Montana trip questions

“First post- I need ideas...
2 good friends and I are considering a trip to Glacier Nat. Park, and looking at a 4 day hike or so- Maybe on Redgap Pass Trail.
We are mid 20's and in overall good physical condition, albeit a little out of shape. We are looking at the first week of September as the week to go. Our experience is varied- I'm fairly experienced in first aid, wilderness skills, and LNT camping.
I've never hiked more than 5 miles a day- and that was with less than 15 lbs in an external frame pack. I've Hiked some in Middle TN, including a short day hike in the smokies, but experience otherwise is limited.
My gear is pretty decent- Mt. Hardware tent, Wiggy's bag, Gregory pack (internal) with a good compass that I know how to use. I also have a MSR whisperlite stove and Sweetwater purifier. The rest of my gear is pretty run of the mill decent stuff. My buds have little experience, and the dollars are a little too tight to get any great gear. They plan to share a small 3-season 2 man tent, have good packs, but not much else.
My questions are:
Are we crazy for making GNP our first big hike together? What can we expect? Is the gear up to snuff, how bad are the bears, what is the weather like, and mainly what would you do before taking this trip? We leave in two weeks...and I'm a little nervous about it. My buds are set on going because they just don't think they'll get the chance again. I'd like to go, but I'm a realist. Trips out there can go bad really quick.
Any tips?
BTW- we are planning a trip to the local REI store to check out the clothing scene a little... I plan to spend some money.”

“BlueHeeler, I live in MT (the eastern side though). I'm also limited for bping experience and have decent (and generously donated) gear. I don't know anything about the trails in GNP and have never hiked there. The only advice I can give you is to be careful about the weather. I would probably contact the rangers up there and find out what they have to say about normal Sept. weather conditions. It could easily be pretty cold and the possibility for snow is also high. I guess before a trip like this I would make sure that my gear could handle some winter weather and that I, myself, understood what winter camping conditions mean. There are two other guys on this board who are from MT, Aero and Geezr, plus various other people who have hiked in GNP or have extensive cold weather bp experience. They may also be able to give you some info. (probably alot more than I can). Other than that, welcome to TT, a pre-welcome to MT, and mainly have fun.”

“Newgirl I sent you an email to your old address. Lemme know if you got it.”

“k”

“Got it and wrote back Steve.”

“Go for it. Glacier is a national park - most of the trails are excellent and the country is unbelievably beautiful. It really is worth the visit. Since three of you are hiking together, you can share gear - you really only need one filter (but bring some Potable Aqua as backup as the glacial silt may clog up your filter), one first aid kit, etc. You can even share the stove and pot. That means light weight for all of you if you split up the gear. (You don't have to carry it all, yea!) Since you aren't used to carrying a pack, try not to bring a lot of other extras. But do bring some warm clothes - long underwear, a wool hat, gloves, decent rain gear. You may not need them, but if the weather gets cold, as it might, you'll be glad you have them. The rangers keep very close tabs on the bears. If there is a problem they simply close the trail and alert the hikers (one reason for the permit system). If the three of you hike together, you'll make enough noise hiking and talking that you probably won't see any grizzlies. But you will see mountain goats and sheep if you look for them. Look at the maps before you go and try to choose a route that has exit routes that would not be too far out if you need to leave in a hurry (i.e. if a winter storm comes up.) It's only four days - you won't be that far from one of the park roads, and chances are you won't need to use them. I'm sure you'll have a terrific time.”

“I'll just post on this so it gets near the top and maybe others can give you advice as well Blue Heeler.”

“Almost all of the mileages on almost all maps of Glacier are wrong. The distances and elevations are understated. That includes the NPS maps and the USGS Quads.

A year ago my brother and a few friends hiked Glacier and while on the trail remarked that the distances seemed alot more than what the maps stated. Sure enough when they talked to some rangers the rangers confirmed that most trail sections are 1 to 2 miles longer than posted and that the elevations aren't quite right either. This was confirmed with altimeters and GPS units.

Be conservative on your itenary and it'll be good.

The big plus is that Glacier was the cleanest national park with the best maintained trails that they had ever seen.

Oh yes, and stunningly beautiful to boot.”

“BTW- Your gear is just fine, don't fret over that part. Just keep the weight down.”