"This is a powder skier’s dream," said Steve Sewell, Snowmass mountain manager. "Burnt Mountain has beautiful terrain that will offer skiers and riders a super fun experience in an area that was formerly skied, but unpatrolled backcountry. Now it will be patrolled and controlled, opening up this amazing experience to more of the skiing and riding public."

Crews will selectively glade approximately 6.5 acres of terrain to link a series of existing meadows. The area will be marked as advanced black diamond level of difficulty primarily because of the egress trail from the area returning to the bottom of the Two Creeks lift.

The new terrain is accessible by a short hike from the top of the Elk Camp lift and is scheduled to open before the Christmas holidays, conditions permitting.

The terrain expansion is part of an investment of more than $17.5 million for 2102-2013 at the four Aspen resorts. Other projects include a new $15 million restaurant at Elk Camp and a completely renovated restaurant at Aspen Mountain’s The Little Nell.