I had a leisurely day of backpacking ahead of me as I was just going on the West Rim where there was just 14 miles of trail to hike over two days. I decided that I had to make this a bit more interesting. I was able to start from Barney's Trail due to the West Rim Road being closed. This was the only place I still saw significant snow. I could tell from the condition of the road that it would be a matter of days until the road was open. The trail was rather similar to past hikes. I talked to a few groups that were backpacking. They were all rather nice. As I got to Potato Hollow, I was excited to see a grouse. I watched this grouse for a bit and I thought it strange that it was letting me get so close to it.
I snapped some photos but after the third picture, it was right at my feet. Now, there was no reason to be scared of an animal so small, but it was in attack mode. It kind of flew up, so I gave it a nudge with my foot. This didn't stop it as the grouse came right back and did the same thing. This time I gave it more of a soft kick to knock it back. It still came back for more. I decided then and there that I was going to end this ordeal. I gave it a swift kick and it toppled head over heels. It seemed stunned by that and wandered into the bushes. I thought it was strange, but I went about my business after that. I set up camp at site number 7 in Potato Hollow. There was a fire ring I had to remove, so that made me a little grumpy.
I went over to campsite 8 and that looked a bit crazy with food and gear spread out everywhere. This group was obviously using too much space for such a small campsite. They were nowhere to be seen, so I used my extra time to do some exploring. I ran into a corral which was probably used at the time when the area above this was referred to as Horse Pasture Plateau.
Funny how things change when it becomes a National Park. I kept going as my goal was to make it out to the rim. I got one of the most beautiful views of the cliffs below. This was a spectacular shot and viewpoint that no one ever sees because they do not venture off the established route. There was a bit of bushwhacking but nothing above manzanita level to get to this view. Spectacular! One that would be the highlight of many a trip to Zion. I hung out here tracing the route through the Right Fork from above. Then I wandered on over to the drop in for the Hammerhead to check that out. This was a bit more of a bushwhack and not an incredible view, but I could understand how this approach would be interesting and save a bit of time.
I made that something that I would have to do in the future. I then went back down to my campsite. Could you believe that the grouse came back? Well, it did, but this time I was ready. I grabbed the nearest stick and gave it a good chuck right at the grouse. He was gone and did not mess with me any more. I also wandered on down to site 8 in the evening and had an impromptu leave no trace discussion with the campers there. They seemed to agree, but who knows if they actually complied. The next day I went off on my way. There was a lot of work to be done as the West Rim was very popular that Spring. I ended up cleaning up 8 campfires including one that was still warm. The people in the site confessed to it and they ended up getting a ticket in the mail. That one made me feel good as campfires in Zion are so damaging to the resource. A few of those campfires were in places that people weren't even supposed to be camping. I made a mental note that we were going to have to have more frequent patrols on the West Rim next spring. All in all it was a good trip. I heard later there were more reports of people getting attacked by the same grouse.
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