The new owners of Burke Mountain today acquired a majority stake in Smugglers’ Notch, another of Vermont’s largest independent mountains. Under the deal, prior owner Bill Stritzler and his family retain a minority ownership stake while Bear Den Partners becomes the primary owner and operator. Bear Den’s chairman, Ken Graham, is a lifelong skier and investor with local ties. Jon Schaefer leads the company as CEO. Schaefer also runs Berkshire East and Catamount in Western Massachusetts and helped rebuild Hermitage Club at Haystack Mountain and Bousquet in recent years. “We were intentional about finding an operator who truly understands what makes Smuggs special,” said Stritzler, who stewarded the mountain for 29 years. “We sought out Bear Den Partners as an equity partner because they share our belief that this resort is about families, employees, and community, not trends or shortcuts. This transition is about continuity and stewardship, and we’re confident Smuggs is in the right hands.”
Smuggs features incredible terrain and a family-friendly vibe but also aging infrastructure. The mountain’s seven Hall lifts date back to the 1960s and ’70s. Several were relocated to Smuggs in the ’90s from other mountains as the rest of the industry modernized. The largest top-to-bottom lift, Madonna, dates back to 1963 and takes some 15 minutes to ride. In 2023, Stritzler floated a gondola connection with Vail-owned Stowe, a proposal that garnered significant environmental opposition. Under this new ownership model, less flashy investments are likely. “Smugglers’ Notch will continue to operate with its existing culture, values, and commitment to guests, employees, and the surrounding community,” the new owners noted. “Future investments will be targeted and collaborative, focusing on core infrastructure, guest experience, employee support, and long-term stewardship of the resort.” They specifically cited snowmaking, trail and lift improvements as near-term priorities. “Longer-term, Bear Den will initiate a full master planning process for lift, lodging, and base-area modernization while preserving the Smuggs identity: authentic, family-focused, and proudly independent.”
Pass changes are also likely. Berkshire East, Bousquet, Burke and Catamount all participate in the Indy Pass but Smuggs shuns multi-mountain passes entirely. No changes are planned for the current season other than lodging discounts for passholders of other Bear Den and Schaefer mountains. “Bear Den is evaluating future season pass reciprocity among Burke Mountain and now Smuggs to provide added value without compromising each mountain’s independence or threatening its comfortable carrying capacity with unanticipated crowds,” the company said. Future passes may also include Berkshire East and Catamount.
Lift Blog 
While I like the Hall lifts, they certainly are getting up there in age. But what I find interesting is the length of the lifts at this mountain. Many of these at Smuggles are comparable in length to what we have in the rocky mountains, 4000-6000ft in length. Grant it, all the lifts at Smugglers are doubles. It would be nice to see some new SkyTrac or Doppie Triples, Quads, and perhaps a HSQ for Sterling and Madonna. I’ve never skied here before so what do you folks think who have been here? Enough traffic to warrant it, or just sticking to fixed grip?
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Probably a HSQ would do good with a half mid where Madonna is now, but I doubt the resort has the money. Probably most lifts are just due for a skytrac drive terminal replacement and new grips.
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What are you basing your recommendations on? That is so random, skytrac drive terminal and new grips…
That’s like saying some random car you have never actually driven, ridden in, or listened to……needs a new hood and wheels.
and a half mid on Madonna……..oh boy
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The logic of a Skytrac upgrade is they will do a partial upgrade, so perhaps only terminals, and leave the line equipment. Or maybe change sheaves and grips and leave the terminals. The upgrade can be limited to what needs fixing. They will also spread a project out over a few years to help keep the cost manageable per year. For smaller, less resourced resorts, this is far more manageable than a completely new lift.
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Frankly, the three primary lifts of Village, Madonna, and Sterling should all be detachable quads. However, locals hate the idea of any sort of modernization. If Bear Den Partners is feeling ambitious, detachables on Village and Sterling could perhaps be supported if there is a pledge to keep Madonna (with the most sacred terrain) as a fixed grip.
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The Hourly capacity of High Speed Quads can be reduced by putting fewer chairs of the lift. According to the Stats on this website, the Champlain HSQ built by Leitner at Georgian Peaks in Ontario Canada runs at a reduced hourly capacity. The same could be done at Smugglers Notch. Space out the chairs so loading time is longer but make it a HSQ so time on the chair is reduced. Just one way to do it.
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Never skied here either, but heard from people who have. I personally think Village and Sterling would be the best candidates for HSQs, which could maybe have a lower than normal capacity (~1800 pph) to avoid overcrowding trails. Madonna II is probably fine as is since it’s a bit newer than Village, Sterling and Madonna I, though I could see an HSQ eventually replacing it.
Mogul Mouse and Morse Highlands aren’t major lifts and will probably stay in place. With a detachable replacing Village and handling traffic going to the upper mountains, I imagine Mogul Mouse will basically become the dedicated bunny hill chairlift with most riders unloading at the midstation. I think it’s cool that Smuggs has kept the Sterling T-bar, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s removed after Sterling is replaced.
As for Madonna I, it’ll probably stick around awhile more as it seems to be reliable and well-maintained. I think it’ll either be further modernized with a Skytrac drive terminal replacement (as skiliftfreak notes), or replaced entirely with a new double with identical speed and capacity similar to Sugarbush’s Castlerock or Arapahoe Basin’s Pallavicini. I think having more than the current double’s capacity will be too much for the limited trails on Madonna Mountain. An interesting idea I had is having a replacement lift start at the intersection of Mulcahy’s Link and Lower Liftline, thus making the ride time a bit shorter. When combined with a detachable replacement of Madonna II, this would basically create a similar setup to Pico Mountain with an intermediate pod off the lower lift and an expert pod on the upper lift, though top-to-bottom skiing would be more difficult.
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The fastest way to ruin the feel of a mom and pop ski resort is to add new chairs. Old and slow chairs keep the crowds down and keep the vintage feelings up! Invest in maintaining the old lifts that are the heart of this cool old mountain.
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or just put in newer fixed grip lifts. still slow.
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