Ben met with Leslie Wynckoop of Trowbridge Construction. Ben agreed to commission his company to begin the creation of the ski area. Their first objective was to complete the entrances to the ski area. To create access from both sides of the mountain, an existing right of way from Little Westkill Road to Vega was completely improved and would later be renamed Ski Run Road. Previously cleared by Ben and Bob Johnson, a two and a half mile road along the summit ridge was connected to Ski Run Road.

 ----  LINK TO AREA

  1    LITTLE WESTKILL

        PARKING LOT

  2    TICKET BOOTH

  3    VEGA

        PARKING LOT

  4    SUMMIT

        PARKING LOT

  5    ICE SKATING

            POND

  6    SUMMIT LODGE

Through the rest of the summer and into the fall, Trowbridge Construction created Ben's design of the Princeton Snow Bowl on Bearpen Mountain. Supervised by Ben, the crew used a D-8 bulldozer to remove tree stumps and grade the trails. Telephone lines were added throughout the trail network and along the roads. Near the entrance to the ski area, a small parking lot was also developed. Near the beginners slope, a bear wallow was converted to an 85 by 200 foot skating pond. 

The above trail map was printed in the first year brochure by the Catskill Mountain News in Margaretville.

During the same time period, ??????? , an unemployed carpenter from Shandanken, was recommended to Ben. ????? was dedicated to the job spending many nights on the mountain. Trees cut down from carving the trails were brought down the mountain to Rikard's Mill, near Prattsville. They were rough cut to 2 by 12's and transported back up the mountain for the roof rafters. Although designed to hold a sod roof taken from the original solar-heating design, a metal corrugated roof was installed.  The walls were made of concrete block, and four 4 by 6 thermoguard windows were installed facing the "Panorama" and on the other the side of the building. 

(Click on picture for more summit lodge views)    

 The first tows were acquired from Mike Farny in Parsippny, New Jersey, Gean Mulvihill from Round-Up Ranch, Paul Johnson and Art Christian, who worked on the development of Bearpen Mountain.

On the Little Westkill side, Ben established a parking lot arrangement on land owned by Charlie Peckham.  On the Vega side, he made arrangements with Bruce German and  Romeo Signini. This allowed Ben to advertise accessibility from both sides of the mountain. Merlin Cable, Town Supervisor of Prattsville, organized six Army trucks, known as "snow jitneys," which carried skiers from the parking lots.  This radio-serviced fleet Ben nicknamed "the cableless chairlift." 

By November 4, 1954, two feet of snow blanketed the mountain and by the beginning of December, Bearpen Mountain was ready to begin operation.  Only one thing stood in the way...PORCUPINES! 

(Click on picture for more views of the mountain in November 1954)

These little creatures began chewing on everything they could find including the telephone lines, the outhouse, the hoses and rubber parts associated with the tows, and the door to the base lodge.  It took a full year's operation to figure methods of dealing with the damages they created.