PARIS — Signs marking off hunting and non-hunting areas of the Cornwall Nature Preserve have been removed and replaced with a general warning to hikers.

Last week, the Board of Selectmen decided to remove the signs amid concerns that the signs dividing the preserve might not be well-placed, and that hikers could accidentally walk into hunting areas.

In October, the board voted to divide the preserve into north and south sections after complaints of hunters threatening a group of hikers last year. Some residents called for restrictions or outright banning of hunting on the preserve.

Dividing the preserve was meant to give hunters a bit more of the preserve but leaving plenty of trails for hikers. Chairman Ted Kurtz came up with the compromise and the board approved it. The board had voted to divide the preserve along the white trail, which runs through the center of the preserve.

However, many were unsure whether the boundary should follow the white trail through its southerly turn into an area Kurtz had meant for hunters’ use. Kurtz said the situation presented “an inherently dangerous condition” and that the town could risk legal trouble.

With muzzle loading and bow hunting still going on, the board opted to immediately take down the signs in the woods and replace them with a sign at the main entrance cautioning people to enter at their own risk.

There was further concern that the preserve’s borders aren’t known, and that the signs may have led hunters onto private property.

Town Manager Phil Tarr said further discussion of the preserve by the board will wait until the land has been surveyed and the exact borders are known.

“The board asked me to put money in the budget for next year for a survey of the property,” Tarr said. “The board will revisit the issue when the survey is complete.”

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