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Washington is blessed with many beautiful natural features: magnificent mountains, forests and prairies, deep blue lakes and mighty rivers, ancient marine shorelines of sand and stone, and the nation's greatest variety of fish and wildlife species. Some of the highest quality habitats for fish and wildlife are protected as Wildlife Areas by the Department of Fish and Wildlife. Scattered across the state, Washington's Wildlife Areas are jewels of immense social, economic, and fish and wildlife value. Our natural resources are a vital part of our heritage, our economy and our quality of life. But all of these are challenged by our dramatic human population growth. Each year, many thousands of acres of fish and wildlife habitat are lost to development. Preserving essential habitat is crucial for our wildlife, and is also a sound investment in Washington's future and two fast growing industries-tourism and recreation. |
 Visitors on foot, horseback, or wheelchair can explore the Big Valley trail along the Methow River just off Highway 20, two miles north of Winthrop. |
Washington's Wildlife Areas are found in every part of the state and were selected as key lands to benefit a particular species or group of animals. For waterfowl, areas are either ancestral migration stopover points or breeding grounds. Estuaries and riparian areas protect threatened and endangered fish species; migratory corridors are key habitat for deer, elk and big horn sheep. Opportunities for public recreation on Wildlife Areas are extensive. Beautiful forests, lakes, estuaries, mountains, prairies, rivers and canyons await your visit. |
 Barn owls inhabit vacant structures on wildlife areas. |
 The Sinlahekin Wildlife Area near Loomis |
| 1939: A Very Good Year -- for Wildlife |
In 1939, Washington State created its first Game Refuge, now the Sinlahekin Wildlife Area in northern Okanogan County. Recognizing that deer, elk and other wildlife need large stretches of habitat, the Game Commission began to buy land along the Sinlahekin Creek in the foothills east of the Cascades. The land was paid for with federal funds from the Pittman-Robertson (PR) program (a new excise tax on hunting gear). Since then, the Sinlahekin Wildlife Area has guaranteed quality habitat for wildlife and recreational opportunity for Washington’s citizens and visitors.
Running 16 miles north to south, the Wildlife Area protects an entire valley for mule deer, white-tailed deer, bighorn sheep, black bear, pheasant, turkey, quail, chukar, waterfowl, pine squirrel, badger, skunk, porcupine, beaver, swallows and song-birds. Each year, the Sinlahekin hosts tens of thousands of visitors who come to enjoy camping, hunting, bird watching, fishing, hiking and boating.
Experience has shown that it is significantly
less expensive and disruptive to
preserve an ecosystem that still exists than
to re-create what has been lost.
 Basalt cliffs and pothole lakes on the Columbia Basin Wildlife Area in Grant County were carved by ice age floods. |
| Romancing the West |
With the vast majority of WDFW’s land in the mountains and plateaus of eastern Washington, the Wildlife Areas frequently have a distinct "western" feel. Some of the properties were formerly large ranches, and all still offer vast vistas free of roads and civilization–the perfect spot to re-discover the rugged west.
The popular media image of the lonely western cowboy began with Owen Wister's The Virginian in a setting that now includes the Methow Wildlife Area near Winthrop. Twenty-first century western romantics can still find immense open ranges to wander at these Wildlife Areas: the Sinlahekin (near Loomis), Chelan Butte (near Chelan), Entiat and Swakane (north of Wenatchee), Colockum (south of Wenatchee), L.T. Murray and Oak Creek (north of Yakima), Sherman Creek (near Colville), Scotch Creek (northwest of Omak), Swanson Lakes (south of Davenport), Sunnyside (Yakima Valley) and Wooten, Asotin Creek and Chief Joseph (south and west of Asotin.)
Saddle up a horse, a mountain bike or a comfortable pair of hiking boots and explore these Wildlife Areas. Be sure to bring your own water and supplies–there are no park-like amenities here. (Please check with your local WDFW office for seasonal restrictions.)
What do Loomis, Concrete, Othello, and Winthrop have in common? They are all gateway communities to Washington’s Wildlife Areas. Thousands of wildlife watchers, anglers, hunters, hikers, campers, boaters, cross-country skiers, horseback riders, mountain bikers and people with disabilities launch their expeditions into Wildlife Areas from these gateway communities. Rural communities from Asotin to Ocean Shores and from Oroville to Goldendale benefit economically from a nearby Wildlife Area. Visitors en route purchase meals, gas, supplies and lodging, supporting local jobs and boosting local tax revenues. Wildlife Areas host more than 2.5 million recreation days annually, fueling a recreation industry that contributes an estimated $3 billion to the state’s economy. |
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While Wildlife Areas have a long
history of protecting some of
Washington’s finest fish and wildlife
habitat and providing terrific nature
recreation for the public, important
lands have yet to be protected and
maintenance needs are critically under
funded. At most areas, facilities for
visitors–parking lots, boat ramps and
toilets–are minimal at best.
Equipment for maintaining roads and
planting food crops for wildlife is
often too old to be repaired. There are
no funds to preserve historic structures.
In addition, staff resources are
perilously thin. Each of the 22 Wildlife
Area managers is responsible for many
sites spread over long distances; some
manage more than 100,000 acres.
Maintenance of visitor amenities and
patrols to curb vandalism and illegal
poaching are no longer adequate.
John Garrett, Manager
New needs are emerging, with few
means to accommodate them. Many
thousands of citizens visit the Skagit
Wildlife Area each winter to view snow
geese and swans, but have nowhere to
park, clogging state and county roads.
Many areas cannot adequately serve the
needs of wildlife viewers, mountain
bikers, cross-country skiers, people
with disabilities, and back country
campers because development funds
are rarely available. However, targeted
development could increase tourism
wisely while boosting the economies
and tax revenues of gateway communi-ties,
while providing jobs for local
residents.
To begin to address these needs, the
Legislature passed the Access Decal
bill in 1998, and later the Vehicle Use Permit, transforming the little-used
$10 Conservation License into an
annual vehicle permit for Wildlife Area
and boating access site visitors. (Vehicle Use Permits
are free to purchasers of hunting and
fishing licenses.) These
stewardship funds are a good start but
can only meet some of the needs.
What you can do:
Wildlife Area Manager Marc Hallet describes habitat
improvements paid for with mitigation funds at Central
Ferry Canyon on the Wells Wildlife Area, four miles
southwest of Brewster.Is Everything Perfect in Paradise?
“The need for operation and maintenance money to meet the skyrocketing demands of a booming human population cannot be overstated, if we are to maintain this area for both wildlife and humans.”
Skagit Wildlife Area
WDFW manages 19 estuaries from Skagit County, around Puget Sound, and out to the coast in Pacific County for water-fowl and salmonid habitat. Case Inlet, shown here, includes 500 acres of tide-lands near Allyn in Mason County.
