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LAC LA BELLE -- A new ski hill is slated to open in the Keweenaw in the next one to two years, run by Mount Bohemia, offering exclusive powder skiing.

This at a time when business is good at the mountain in Lac La Belle.

Last year, President Lonnie Glieberman talked about privatizing the mountain, offering exclusive powder skiing at Mount Bohemia.  He tweaked the plan by leasing land near Eagle Harbor to offer Snow Cat skiing.

"It's about ten miles north," said Glieberman.  "It's a remote part, about one thousand acres of terrain.  It's a great place for it."

Glieberman hopes to have Snow Cat skiing in the Keweenaw by 2011.  In the meantime, he hopes to get business from a direct mail campaign by the Keweenaw Convention and Visitors Bureau.  The tourism board sent information on cross country and downhill skiing in the Keweenaw to 10,000 homes in the Midwest.

As for this year, so far, business is good.  Skiers and snowboarders filled the parking lot, common area, and chair lifts on New Year's Eve.  A few drove from Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Detroit.  Some skiers even came from Seattle.

"When it comes to powder skiing and back country, the Porkies and Bohemia are really just unmatched in the Midwest, as far as vertical feet and deep powder," said Detroit native, Sean Berendt.

Season pass sales, which cost $99 a piece, are up 300 this year to 2,700 pass holders.

"This is right now our best year financially, as well as snow-wise," Glieberman said.  "So things are looking up, and in a global recession, that's good news in our minds."