SAM Magazine—Burke, Vt., March 2, 2026—Gabe Porter Henry leads an on hill tour.After nearly a decade in receivership, Vermont’s Burke Mountain is coming out of hibernation. New owners Bear Den Partners are prioritizing long-deferred capital improvements and operational stability, having already accomplished a variety of projects after taking ownership in May 2025, with more on the horizon.

“Bear Den Partners are focused on what the mountain needs coming out of receivership,” said new general manager Gabe Porter-Henry during a recent media trip to the ski area.

The first priority: snowmaking. Burke has tripled its pumping capacity, installed new HKD guns, and modernized its infrastructure to allow its system to draw water from the snowmaking pond or directly from the river as needed.

Despite drought conditions in Vermont this fall, the upgrades enabled Burke to open its beginner terrain by Christmas—a critical milestone for early-season visitation and lodging business, said Porter-Henry, who joined the resort in November.

In addition, the team has upgraded lift electrical and communications infrastructure and invested in hospitality and hotel upgrades. New tools like InTouch resort software and Snowright snow depth management technology have also had a measurable impact.

Left to right: Hotel tour with media, Ski Vermont, and Burke team; Porter discusses Burke plans over lunch; HKD snowmaking guns.

On the summer side, plans include strengthening the bike park’s beginner terrain and better integrating the resort’s network with Kingdom Trails, the vast mountain biking trail network in and around the Burke area.

“The receivership was charged with maintaining, not growing, the asset,” said Porter-Henry. That changed when Bear Den—a group led by chairman Ken Graham and CEO Jon Schaefer—acquired the ski area in May 2025. 

Jon Schaefer leads a group on the hill.Burke Mountain had been under federal oversight since it was seized by the Securities and Exchange Commission, along with Jay Peak Resort, Vt., in 2016 from then-owner Ariel Quiros.

“The employees did an awesome job keeping this place going” during that period, said Porter-Henry. “When Bear Den acquired it, they were ready with ideas.”

Bear Den’s stated goal is measured reinvestment, improving the resort while maintaining its distinct identity and managing capacity deliberately. 

The group recently acquired the controlling ownership stake in Smugglers’ Notch in Vermont, and Bear Den CEO Schaefer also owns and operates Berkshire East and Catamount in Massachusetts—but they aren’t looking to bring the properties under a unified umbrella just yet. While Porter-Henry said reciprocal benefits for pass holders at each ski area are likely, there is no multi-mountain pass product in the works. The focus, right now, said Schaefer, is on supporting the existing culture and community of each ski area. Porter-Henry echoed the sentiment, adding his appreciation for the way the Burke community has embraced him and Bear Den through this transition.