I second Eric's take on BC skis. In my limited experience, BC skis without climbing skins are almost useless once you are off the flats, even if they are waxless. I've used skins for traction on an icy road while towing my sled. Snowshoes work a lot better for that, even if slower, if you don't have skins.

I'm not sure how steep you can climb with wide skis and skins, but tele skiers do it all the time. I'm talking really wide tele skis, not something as narrow as mine (80-60-70).