Three tracts on the Chesapeake Forest lands on the Lower Eastern Shore will be opened for public use beginning Dec. 16.
The Cordery and Whitesburg tracts in Worcester County and the DeWolfe tract in Dorchester County will be open for hunting and other public use.
In 1999, the state entered a joint agreement with the Conservation Fund to purchase a total of 58,000 acres of land in five counties on Maryland's Lower Eastern Shore.
Further public use opportunities are being considered through a work plan currently being evaluated by the Chesapeake Forest Citizens Advisory Work Group. The plan outlines all management activities occurring on the Chesapeake Forest during the 2004 fiscal year
Hunters should be advised of the following rules while on Chesapeake Forest property:
- No baiting is permitted on the Chesapeake Forest.
- No cutting of live trees.
- No hunting within 150 yards of an occupied dwelling.
- Permanent tree stands and duck blinds are prohibited.
Violations should be reported to the Maryland Natural Resource Police at 1-800-628-9944.
Directions and maps of the Chesapeake Forest public hunting areas are available from the Chesapeake Forest web site www.dnr.state.md.us/forests/chesapeakeforests.
Posted: 12-11-2002
