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HANOVER TOWNSHIP — Some popular backcountry “park-and-pack” campsites in Mohican-Memorial State Forest have reopened, but a few remain closed.
The backcountry campsites scattered throughout the state forest have been closed since June 2022, when a tornado ripped through the area, leaving fallen trees and disfigured trails.
Crews with the state’s division of forestry have taken the last year-and-a-half to clean up and reopen the sites.
Sites 1 through 7 reopened in late October, with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources’ Division of Forestry making an announcement on its website Nov. 13.
Three other sites, however — eight, nine and 10 — remain closed indefinitely.
A sign denotes the closure of an area at Mohican-Memorial State Forest in July 2022. Credit: Dillon Carr
Chad Sanders, the forest’s manager, said the reason those will remain closed is so his office and law enforcement can consider management options.
“Eight, nine and 10 have always been problematic,” he said.
Sanders said illegal activity at those campsites has ramped up since the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We’ve had homeless people camping there, partying and drugs associated with that,” Sanders said. “We had some incidents with neighbors, people threatening neighbors.”
The park-and-pack sites have been open for public use for more than 20 years, Sanders said.
The relative ease of registration and the fact they are free to use makes the sites popular among outdoor enthusiasts, Sanders said.
“The idea behind them is if you wanted to park your car, hike in a short distance with your family, you could,” he said. “It’s like having a camp away from a campground.”
The parking lot…