Great story Jake - love that pic of the grouse in your vehicle. I've seen them do some absolutely stupid things, but never in my life have I seen one climb into are car. Classic grouse behavior to a new level.
I'm sure you learned all about this in you studies after the fact, but next time you come out, give yourself a couple days to acclimate before hitting it hard. 1,000 feet to 9,000 is a killer in short order. Take a day at 4,500-5,000 (valley level in SLC) and then give yourself another day at 7,000 or so. You should be good to go after that. I've had altitude sickness once, and know exactly how you feel. Way to keep on keeping on and getting it done!