Dorchester County, MD

Dorchester County holds more tidal wetland than any other county in Maryland, and that geography defines its appeal to buyers with specific outdoor priorities. The Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge covers more than 33,000 acres of marsh, forest, and managed impoundment, one of the most significant waterfowl hunting locations on the Atlantic Flyway, open to both deer and waterfowl hunters with a refuge permit. Dorchester and adjacent Wicomico County are the only places in North America where sika deer can be hunted on public and private land. Introduced to the county in 1916, sika are now an established population in the tidal marsh, with a season running from September through February. Cambridge, the county seat, sits on the Choptank River and is mid-renovation, with new dining, a developing waterfront district, and a marina that draws transient boaters up the river. Property values remain among the most accessible on the Shore, with waterfront and hunting acreage available at price points that have largely disappeared from Talbot and Queen Anne's counties. Dorchester County Public Schools serves the county with Colonel Richardson Middle/High School and Cambridge-South Dorchester High School.