We awake to near disaster.  Last night I put Beth's and my food in a mesh, stainless steel Ratsack Cache bag and left it on the picnic table.  This morning Beth finds it in the creek barely hanging onto a rock by a sliver.  Although wet, we are able to salvage most of our food.  Apparently, one of the dogs from the Village came rummaging through our campsite last night and carried it away.  We are fortunate our bag was not swept down stream and over the falls, never to be seen again.  John also had some of his MREs taken by the dogs.

	Our food bag in the creek 10-4-2006 @ 6:50

     The new boots I used for my North Rim day hikes this summer have been putting blisters on my feet.  I now have the largest blister I have ever seen across the entire ball section of my right foot.  I use two layers of Moleskin and hope I can endure the discomfort for our day hike.

     After breakfast, Beth and I check inside John's bivy and find he is gone.  He talked yesterday about trying to make it to the Colorado River, so maybe he struck out early today.  Beth and I pack our daypacks and head downstream for Beaver Falls.  It is only a few hundred yards from the west end of the campground until you reach Mooney Falls.  And we thought that Havasu Falls was impressive.  This is the tallest falls on the reservation at 196 feet and is named for Daniel Mooney who fell to his death here in 1880.   

Mooney Falls 10-4-2006 @ 8:24	Mooney Falls 10-4-2006 @ 8:38

Mooney Falls 10-4-2006 @ 8:38	Mooney Falls 10-4-2006 @ 8:43	Mooney Falls 10-4-2006 @ 8:46

     To aid in the descent to the base of the falls, tunnels were blasted through the top half of the south wall.  Then drill stems were driven into the walls and chains attached on the lower half.  A long extension ladder sits at the bottom.  Beth and I brought gloves to help us negotiate the steep descent.  It is almost vertical and not for the faint of heart.  Once at the base, we continue westward by the creek toward Beaver Falls.  We brought our Tevas, knowing there would be some creek crossings ahead.  We make the first crossing over a wobbly board with our boots on.  A little farther down the trail we come to what looks like a popular swimming spot with a swinging rope.

The first creek obstacle 10-4-2006 @ 9:00	Swinging rope 10-4-2006 @ 9:07	Water hole by swinging rope 10-4-2006 @ 9:07

     In a few more minutes, we reach a spot requiring us to remove our boots to cross the creek.  Once across, we are not sure how far it is to the next crossing so we leave our Tevas on.  That was a mistake as it is about a mile to the next crossing.  When we next cross the creek, we immediately put our boots back on, a wise choice since no more creek crossings were encountered.  There are numerous places by the creek where the water cascades over ledges, making for a very pretty picture.

Havasu Creek 10-4-2006 @ 10:39	Havasu Creek 10-4-2006 @ 10:39

     In a little while, we reach a cliff with a rope hanging over the edge.  Just then John appears.  This morning he actually hiked the two miles back to the Village for breakfast and food supplies to replace his MREs the dogs got.  We're not sure the falls are reachable since this rope climb is equally as challenging as the descent was at Mooney Falls.  Finally, Beth goes up the rope followed shortly by me.  John elects to take a route down the creek.  Farther down the creek John climbs a small cliff and rejoins us.  His GPS shows that Beaver Falls is just a short distance from here.  However, we reach the edge of the reservation without finding the falls. 

The boundary sign 10-4-2006 @ 11:25	John by the boundary sign 10-4-2006 @ 11:25

     We decide to backtrack and finally see Beaver Falls.  Unlike the other falls, it must be viewed at a distance from the top of a cliff.  It is considerably smaller than the other three falls, but is still pretty as it cascades down various ledges.

Beaver Falls 10-4-2006 @ 11:29	Beaver Falls 10-4-2006 @ 11:30	Beaver Falls 10-4-2006 @ 11:30

     We continue our way back and after a few creek crossings, we come to the swimming hole with the rope swing.  John decides to play a little on the swing.

John on the rope swing 10-4-2006 @ 1:10	John at the swimming hole 10-4-2006 @ 1:10	John at the swimming hole 10-4-2006 @ 1:10

     Then it's back to Mooney Falls where Beth puts on her bathing suit.  She and John swim in the misty pool beneath the falls.

Mooney Falls 10-4-2006 @ 1:29	Beth and John in the mist 10-4-2006 @ 1:47	Beth and John in the mist 10-4-2006 @ 1:47

     I leave Beth and John beneath Mooney Falls and start the climb up the obstacle course to the top.  It is quite a bit easier going up than it was coming down.  To me, though, that's the same way it is negotiating tough trails in the Canyon.

Ladder at bottom of climb 10-4-2006 @ 1:53	The chains midway up the climb 10-4-2006 @ 1:57	Tunnel entrance at the top 10-4-2006 @ 2:00

     In less than ten minutes, I reach the top and head back to camp.

Beth and Richard's tents 10-4-2006 @ 2:12	John's bivy 10-4-2006 @ 2:12	Our table and chairs 10-4-2006 @ 2:12

     Beth and John arrive a little later.  Since we hiked eight miles today visiting Beaver Falls, we decide to have an easy day tomorrow and explore Havasu Falls and Navajo Falls, which are only a short distance east of the campground.  Beth and I comment to John that if he goes to the Village store again tomorrow morning to bring us back a Coke.  We pass the time this evening by playing Crazy-Eights with a deck of cards Beth brought.  I put fresh Moleskin on my blisters and then it's off to bed for us.

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