If it were me, I would hook up with someone who is, or has been there. You are traveling too far to chance it. The landscape and bird pops can change drastically from year to year, week to week...not to mention the weather. Get on the build a hunting group section of this forum and start there.
As for the dog, you need more than one for more than 2 guys in a wild bird situation...period! With 4 - 5 guys hunting, you'd be lucky if 1 dog lasted 2 days. Temperatures can be pretty warm yet in October, the cover is still thick and harder to work. With 1 dog, all your eggs are in 1 basket(Easter is next week), and there are way too many things that can happen that put him on the sidelines! Barbwire, heat stroke, snakes, porcupines, skunks, etc. Then you either stop hunting, or go without a dog(no fun!). Remember, you are traveling 21 hours. Also be prepared to deal with situations, have a first aid kit, and know where the closest vet is located.
3 of us went to South Dakota last year, 3 dogs(2 were mine) and we hunted for a week, Sunday to Saturday. We were able to rotate dogs, yet all the dogs were pretty tired(beat up) towards the end of the week. No bird is worth jeopordizing the health of your dog! I love mine too much! Me and my dogs stayed back at camp Friday and took a day off. Believe it or not, it was quite enjoyable to sit around and rest. We saw a hawk nab a hen mid-air, went for an afternoon stroll and kicked up two nice bucks, and rode around with the park ranger for an hour(you can really learn a lot from them).
For what it is worth, I think it is great that you are here asking questions planning this far in advance, wish you all the best.
Also visit the state sites, North Dakota for example, on this forum and scroll through the previous posts that peak your interest. Might be surprised at how many of you questions may have already been answered...not to mention the valuable insight of the locals.
