CARRABASSETT VALLEY, Maine (AP) — Sugarloaf ski resort says the first area of its newly expanded ski terrain has been opened to skiers and snowboarders.

Officials at the resort in Carrabassett Valley, Maine, say 60 acres of ski terrain in the new Brackett Basin area was opened for the first time Wednesday.

The basin is part of the resort’s three-phase expansion onto neighboring Burnt Mountain. Sugarloaf says when the expansion is complete, it will be the largest ski area in the East in terms of skiable acreage.

The project involves cutting down trees and creating new areas for glade skiing — or downhill skiing through open spaces in wooded areas. In all, the resort plans to add a total of 655 acres of terrain in the next three years.