The owners of Berkshire East have expanded again to acquire another family-owned ski area in Vermont.
Less than a year after taking over Burke Mountain, in Vermont, Bear Den Partners announced the company has entered into a deal with Bill Stritzler, the long-term owner of Smugglers’ Notch, in Jeffersonville, Vermont, and will become an operating partner.
“The Stritzler family will continue to have an ownership stake,” said Jon Schaefer, chief executive officer and managing associate of Bear Den Partners, adding Stritzler’s daughter Lisa will serve as adviser on the future of the mountain.
The Schaefers, which have owned Berkshire East in Charlemont for decades, purchased Catamount Mountain on the New York-Massachusetts border in 2018 when the two families who owned the Egremont mountain put it up for sale after struggling for years to make improvements.
Then in May 2025 the Schaefers joined with several other partners to form Bear Den and purchase Burke Mountain for $11.5 million, which has suffered through years of turmoil including multiple owners, at least one bankruptcy and a financial scandal over misuse of federal funds that sent its owner and two others to jail.
“We were intentional about finding an operator who truly understands what makes ‘Smuggs’ special,” Stritzler said in writing. “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.”
The company was knee-deep in making improvements and preparing to open Burke when it was invited to consider taking control of Smugglers’, Schaefer said in a letter to the community.
“When the time came for him to transition to new ownership, he had two paths — corporate or independent. Bill (Stritzler) chose Bear Den Partners, a group who he believed (and we will live with every cell in our bodies) to be independent-minded operators, family-focused and committed to high-quality outdoor experiences,” Schaefer said.
Schaefer promised each of the four mountains will continue on with their own unique vibes.
“From where we sit, both (Vermont) resorts remain independent, each with its own personality, specialty and on-mountain management teams,” he said.
The company plans to share some resources where it makes financial sense but they will be behind the scenes things such as banking and using collaboration to improve purchasing power, Schaefer said.
Acquiring Smugglers’ fits a lot with the current mountains the Schaefer family and their partners own. None of them have a lot of glitz but each has strong family-friendly programs and a huge summer business. Berkshire East especially has a strong mountain biking and whitewater rafting component.
Skiers and riders will eventually also see some pass perks that will let them go to all four places, Schaefer said.
Berkshire East and Catamount, which are located about 60 miles apart in Massachusetts, already share the Summit Pass which gives unlimited skiing and riding to any holder. This year additional perks were added to the Burke and Summit passes that allow skiers and riders a chance to visit the other mountains.
The three mountains are also members the Indy Pass, which gives holders two tickets at a wide variety of independent ski areas. Smugglers’ Notch is not of the multi-mountain pass and it is unclear if it will join next year.
