particuraly on the east coast?

Any size hill that does not have loose rocks. Be careful where and when you climb.

l would suggest starting with hiking - get a guide book that lists the hikes in ur area & tells u how much elevation gain each hike has. l always recommend the ''Falcon Guide'' series of books.

Once u r hiking steep trails & doing 1000 is of feet of elevation gain & have some experience with route finding, get a guide book of peaks & climbs & start with the smaller ones. You will gain skills & conditioning & gear required for 4th class climbs - u could even find some other climbers to teach u as u climb smaller peaks.

Good Luck

There are many wonderful Beginner hikes in the White Mountains of New Hampshire (get the white mountain hikers guide published by the Appalachian Mountain Club). A couple That l have taken my kids on when they were quite young were; Mt. Major in Gilmington NH, Mt Manadnock in Jaffery NH.

JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL PARK