I would like to get into "uphill skinning" . However I dont want to purchase a whole new quiver of skis and boots for the purpose if I really dont know what I want need. .  

Has anyone heard of anywhere renting gear? REI?

Lessons?

You can rent tele gear at Whitegrass, but I’m not aware of anywhere in the east that rents AT gear.  Even Tahoe doesn’t have it.  Portland and Seattle REI have it.  There are 3 great mountaineering shops in the US:

neptune mountaineering in Boulder

mammoth mountaineering in mammoth lakes

high peaks cyclery in lake placid

you could try calling them.  

I have many pairs of skins and have loaned them to friends on standard alpine gear.  If you undo all the boot buckles it can be done, but more work than the right gear.  Of course I’m in Cali now, not mid-A.  Chip probably rents skins.

as I write this I’m in a condo at steamboat taking a rest day, drinking coffee and watching a couple of skinners heading up.  I spoke to one on the slope yesterday.  He said it was free.  You get an identifying armband at the ticket office, a set of rules, and allowed routes up.  Whitefish, MT does this too.  

”˜Edited to add that IME International Mountain Expeditions in North Conway, NH is another possible source. 

oldensign wrote:

I would like to get into "uphill skinning" . However I dont want to purchase a whole new quiver of skis and boots for the purpose if I really dont know what I want need. .  

Has anyone heard of anywhere renting gear? REI?

Lessons?

Do you mean in the Mid-Atlantic or anywhere?  When I put "renting AT skis skins" into Google, several places popped up but they are in Vermont, Colorado, Tahoe, or PacNW. 

Alpine Adventures in Keene, NY in the heart of the Adirondacks seems to have a lot of good info about backcountry gear.

http://www.alpineadven.com/ourservices/ski/skiequip.html

I've done the "unbuckle top of boots" technique and it works OK if you are talking about a few hundred vert in the Mid-atlantic. I would not want to do that on any substantial vertical. Renting skins from Whitegrass (if they do indeed rent skins) and using this technique there might be a good low-cost way to give uphill skinning a try.

But first make sure  white grass has snow!

thnaks guys. I will try the unbuckle the boots trick in older boot. The idea was to get more of a work out at the small hills so no big vert aims.

oldensign wrote:

thnaks guys. I will try the unbuckle the boots trick in older boot. The idea was to get more of a work out at the small hills so no big vert aims.

I have vague memories of reading about people who would go up on snowshoes, carrying skis and boots.  Of course, helps to have an appropriate boot backpack for carrying skis up and snowshoes on the way down.