SNAKE!

One of the more interesting encounters we had was on a little rim hike we took after taking the shuttle bus to Yaki Point, a few miles east of Grand Canyon Village. After taking in the spectacular view with the other 25 people who made the trip with us, we wandered a hundred meters or so eastward along the rim looking for photo opportunities. We certainly found it! There was a little rock squirrel making a ruckus around a clump of vegetation - clearly focused at his task at hand and paying no mind to us. Then we found the object of his attention - a meter-long gopher snake! The squirrel was going to town trying to get the snake to move along - effectively throwing rocks and dirt at it while the snake was hissing and striking back. Whether defending a nearby nest or just aggravating a predator, we don't know. Eventually the squirrel moved along, then the snake finally noticed us as I moved in for a picture. We continued our walk and 10 minutes later when we returned, there was no sign of either. A stalemate this time?