Umiak Outdoor Outfitters

G H

2023-11

A must do activity when visiting the Stowe area. Such a peaceful kayak ride and they deliver the kayaks right to the water and help you get in. It’s a little pricy but worth it if you have a busy day planned and just want to enjoy the kayaking without the hassle of renting one for the whole day. Lots of mosquitos near where you lock up the kayaks when you’re done so beware. The staff at Umiak were very friendly and helpful! I would email/call them about exact times and reservations.

Katherine Kelly

2024-03

Absolutely incredible experience!! I went with my finance and another of our couple friends and we truly had the best time. Such a fun and seamless morning

J D

2024-03

We took a moonlight snowshoe hike late in February. We were lucky and it was only my wife, myself, and our guide, Mel. The night was incredible educaitonal about Stowe and snowshoeing, and he was great guide. He also discussed the opportunities for skiing,hiking, and kayaking with great enthusiasm. Because there were just the two of us, we were able to experience more of the paths and the area. This allowed Mel to tailor the hike to our interests and help us when we had (minor) difficulties with the snowshoes themselves. (We had never done this before.) The time in the sugarhouse was relaxing, with warm cider and great Cabot cheese and mustards. (I thought their connections to other businesses in the are was fascinating.) The stars were clearer than I've seen in quite a while and we finished the evening feeling refreshed though we really take a long hike. Well worth it and a highlight of this visit to Stowe.

Brandon

2024-03

I loved this place for rentals. They were affordable and kind folks. We rented a tube for 25 dollars (first day) and a discount on the next day. We rented snow shoes and they provided us nice maps of places to snow shoe. Found the rentals cheaper than some of the resorts. Will rent again from them next time I'm in Stowe.

C Carpenter

2024-04

The MOST helpful staff ever. We rented snowshoes from them and they were so kind and informative, giving us maps of the surrounding area and recommending trails we would enjoy that matched our experience level. Thank you!

Brittany Lippe

2024-02

Umiak Outdoor Outfitters has amazing tour options. My friends and I did the snow show/tubing tour and it was so fun! Our tour guide Noah was great, taught us some VT facts, and had some great recos for after the tour. Would recommend to anyone.

Stacey Long

2023-08

We came to Vermont shortly after they had experienced flooding in July 2023. Umiak had trouble getting permission from the state to run their river tours because of the river status being unsafe/flooded, but they were so incredibly on top of reaching out to us to keep us in the loop and to reschedule us from a river tour to a reservoir paddle, which suited us just fine! I was grateful that they didn't just cancel on us when things got tough to reschedule, and in the end, we had a really good time taking my daughter out on her first kayak trip.

Alex Keogan

2024-04

What a swell group of people at Umiak! I was having trouble figuring out a boat for the Mad River Triathlon and they came up with the perfect boat for the conditions of the weekend. Super friendly, knowledgable, and willing to help. Thanks again guys!

John Zacharkan

2024-03

Great shopping experience they were very helpful in catering to whatever I needed for my adventure especially in suggesting extra gear that I didn't think to bring. That is true customer service! A must stop for your outdoor gear traversing the Green Mountain region.

Yoni Weiss

2023-05

We had a fantastic time canoeing the Winooski river thanks to Umiak. PK was an awesome guide. We did about 2.5hours on the water and it was just a perfect excursion start to finish.

Sue Roberge

2023-05

The staff at Umiak Stowe are the best! We ordered two new kayaks. They did their best to track down the colors we wanted. They were willing to travel to another Hurricane dealer to get one for us. They delivered the two of them to Richmond store which saved us a trip to Stowe to pick them up. Love our new Hurricane primas!

Julie Streeter

2024-04

Staff was super friendly and helpful, the rental process was clear and easy to navigate, they were super flexible when we wanted to adjust our gear rental based on weather, and the gear was of great quality!

Kelly Caya

2023-05

This experience was amazing. The team took the time to explain everything very throughly, so you felt super comfortable before the ride. They have so much love for the dogs and the sport. Highly recommend!

Kathleen Richardson

2022-05

We had a tremendous experience purchasing kayaks at Umiak in Stowe.Linda and Joe were so helpful, knowledgeable and great to work with!They provided outstanding customer service from start to finish, from test paddling kayaks, to learning how to efficiently tie our new boats to our car rack. Thank you, Joe and Linda!

Michelle Jimmo

2023-05

Amazing staff, helpful and knowledgeable. About a 45 min drive but worth the effort. They added accessories to my Kayak. A drain hole and a way to better secure it.

Rodney Wilts

2023-05

What an awesome experience. My business partner had never tried alpine touring before and finding rentals can be a challenge. Umiak rented him touring gear in great condition. The staff helped advise on different options. Pricing was good. Everyone was friendly and helpful. Umiak will definitely be our go-to for outdoor adventure outfitting for future Stowe adventures!

Lauren Edmondson

2022-05

We had the absolute best time doing the snowshoe tour with Haley! She was super knowledgable and fun, and answered all our questions. The tubing at the end was a blast, and the sights were gorgeous. We will definitely be back!

Dawn Wiggins

2022-05

The evening dog sledding was a great experience! The ride through the meadow by moonlight was peaceful and magical. My kids also loved visiting with the dogs.

Aaron Patton

2023-05

Amazing alpine touring guided experience. Staff and guides at Umiak Stowe have been great across 2 visits. It was my first AT - skinning uphill and back-country downhill. If you're looking for a place to learn, or to see if this is something you'd like, this is a great place for it. I'd recommend a private tour, or a group at a similar level. That's because the guide can customize the challenge-level, and you'll likely learn faster, or get to the downhill types you like the best. Not to say a group wouldn't work too, just do it regardless. Experienced back-country enthusiasts would likely love this too - it was obvious there was more challenging terrain, and the guide had plenty of options-ready to make a day efficient and fun, and was himself passionate and skilled in AT. I was on a private because I was a last minute sign-up without knowing better, and in retrospect I am glad that was the option. And plenty of good conversation and tips throughout - uphill modes, equipment transitions, jump turns, and even a movie I hadn't heard of. I got lucky with the weather, powder the night before, and snow during the tour - and there was a well established base. Other FAQs/tips for people thinking about it (some of these are in the confirmation email, but I know some people like to hear it first hand): Includes skis, skins, boots, poles, transport. Not included and per your preference is backpack, food/lunch, and ski clothing items like helmet, goggles, and flexible layers. I had 1 insulated and 1 non-insulated bottle - the non-insulated started to freeze. Website worked well for booking and with a quick confirmation. I experienced some oddities with their email address, but it was easy enough to call the shop instead. One of my favorite quotes from the day: "Do you like hiking... skiing... views... quiet... and a good workout?...Then alpine touring will be perfect. This is all five."

Gabriella Colletti

2023-05

We bought tickets for the Moonlight Cabin Snowshoe Tour. All of the staff were really friendly and our tour guide Kevin was a really nice guy. Although my fiancé and I were disappointed with the details of our tour. There was not enough snow on the ground to snowshoe so we were offered a hike instead. This was disappointing because I did not see any fine print on the website that would suggest this would be the alternative. We talked to a staff member via phone call the day before our trip and she did not let us know that there was not snow and being an out of stater we did not know that there wasn’t snow in Vermont. We felt as though she had the responsibility to let us know. Instead we found out via email the morning of that it was a hike instead. We did not even receive a partial refund or anything. The tour was NOT 3 hours it was about 2 hours. If we wanted to take a hike we could’ve done it for free or at a very low admission charge at a state park. The cabin was cool and we were offered crackers, jam, and cheese but it was definitely not worth $155. In circumstances like this the owner should be offering partial refunds. To future customers, make sure you purchase the day of otherwise you may have a similar experience to ours.

Thomas Moriarty

2024-03

Such a great experience. Our guide was amazing and we loved the fondue as well!

Adama Bah

2021-05

This store carries anything water activity-related, and the store owner Joe was terrific! He's excellent with kids and understood they would touch and gave the kids many stickers, not to mention they have a friendly dog. Thank you, Joe, for taking good care of us!

Tatiana Santa Lucia

2023-08

My husband and took an Intro to Canoeing session at the Waterbury Reservoir. It was my very first time canoeing. We really enjoyed ourselves and look forward to doing it again one day. Carlo was our instructor. He was fantastic, very knowledgeable and patient. Thank you!

Crystal Butler

2023-05

We were in Stowe for our wedding/honeymoon and we’re looking for something to enjoy the beauty of the area. We found this company for kayak rentals and had the best experience. We worked with John for clear easy instructions and once we got to the Waterbury reservoir we couldn’t believe how amazing the water and the views of the mountains were. It was a calm easy kayak route and was our favorite excursion of the week!

Ben

2023-10

I bought my last kayak there, the price was great communication by email with Steve was excellent . I got back home after an 3:30 hour drive and I noticed that there were missing parts, so I tried to contact (twice) the same person by email and he never replied !UPDATE 4th of Sept. : Thank's to Emma that got back to me and decided to send me the missing parts. Big thumbs up for that move, it's greatly appreciated.

Norma Jean

2023-10

Mel was a good instructor! He was patient with me and I learned a lot about kayaking. I was nervous at first but now I'm really comfortable doing it and I had fun!

Ariana Hurley

2023-05

Hayley was the best snowshoe and tubing tour guide and a professional tube spinner!!!! My husband and I had the most fun on this day adventure. The views were stunning and Hayley took amazing pictures of us for the mems. Everyone at the shop is soooo nice. When we’re back in Vermont, we will for sure book another activity with Umiak!

Ashley Fritts

2022-05

My friend and I did the Mad River dog sledding experience and it was absolutely awesome. Prior to the actual ride we got to interact with the team of dogs for our run while the earlier group was still out. Once the other group was back the entire team proceeded to interact with us and tell us all about the dogs, the history of their breeds and why they use them, how to harness them, and how to attach them to the sleds. We heard stories of their time spent racing in Alaska, the funny stories of the dogs and so much more. Our lead driver on the sled, Jules, was awesome. They were so knowledgeable and very friendly. This was definitely a worthwhile experience!

Jessica Wright

2022-05

What a wonderful place! We booked a snowshoe rental and it was a quick and easy progress online. When we got to the shop, we were greeted warmly by friendly, knowledgeable staff. They gave us trail suggestions based on the current conditions, made sure we were fitted properly, and helped outfit us with some extra outdoor gear. We will certainly be back the next time we’re in town!

Natalina Isabelle Schappach

2023-05

While the mushers were very nice and we enjoyed the tour, it was nearly 50% shorter than we booked. We were also expecting based on the description to be in the wild a bit more, but it was more of a circle around a golf course. Knowing what we know now, would definitely have booked the shorter much less expensive tour in town.