Nice trip report Jim. Thanks for sharing.
In terms of shoulder surgery, yes it's best to get it fixed, but know that it is by far the worst surgical recovery my wife has ever experienced, including 5 back surgeries that started back in the 80s when the really opened you up. She said she'd rather do 5 more backs sugeries than one shoulder. That seems to be the general consensus. If you have an off season for riding, get it done then so you have time to recover and rehab the shoulder. You'll need it.
I don't want to be the bearer of bad tidings, but you need to know what you're in for.