SQUAW TOWNSHIP — A good-size crowd of skiers attended opening day Saturday at Ski Squaw on Big Squaw Mountain.

David Amrein, one of the local operators of the ski business, said attendance Saturday and Sunday surpassed expectations.

The only trail now open for skiing is the Kennebec Trail, which has about an 18-inch natural and man-made base. The triple chairlift services this trail. Skiers may ask for a free ride to try the trail first before they purchase a $15 lift ticket for adults or a $13 ticket for children, Amrein said.

The ski area is under the management and lease of six local investors: Rodney Folsom and Mark Gilbert, owners of Beaver Cove Marina; Burdell LaCasce, owner of Casey’s Spencer Bay Camps; Wallace and Chris Raubenheimer of Greenville; and Amrein, owner of North Country Properties. The investors have the option to purchase the facility.

Because so much work was needed at the mountain, the investors decided to concentrate on the trails and lower lodge this season. The mountain has no overnight accommodations, but lodging is available in the surrounding communities of Greenville and Rockwood.