Savage River Lodge is a private retreat that sits amid the Savage River State Forest. State law says hunters must remain 150 yards from any dwelling. Owners of the lodge complained to DNR officials who responded by expanding that zone more than doubling the size of the safety zone.

Hunters began complaining to DNR and other state officials that actions being carried out by the owners of the lodge, Michael Dreisbach and Janis Russell, essentially prohibited access to the public lands and limited hunting to a point where it was nearly impossible to use any of the land.

A hiking trail that criss-crossed the park also had been granted a safety zone. Some complained that the layout of the trail combined with the safety zone virtually closed down the park.

There was also much dispute about a gate leading into the park and signs erected by the owners of the lodge. People complained that the gate was being illegally closed and locked and that Savage River Lodge owners erected “No Firearms Permitted” signs and tried to enforce it. The DNR ordered Savage River Lodge to remove the signs and leave the gate opened.

The DNR announce yesterday that they are reducing the size of the granted safety zone to what is supposed to be the original zone granted by law. It is unclear whether this affects only the dwellings or the dwellings and the hiking trail.

*Previous Posts*
Maryland DNR Tells Landowner To Remove Gate And Take Down Signs
Savage River Hunting Land Appears Useless To Hunters As State DNR Panders To Private Lodge Owners
Savage River Hunting Land Up For Debate
Maryland DNR Giving Away Public Lands For Private Use??

Tom Remington

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