"Three is Company"

I'm very happy to share that I will have excellent company for both Olympic and Yellowstone National Parks. Joining the cast of imaginary characters that will accompany me from start to finish are Ritvik (Olympic) and Brita (Yellowstone.)
This is great in so many ways. Rit will join me for the final few days of the Olympic hike, then we will explore Seattle and relax for a few.
Brita will be with me from start to finish in Yellowstone, which is really good news. As you may know from Yogi and BooBoo, Yellowstone is filled with Grizzly bears. Hiking alone is strongly discouraged; more people make more noise, so there's less of a chance of startling a bear, and if there is an encounter, there's safety in numbers (and I'm pretty sure that, over 100 yds, i can outrun not the bear, but Brita.) Just kidding... probably.
Really, I am very happy that they're joining, and just as i'm nearing completion of the 1st stage of planning. Having just faxed my application to Glacier NP, i have only Olympic left to apply for, and that may be done only 30 days before the start of the trip.
Save Oregon, all the hikes are planned; Yellowstone, RMNP, and Canyonlands have all been approved. Idaho and Weminuche (Colorado) are both planned, and the maps for Oregon are on the way.
Not ahead of where I wanted to be in planning, but on schedule. From here, I'll finish the on trail portion of planning as i get confirmation from Glacier and the Oregon beta arrives. Though now i'm shifting my attention to some of the homefront planning for while i'm gone. Sublet, bunnies, etc.
I'll also start to put together beta packets for each destination. These will contain my maps, permits, details on the area, etc. I'll also start to look at some good side trips while i'm driving. Contrary to what i may have said earlier, i won't be seeking out the world's largest ball of twine, but i do want to see what is along the highways that i'll be driving.