I would not get too antsy about buying a 17-35 if I were you.
I own a pile of Nikon gear (check my long list of equipment) and have owned the 17-35 for quite a few years now.

I find that I seldom use this lens now because if I want to go wide angle I will take along my small 16mm Fisheye instead of the heavy 17-35.
Wider coverage with a shorter and much lighter lens.

I shoot everything in NEF and then run it through Capture NX.
The fisheye effect is corrected (should I chose to) with a single click of the mouse.

The 17-35 is a fairly expensive lens but is still an F2.8 lens.

So what do I use in place of the 17-35?

Option 1 is take the 16mm and my 24-70.

Second option is to take the 16mm, a 20mm and a 35mm.

With this option one lens is on the camera and the other two fit into a single Tamrac zippered belt bag.

These 3 lens probably are lighter together than the 17-35 lens and certainly a lot shorter.

Option 3 is to take all of the above options plus add the 70-200 VRII.
This equipment list served me well on a trip to the Galapagos Islands earlier this year.
Perry

Visit my Nikonians gallery.

Visit my Nikonians gallery.

Visit my Nikonians gallery.