Among the many iterations of extreme winter sports is uphill skiing. Not exactly new, the so-called sport of skinning has been practiced by hearty ski mountaineers for ages yet is relatively young as an industry.
In theory, it’s simple. Get yourself up to the top of a hill under your own steam, then ski back down. The appeal to extreme skiers is multifaceted: access to areas that might normally be too remote, unspoiled terrain and an amazing, heart-pounding workout.
Guided tours and clinics are available for those just getting oriented to skinning.
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While the sport can be done pretty much anywhere there is the will, snow and a mountain, areas of the western United States. popular with extreme winter sports enthusiasts have heard the call of skinning fans and developed accommodating guidelines.
In Colorado, for example, the first 200 registrants will be able to participate this March in America’s Uphill, a race at the Aspen Mountain ski area. Not ready for prime time? Nearby Buttermilk offers daylong clinics to build skills.
Recuperate in luxury: The Aura development contains 21 residences right at the slopes.
Slifer Smith & Frampton
For those with a taste for luxury, après-skinning accommodations are plentiful in Snowmass Village. At the 21-residence Aura, a four-bedroom, four-bathroom slope-side condo currently for sale offers 2,150 square feet of contemporary living space. Walls of glass bring in views of the ski slopes and the forested mountains.
The asking price for the Slifer Smith & Frampton represented newly built unit is $8.45 million.
This single-family home in Whitefish, Montana, is in an ideal location for both winter and summer … [+]
National Parks Realty
Also rolling out the welcome mat for skinning is Whitefish, Montana. A pass or day ticket is required, as well as signing a waiver, at Whitefish Mountain Resort. Check out its policy for where and when skinning is permitted.
Area housing gems include a fully remodeled single-family home priced at about US $2 million. The National Parks Realty listing offers five bedrooms within its 3,675 square feet.
This rustic home in Tahoe City makes a good base for pursuing any number of extreme sports.
Tahoe Mountain Realty
Heavenly Lake Tahoe permits off-hours skinning. The same rules for other non-lift access sports, such as snowshoeing, apply. Check with other area resorts along the California-Nevada border for their specifics.
Among second or primary home options is a single-family house of just under 2,000 square feet. The price of the four-bedroom property in Tahoe City, California, is about US $1.65 million. Tahoe Mountain Realty has the listing.
Slifer Smith & Frampton, National Parks Realty and Tahoe Mountain Realty are exclusive members of Forbes Global Properties, a consumer marketplace and membership network of elite brokerages selling the world’s most luxurious homes.