things. Honestly, I don’t really like the idea of using mules to transport my stuff, but this seemed like the best option for us on this trip given a few of us hadn’t backpacked before. It did make the trip a lot more enjoyable on the hike in and out. Just remember, you will still have to carry your mule bags about a mile up and down a hill to the campground from the bag drop off area. The mules don’t bring the bags directly to the campground.
Before I share my packing list, here are some things to keep in mind when you are packing:
Weather
Look up the weather before your trip and know what to anticipate for that given time of the year. It’s generally colder from February to April, and October to November, so you’ll probably want to pack some warmer clothing for those months. Summertime can get pretty hot from June through August, and there is also a chance of monsoons during the summer, so be prepared for rain and hot weather.
Weight of Items
If you haven’t invested into any lightweight backpacking gear, before this trip might be the time for that. This isn’t the trip to pack massive sleeping bags, or giant sleeping pads, super heavy tent stakes, etc. Every weight matters when it's on your back. Even with the mule bag, you should still try to pack light as there’s a weight and size limit to your bags. Mule bags can’t be over 32 pounds.
Type of Backpack
Make sure you get fitted for a backpacking backpack. If you are taking everything on your back, this especially is essential. Go to REI or another outdoors shop that sells backpacks to get fitted for a size that molds well to your body. These backpacks help balance out the weight in your bag and allow you to carry more weight efficiently. This could be the difference between a lot of sore neck, back, and shoulder muscles at the end of the trip.
Camp Fires Prohibited
You can’t make camp fires here, so things tend to get a little chilly in the colder months after the sun goes down. This also means you have to bring your own grilling equipment and fuel. Pack accordingly and bring things like a warm hat, gloves, a lightweight fleece, and long underwear if the weather has lows that look chilly.
I’ve broken down the packing into seven categories: Backpacking Gear, Clothing and Footwear, Health & Hygiene, Food & Water, Camp Kitchen, Emergency Items and Personal Items.
Here is my Havasu Falls packing guide.
BACKPACKING GEAR
-Backpack - You’ll want something that fits your body well and helps distribute the weight better so you’ll work less while carrying more.
-Backpacking Tent - Something lightweight and smaller is ideal, as you’ll likely be carrying this with or throwing it in your mule bag.
-Sleeping Bag - A lightweight sleeping bag.
-Sleeping Pad - A lightweight sleeping pad is recommended. I badly wanted to take my fairly large, but very comfortable sleeping pad, but I knew there was no way it would fit. I got a lightweight sleeping pad and although it wasn’t the most comfortable, it still provided a decent sleep. Some people bring yoga mats but remember those will take up a lot of space as well.
-Tent Footprint - A tent footprint or a tarp is usually recommended to put under your tent.
-Tent Stakes - Bring some lightweight tent stakes to keep your tent and footprint from blowing away or getting moved.
-Pillow - Consider a small camping pillow, or you can bring a pillowcase and shove your fleece and other clothing inside to create your own pillow.
-Headlamp - Crucial to have for the campsite at night, as it will get super dark super quick once the sun goes down.
-Lantern - Great to provide some more light at the campsite.
-Trekking Poles - Very helpful on a hike like this with some steep switchbacks.
-Camelback - Fill yours before you head out on every big hike, as this is the most convenient way to stay hydrated while hiking.
CLOTHING / FOOTWEAR
-Hiking Shoes - A good pair of hiking shoes is essential, as you will be on your feet for most of the hike. It will most likely be hot, so they don’t have to be heavy duty boots, and they may get wet.
-Hiking Water Shoes - If you plan to hike the Mooney Falls to Beaver Falls hike, you definitely should either invest in a pair of close-toed water hiking sandals, or bring a pair of old hiking shoes you don’t mind getting soaked in water. There will be a fair amount of creek crossings that will go up until your knees or possibly waist deep. I found these to be very helpful for that hike. The continuation onto the Confluence will have a lot more as well.
-T-Shirts - I brought one lightweight, hiking t-shirt for every day of the trip.
-Long Sleeve Shirts - I brought 2 long sleeve shirts for the evenings, and wore one of them for the first hour or so of the early hike out of the canyon.
-Quick Dry Hiking Shorts - Bring one good pair of quick dry hiking shorts for your hikes. It will most likely get wet during the Beaver Falls hike so something quick dry is nice.
-Quick Dry Hiking Pants - I brought one pair and only wore them at night around the campsite.
-Hiking Socks - At least one pair per day. I took an extra pair in case, as I knew we’d be crossing a lot of creeks.
-Cozy Socks - I brought one pair that I love to wear around the campsite at night and relax.
-Underwear - At least one pair per day.
-Hat - A hat is a good option to block out some sun, especially if you’ll be hiking anywhere during the day.
-Swimsuit - There are plenty of waterfalls that you can swim in, including jumping off some rocks at some of the falls. Pack a swimsuit if you want to get in the water.
-Sweat Pants - Not necessary, but comfortable to hang around the campsite in during the evening.
-Lightweight Fleece - Nice to have in the evenings. Bring something lightweight that isn’t too bulky.
-Rain Jacket / Poncho - If you are hiking in monsoon season, bring a rain jacket and possibly a backpack rain cover. A poncho is also a good option to bring regardless of the season as they are lightweight and can help keep your gear dry should a random rainstorm occur.
-Long Underwear - Since you aren’t allowed to have fires, some nights may be chilly. Always good to have as an option since they’re generally pretty lightweight.
-Warm Hat & Gloves - Good to have for the evenings if you are hanging out at the campsite after dark.
-Grip Hiking Gloves - If you are hiking down the steep descent to Mooney Falls, you will want to wear some gloves with grip on them as you’ll be holding onto chains that could get slippery when the mist from the waterfall is soaking them. There are hundreds of pairs of gloves left behind at the top of the falls if you really need some, but it’s easy enough to bring your own pair.
-Face Mask - It is still required to wear a face mask in Supai Village. There are signs telling you to wear a mask, even outside, as you enter Supai Village, which takes about 20 minutes to walk through. However, we did not see anyone, hikers or locals, abiding by the face masks outside. Inside they still require hikers to wear facemasks and all the hikers I saw were abiding by wearing them inside. So pack a mask if you plan on going inside anywhere in Supai Village to get food or supplies. Have it handy on the hike down in case you feel like going inside to get something.
-Headband - Not a requirement by any means, but I personally love wearing headbands when I hike. They help eliminate some direct sun on the face and they can soak up your sweat so it doesn’t drip onto your face. Also, they can come in handy if you ever need to tie something up or in case of emergency.
HEALTH & HYGIENE
-Tooth Brush
-Tooth Paste
-Deodorant
-Face Lotion
-Nail Clippers
-SPF Lip Balm - I used mine so much on this hike. If you’re hiking in the Arizona sun without it, your lips will most likely get chapped, and then you’ll want some to put on them. So bring a pair and keep it handy.
-Sunscreen - You should be wearing sunscreen every day on this trip as you’ll be in direct sunlight most days.
-Insect Repellent - I went in May and we personally didn’t need any, although we brought some in case.
-Hand / Body Wipes - These will come in handy to clean yourself with since there aren’t any showers in the campground.
-Biodegradable Camping Toilet Paper - The campground bathrooms are well maintained and have plenty of toilet paper. The only reason to bring a tiny roll of camping toilet paper would be In case of an emergency hiking in or out of the canyon, or on the longer day trip hikes.
-Prescription Medication - If you have any prescription medicine that you need to bring with you, remember to pack the right amount for how many days you’ll be camping.
FOOD & WATER
-Water - Fill all your water before your hike. It is recommended to have at least 3 L of water to begin the hike into the campground. There will be a water spring at the campground where you can gather more drinking water.
-Water Bottle - This will help store some of your water in addition to the camelback. You can use this water bottle for hydration tablets if you bring any, to keep the flavors separate.
-Water Filtration System / Lifestraw - These were essential in making sure we had super clean drinking water. A water filtration system will allow you to get a lot of water purified faster, where as a lifestraw can be convenient for drinking from a bottle or platypus bottle.
-Meals - You should pack for 3 breakfasts, 4 lunches, and 3 dinners. What you pack will depend on your eating habits, but it’s important to get enough calories per day, as well as protein. Dehydrated meals and oatmeal make for simple to cook options, and heavier snack combos could suffice for lunches if you’re hiking.
-Snacks - Bring a good amount of snacks that will give you energy, protein and help sustain yourself. Nuts, jerky, protein bars, energy bars, apples, salami, stroop waffles, and trailmix are just some of the hundreds of options of snacks you can pack. You can buy snacks at the Supai store but the options are limited.
-Liquid Hydration Tablets - Tablets or packets of hydration tablets can help keep you hydrated during the intense hiking, especially when you’re in the sun. Liquid IV, Nuun, or Gatorade packets are a good idea.
-Coffee & Tea - If you are a coffee drinker, you might want to bring some instant coffee packets. Bring tea options for the night and the evening.
-Hot Sauce & Seasonings - Hot sauce can go a long way in making a so-so meal into a great one. Yellowbird is a camping friendly choice, but bring whichever you prefer as long as the bottle is smaller and doesn’t weigh a ton. Salt, pepper, and other seasonings can be considered if your food is more bland.
CAMP KITCHEN
-Backpacking Stove - Essential for boiling water and cooking meals.
-Fuel - Tons of fuel cans were left around the campsite, but it is a good idea to bring your own fuel to boil water and cook your meals.
-Lighter / Matches
-Pot & Pan - Lightweight, camping pots for holding and boiling water. Lightweight, camping pans if you intend to do any additional cooking that will need a pan.
-Dishes & Bowls - Lightweight, camping dishes and bowls for your meals. You could probably get away with just one hybrid dish/bowl per person, just cleaning and re-using them.
-Eating Utensils - I’d suggest one double sided spork utensil, that you can use for all your meals.
-Biodegradable Soap - Convenient for washing hands as well as used pots, dishes, bowls, and utensils.
-Quickdry Towel - You can designate a quick dry towel to dry off all your cookware after washing it.
-Sponge - Helpful for cleaning off used pots, dishes, bowls, and utensils.
-Camping Mug - Nice for coffee or tea.
-Water Container - This is very convenient to bring back a bunch of water to your campsite from the spring. It’s especially helpful for washing your hands and cooking supplies.
-Ziplock Bags - These are great to split up snacks or to put some of your smaller garbage items in.
-Garbage Bags - Remember that it is “leave no trace”, which means you have to bring all of your garbage out with you. Bringing a few garbage bags is a good idea to throw all of your trash in to consolidate it for the hike (or mule bag) back up.
EMERGENCY ITEMS
Most of these are pretty self explanatory. They should all ideally be in the backpacking backpack of one of your group members, or split up between the group, for the big hikes in and out, as well as longer day hikes.
-First Aid Kit
-Whistle
-Knife or Multi-tool
-Fire Starter
-Blister Supplies
-Advil / Ibuprofen
PERSONAL ITEMS
-ID - You may need to show your ID, especially if you are the group leader, so always keep it on you or within reach during your days in and out of the canyon.
-Printed out Permit - You’ll need these when you check in the day before your trip, printed out.
-Phone - Self explanatory. You most likely won’t have any reception the entire trip, but good to have to take photos and videos.
-Credit Card and/or Cash - These are good to have with you in case you want to buy anything from the store (takes card), or the cafe (takes cash).
-Sunglasses - These will come in quite handy with all the hiking in the sun you’ll be doing.
OPTIONAL PERSONAL ITEMS
-Camera (Batteries + Media) - If you love taking photos, there are fewer better places to have your camera. Make sure you have enough media and fully charged batteries. If you are into more advanced photography and want to get some long exposure waterfall shots, don’t forget things like a lightweight tripod and an ND filter.
-Day Pack - If you have space, it’s smart to bring a smaller day pack for any day hikes you may want to do, or to bring stuff to Havasu or Mooney Falls. If you’re in a group, it might be worth designating some people with one, some without so you can switch off and save space. You can always use your backpacking backpack for day hikes, but it may feel like overkill and slow you down a bit.
-Quick Dry Towel - You can bring one if you need to dry off after going for a dip in the water.
-Camping Chair - Not necessary, but this was a great item to have at the campground and at Havasu Falls. Items like this are reasons to get the mule, otherwise I wouldn’t suggest packing this in your backpack.
-Hammock - These can be a clutch item to bring as there are tons of trees in the campground and places to tie one around Havasu Falls. Unless everyone in your group is going to use one at the same time, think about how many your group really needs to bring before all bringing one and taking up precious weight and space.
-Reading Material - If you enjoy reading, you can find some pretty relaxing moments at Havasu Falls if you bring a book (and a hammock!). If you don’t actually read and know you won’t read the book, don’t bother packing one because it will just add unnecessary weight.
-Portable Charger - It is a good idea to invest in a good portable charger as you will be off the grid for closer to 4 days. If you need to charge your phone, tablet, camera batteries, camping lights, etc, you will need a portable charger.
-Playing Cards - Something to entertain yourself at the campsite.
-Binoculars - I brought a pair but never found an opportunity to use them, as I’m always reaching for my camera instead.
-Headphones - If you are going to listen to music on your phone or device at night, or watch any saved movies or shows, do everyone a favor and pack a small pair of headphones.
-Batteries - I wouldn’t get carried away here, but it might be a good idea to have a few extra batteries in case something important has the batteries die (headlamp, flashlight, etc).
If you’re reading this, it most likely means you’re getting ready to hike Havasu Falls. Following this list should have you more than prepared for this unforgettable journey.
