William T. Wooten Wildlife Area Contact Information Bob Dice, Manager 1049 Port Way Clarkston, WA 99403 (509)758-3151 Shana Winegeart, Assistant Manager 2134 Tucannon Road, Pomeroy, WA 99347 509-843-1530 Cummings Creek Winter Closure The Cummings Creek portion of the Wooten Wildlife Area is closed to all human activity to minimize disturbance to wintering big game, effective Feb. 1 thru Apr. 11, 2008. A Vehicle Use Permit is REQUIRED on ALL WDFW Lands Purchase Vehicle Use Permit About Vehicle Use Permit The William Wooten Wildlife Area is located in Columbia and Garfield Counties, approximately 35 miles east of Dayton and 14 miles south of Pomeroy. It is 11,778 acres in size. The Wooten consists of a number of valleys and ridges of the rugged Blue Mountains of Washington. The main valley contains the Tucannon River. This valley is dominated by riparian influences; thick understory, and both conifer and deciduous overstory. The ridges are covered by productive stands of bunchgrasses including Idaho fescue and various other species. North slopes are covered by shrub and conifer forest stands. The lands in and along the Tucannon River are historic wintering areas for big game and receive year-round use by a variety of game and nongame species of wildlife. Recent efforts include streambank and riparian rehabilitation beneficial to protect local threatened salmon species. Located along the Tucannon River are eight artificial lakes. These lakes are stocked annually with approximately 110,000 trout. The recently-remodeled and expanded Tucannon Fish Hatchery is located within the boundary of the Wildlife Area. Also included is Camp Wooten, an Environmental Learning Center, located on 160 acres of department land and leased and operated by State Parks and Recreation. Overnight campsites and limited day-use-only areas are available on the area providing a mountain and stream camping experience. The Wildlife Area currently averages between 120,000 and 140,000 visitor days use per year. At the present time there is a fish or wildlife harvest season of some kind taking place 12 months of the year within the boundary of the Wildlife Area. It is common on a major holiday to have between 3,000 and 5,000 visitors.