SAM Magazine—Burke, Vt., April 21, 2025—Bear Den Partners has submitted a purchase and sale agreement to acquire Burke Mountain for $11.5 million. The group is led by Ken Graham, founder and chairman of private investment firm Inverness Graham and whose father, Don, once owned Burke Mountain in the early 2000s; Burke Mountain Academy, located in East Burke; and the Schaefer family, which owns and operates Berkshire East in Massachusetts and Catamount on the Massachusetts/New York border. 

Burke Mountain has been under the control of a federal receiver since it, along with Jay Peak Resort, Vt., was seized by the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2016 from then-owner Ariel Quiros. The bid to acquire the ski area was submitted to court-appointed receiver and attorney Michael Goldberg. It must be approved by the Florida judge overseeing the receivership. 

If the sale is approved, the group has said it plans to invest another $10 million in improvements, primarily in snowmaking, over the first 24 months. A statement from Bear Den Partners said it hopes to quickly finalize the acquisition so it can get started on the first phase “of a significant capital improvement plan with the primary objective of increasing snowmaking capacity in time for the 2025-2026 ski season.”

“We are here to fix the infrastructure of the resort,” said Jon Schaefer, Bear Den Partners principal operator. “Out of the gate, we commit to improving snowmaking and making the right operational upgrades that have been long overlooked. These changes will fundamentally transform how the resort functions for skiers and riders on the hill. Bear Den Partners is committed to making substantial upgrades immediately and will continue for at least the next five years.”  

According to a report by The North Star Monthly, one step in hastening approval was accomplished two weeks ago when the Burke Mountain Owners Association, which represents 230 condominium and home owners, voted unanimously to support the Bear Den Partners’ bid. “The vote was taken to clear up legal technicalities by modifying the mountain’s ‘Declaration of Covenants and Restrictions,’” said North Star.

Burke Mountain has had several owners since it was founded, including Don Graham, a primary benefactor for Burke Mountain Academy (BMA), who, in partnership with BMA, acquired the ski area from an anonymous bidder that bought it in a bankruptcy auction in 2000 and didn’t plan to reopen it for skiing. Don Graham funded operations and improvements until the ski area was sold to Ginn Company, a developer with grand plans for the resort. Ginn sold it to Quiros in 2012. 

“We bought Burke defensively back then,” Ken Graham told North Star. “It would have been a disaster if we didn’t. Our posture now is very different.”

In a statement, Bear Den Partners said its group has more than “100 years of experience skiing, hiking, biking and recreating on Burke Mountain. The group is committed to the authentic Vermont culture of East Burke and Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom as a haven for year-round active outdoor/mountain sports and living. All partners are uniformly committed to the long-term success of the resort and the greater East Burke community.”

Ken Graham praised the ski area’s staff for keeping Burke Mountain viable over the past nine years. “Burke has a deeply loyal customer base and an equally dedicated core of local staff who want the resort to succeed,” he said. “They’ve been amazing through this federally managed transition and have so much depth, knowledge, and passion for the resort and the region they call home.”

“The success and continued small mountain culture of the mountain is symbiotic with Burke Mountain Academy,” said head of school Willy Booker. “We are excited to be a part of a team working to find a sustainable solution for the resort that respects the unique culture of the mountain, our region, and our school. BMA has been working hand-in-hand with Burke Mountain for more than 50 years; we are deeply invested in ensuring the resort’s prosperity for our school and our local community.”

Burke Mountain has more than 2,000 feet of vertical and 53 trails served by five lifts including two high-speed quads. The resort includes the Burke Mountain Hotel and Conference Center, a 116-room slopeside property that opened in 2016, as well as the Burke Mountain Bike Park in summer.