I'm leaving in about 3-4 weeks for 14 days to Glacier, i'm planning on backpacking and or climbing for 2 days out in Essex, MT. I will be working so I know I won't be looking for a death march or anything super technical because my job takes a lot of my energy. I want to find some peaks close to Essex worth doing, I will have a partner with me and both are more than qualified for just about anything.

Fee's?
Permits?
Bear containers?
quality or rock?
road conditions?? (I have a dodge 3500 dually 4x4)
hand guns permited?

you should be able to get into some of the other peaks along the Continental Divide near Firebrand Pass as well.

rebelgriz is right about snow conditions. You will need snowshoes and other snow climbing gear as well if you are going off trail as well.

The bears are out now and I would opt for bear spray over the handgun option just to make sure you are not violating some federal law.

Check the road status reports on the park website on the link below:
http://home.nps.gov/applications/glac/r ... status.cfm

There are also some nice peaks in the St.Marys that would be climbable now as well.

Good luck.

I'll only second what rebelgrizz said, that you are going to run into LOTS of snow.

Also, I know there's been a great deal of discussion/controversy on hand guns in National Parks, but most experienced back-country folks (i.e., not politicians or the NRA, which are not necessarily the best judges of this sort of thing) feel quite strongly that bear spray is better, safety-wise, for a variety of reasons. Rebelgrizz is correct: carry bear spray (and know how to use it). I believe you currently have the legal right to carry firearms (unloaded, I think), but just because that right is there, doesn't mean it's the best/safest thing to do.

GNP this early in the year is normally a pretty wild place. Be prepared for the potential of quite bad weather, then hope for the best. It has been an unusually mild winter in this part of the Northern Rockies, but the spring can still turn on you.

hand guns permitted?

http://www.nps.gov/glac/parknews/news10-05.htm

Great info folks and thank you, just a point, the hand gun is not for bear. it's for me being 800 miles from home and knowing no one and just having the piece of mind of not getting looted or caught off guard. the bear spray is for the bears (or humans) I appreciate hunters and how they help but I am not one and have no desire to kill any animal or 2 legged critter
I will check out the peaks and will see what looks feasable when I get on site. I only have one weekend to climb-pack so I plan to make the most of it

Much thanks

DudeThatMustHurt wrote: the piece of mind of not getting looted

Ironic spelling.

MoapaPk wrote:Ironic spelling.

don't start