Tracked ATVs in Maryland: What the State Publishes

No Maryland statute, regulation or DNR page we read names track systems. What makes Maryland awkward is that the wheel/track distinction turns up in the rules you will actually be riding under: DNR's designated-trail descriptions are phrased in terms of "snowmobiles," "two-wheel and four-wheel vehicles," and "motorized wheeled vehicle." Several segments in Potomac-Garrett and Savage River State Forests "may only be used by snowmobiles" and "may not be used by any motorized wheeled vehicle," while the shared segments are open to "two-wheel and four-wheel vehicles" outside the 15 December to 15 March snowmobile window. A quad on four rubber tracks is arguably not a "motorized wheeled vehicle" and arguably not a "four-wheel vehicle" either, so which column it lands in is a real question - ask the forest office before you ride a snowmobile-only segment. The definitions that decide whether the machine is an ORV at all do not care: Natural Resources Article Sec. 10-410(d)(1)(i) is pure capability, and Transportation Article Sec. 11-140.1(a)(1) identifies an ATV by its straddle seat and common name with no mention of wheels or tires (contrast Sec. 11-140.1(a)(2), the side-by-side branch, which does require "four or more tires").

(i) For the purposes of this subsection, "off-road vehicle" means a motorized vehicle designed for or capable of cross-country travel on land, water, snow, ice, marsh, swampland, or other natural terrain. (ii) "Off-road vehicle" includes four-wheel drive or low-pressure tire vehicles, automobiles, trucks, motorcycles and related two-wheel vehicles, amphibious machines, ground-effect or air-cushion vehicles, snowmobiles, boats, farm-type tractors, earth-moving or construction equipment, lawn mowers, snowblowers, garden or lawn tractors, or golf carts.Md. Code, Natural Resources Article Sec. 10-410(d)(1) — source · read 2026-09-26

Two tracks, no pun intended. For riding on DNR land you need an annual DNR ORV registration sticker; a vehicle already registered with the MVA is exempt from buying the ORV permit on DNR public lands. Permits are sold online, by appointment at any DNR Regional Service Center, and at Deep Creek Lake State Park, New Germany State Park, Herrington Manor State Park, Savage River State Forest and Potomac-Garrett State Forest. Separately, MVA issues a certificate of title for an off-highway recreational vehicle at a fee of $35 under Transportation Article Sec. 13-802(b)(2) - a title, not a highway registration.

An off-road vehicle (ORV) is defined as a motorized vehicle designed for or capable of cross-country travel on land, water, snow, ice, marsh, swampland or other natural terrain. ... Licensed vehicles registered with the MVA are exempt from purchasing the off-road vehicle permit when using Department of Natural Resources public lands. ORVs must be registered annually with the Department of Natural Resources and display a registration sticker.Maryland DNR, Off-Road Vehicles on State Forests — source · read 2026-09-26

A different document, other jurisdictions
Registering a Tracked Quad sets several named agencies' own class definitions side by side, and shows that they are not written to a common test. It settles nothing for Maryland; what Maryland publishes is directly above.

Yes on designated trails - but which designated trails is a genuine open question for a tracked machine, which is why this reads conditional rather than yes. Maryland has a statutory mandate to provide the trails: NR Sec. 5-209(b) directs the Secretary to regulate ORV operation by type on DNR property and to designate areas for general-public ORV use, excluding wildlife management areas and State fisheries management areas. The current designated ORV riding is: Wolf Den Run State Park in Garrett County (Huckleberry Rocks, with 12.5 miles of trail available for motorized recreation and 6.5 miles open to full-size vehicles; the Potomac River Area; and the North Hill Area); the St. John's Rock ORV Trail and campground in Savage River State Forest near Finzel, which DNR calls "the first-ever ORV Trail on department lands designed specifically for ORV enthusiasts"; Meadow Mountain in Savage River State Forest; and the designated ORV trails in Potomac-Garrett State Forest (Backbone Mountain/Burkholder, Piney Mountain, Snaggy Mountain, Wallman/Laurel Run). Read the State Forest segment descriptions carefully: most ORV segments are open to "two-wheel and four-wheel vehicles" outside 15 December to 15 March, and some adjoining segments are snowmobile-only and closed to "any motorized wheeled vehicle" year-round. Wolf Den Run's own rules speak of "All ORV's" and of "ATV, Dirt Bike, Side by Side, and UTV" without any wheel requirement, so the wheel/track problem is a State Forest problem rather than a park-wide one - but confirm with the forest office before riding a State Forest segment.

That portion of Snaggy Mtn. Road, beginning at Cranesville Road and running south along Snaggy Mountain Road/Hutton-Switch Road to the bridge at the head of Herrington Lake may be used only by: (1) snowmobiles from December 15 through March 15, except during deer firearms season; and (2) two-wheel and four-wheel vehicles the remainder of the year and during the deer firearms season.Maryland DNR, Off-Road Vehicles on State Forests - Snaggy Mountain ORV Trail — source · read 2026-09-26

A different document, other jurisdictions
Groomed Snowmobile Trails quotes named agencies in other jurisdictions on the groomed-trail question, and they do not agree with each other. It settles nothing for Maryland; what Maryland publishes is directly above.

No highway use was found. An off-highway recreational vehicle is titled by MVA but is not registered for highway operation, and Transportation Article Sec. 13-401(b) makes it an offence to drive an unregistered vehicle on a highway - with a specific instruction that convictions "involving the use of an off-highway recreational vehicle on a highway" be reported to the Administration. The only local-authorisation power in the Vehicle Law found here is Sec. 25-102.1, and it covers off-the-road MOTORCYCLES only, not ATVs. At Wolf Den Run, DNR's own rule is that all vehicles must have a DNR OHV sticker and/or MVA registration to operate on State lands, and full-size MVA-registered vehicles are what that second option is for.

(b) (1) If a vehicle is not registered, a person may not drive the vehicle on a highway in this State. (2) (i) If a person is convicted of a violation of this subsection that involved the use of an off-highway recreational vehicle on a highway, the court shall notify the Administration of the violation.Md. Code, Transportation Article Sec. 13-401(b) — source · read 2026-09-26

A different document, other jurisdictions
Roads, Shoulders and Crossings separates crossing a road from travelling along one in several named jurisdictions, because most of them do. It settles nothing for Maryland; what Maryland publishes is directly above.

DNR land only where designated, and the designations are specific down to the road segment. Statutory limits: an ORV may not be used where its operation will damage the wildland character of the property, or where its noise will be audible at or interfere with a public picnic or camping area, and DNR may not establish an ORV trail on State-owned property at Sideling Hill in Washington County. Wolf Den Run adds reservation, licence, helmet, eye protection and spark-arrester requirements, one rider per machine unless it was built for passengers, and seasonal hours: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. 1 April to 31 October, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. 1 November to 31 March, closed to motorised use Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and closed to motorised use during the two-week deer firearms season. Maryland law also prohibits pursuing wildlife with an off-road vehicle.

(ii) An off-road vehicle may not be used: 1. Where its operation will damage the wildland character of the property; or 2. Where the noise from its operation will be audible at or interfere with the use of a picnic or camping area open to public use.Md. Code, Natural Resources Article Sec. 5-209(b)(2)(ii) — source · read 2026-09-26

A different document, other jurisdictions
Public Land and Width Limits covers the federal land managers, who publish route designations rather than permissions and answer to nobody's state code. It settles nothing for Maryland; what Maryland publishes is directly above.