Noatak National Preserve sport hunter perceptions and experiences

NOAT Qualitative Semi-Structured In-person Interview Guide
Noatak National Preserve
Guiding Questions for Semi-Structured Interviews of
Sport Hunters, Big Game Transporters, and Big Game Guides
2013

Date: ____/___/____
Start: _______

ID Number: ____________

Time: _____:____

End: ________

Interviewer: __________________

Number of Interviewees: ______

Potential Language Barrier: ___Yes ___No
“Excuse me sir/ma'am. My name is __________. I am conducting a study for Noatak National Preserve
to better understand the types of experiences visitors seek while hunting here. Participation is voluntary
and your responses will be anonymous. It will take about 20 minutes to complete. Would you be willing
to participate?”
If YES: “I’d like to record our conversation so I can remember it later. Is this OK with you?”
If NO:"I understand. Enjoy the rest of your trip.”
If YES: “Here is a statement about the confidentiality of your responses.” (The card will contain
text concerning the Privacy Act and Paperwork Reduction Act compliance, and also a burden
estimate statement)
First I’d like to ask you some background questions, followed by questions concerning your experience in
Noatak National Preserve.

Paperwork Reduction Act Statement: The National Park Service is authorized by 16 U.S.C. 1a-7
to collect this information. We will use this information to evaluate visitor and hunter
experiences in Noatak National Preserve. Your response is anonymous and voluntary. A Federal
agency may not conduct or sponsor and you are not required to respond to a collection of
information unless it displays a currently valid OMB Control Number. We estimate that it will
take 20 minutes to complete this interview. You may send comments concerning the burden
estimates or any aspect of this information collection to: Peter Fix, University of Alaska
Fairbanks, School of Natural Resources & Agricultural Sciences, PO Box 757140, Fairbanks, AK
99775; or pjfix@alaska.edu (email).
OMB Control Number: 1024-0224
Expiration Date: 8-31-2014

1

Topic Area 1: RES1
1. Do you live in the United States?
If YES, what is your zip code: ______
If NO, what country are you from: _____________
Topic Area 1: GR3
2. How many people were in your [personal, organized, tour] group, including you? ______ Number of
people
Topic Area 3: TRANS16
3. Did you and your group use a guide service during this trip?
4.

How would you describe your level of hunting experience? (For example, novice, intermediate, or
expert)

Topic Area 1: VISTITHIS4
5. Have you ever previously hunted in Noatak National Preserve? If yes, how many times?
Topic Area 2: TPLAN1
6. Did you receive planning support or information specific to hunting and backcountry camping
considerations/preparation prior to arriving in AK, while in Kotzebue, or during your transporter flight
in? If yes, who provided, and what type of information?
Topic Area 1: KNOW9
7. Was there any information about the area services, land use and hunting regulations that you would
have liked to be more available? If yes, please describe. Would you prefer park rangers (NPS), State of
Alaska, or the hunt service providers and/or locals, provide this information to you?
Topic Area 1: TBACK10 and TRANS1
8. How did you and your personal group access areas of the backcountry of Noatak? Plane only? Plane and
boat? Plane and on foot? Other motorized vehicles?
Topic Area 3: ITIN1
9. During this trip, where were you hunting? Show map of zones and have respondent pinpoint entry
landing strip and basecamp. Record geographic place name details below
_____Zone 1
__________________________________________________
_____Zone 2
__________________________________________________
_____Zone 3
__________________________________________________
_____Zone 4
__________________________________________________

Topic Area 1: TBACK6
10. Approximately how long were you in the field, hunting during this trip? If days were spent not hunting
please provide details on number and why.
Length of stay: ______days _______nights
2

Topic Area 4: PREF1
11. What are your primary reasons for participating in a big game hunt and traveling to an area like this? List
all reasons.
Topic Area 4: PREF1
12. What are your plans for the animal you harvested? Is consumption of the meat a primary use? If yes,
why?
Topic Area 1: KNOW7 AND KNOW8
13. Why did you and your personal group choose to hunt in (Location Specified Here)? Were you made
aware during your trip planning of any NPS management restrictions in place related to caribou
hunting? What about the ADFG controlled use area on the Noatak R.?
Topic Area 6: EVALSERV18c
14. When you think of the experiences you had while in the (Location Specified Here), did they meet your
expectations? Why or why not?
Topic Area 6: EVALSERV3
15. What did you enjoy most about your hunting experiences in (Location Specified Here)?
Topic Area 6: EVALSERV2
16. What did you enjoy least about your hunting experiences in (Location Specified Here)?
Topic Area 1:TBACK3
17. During what hours did you typically travel and were you travelling by foot, boat, ATV or combo? Please
indicate approximate route on map.
Topic Area 5: CROWDATT11
18. How frequently each day did you encounter caribou within firing range? At what range did you decide
was good to take a shot? What range were you successful at? How large was the herd that you shot into
and what position in the herd was your target animal?
Topic Area 3: TRIPC
19. If you succeeded shooting an animal, were you able to harvest all usable meat? What, if any, were you
forced to leave behind? Was any meat wasted due to lack of proper storage?
Topic Area 5: CROWD14/15/17
20. Did you encounter other parties during your hunt? If so, how many? Were they sport hunters, local
hunters, non-hunters? Did you find these encounters positive/negative/neutral? Why?
Topic Area 3: TRIPC37
21. Did anything disrupt or interfere with your travel? If YES, what disrupted or interfered with your travel
and pinpoint where did these occur (use maps)?
Topic Area 3: TRIPC35
22. Did anything disturb your ability to hunt or to sleep at night (other than light)?
3

If YES, what and where did this occur and how long of a period were you disturbed?
Topic Area 6: EVALSERV8 and Topic Area 3: TRIPC36c
23. Due to the natural elements and the difficulty a hunt in (Location Specified Here), hunters assume a
certain level of risk. However, did you feel that any factors, (not including nature or your personal
hunting abilities), put you at risk or made you feel uncomfortable during your trip? If YES, what factors,
and where did this occur?
Topic Area 4: SOUND3 and SOUND5
24. What kinds of sounds did you hear during your hunting experience (Location Specified Here)? What are
your opinions as to the levels (amount and loudness) of these sounds in this area?
Topic Area 4: SOUND9
25. After departing from basecamp, did you notice hearing any aircraft? Any motorized boats? If yes, how
many and how did you feel about it?
Topic Area 3: FVIS27
26. How would you feel about being required to participate in a short interpretive training about local
customs, values, and ways of life prior to hunting in the preserve? Would you also be willing to
voluntarily avoid certain sensitive cultural areas when hunting if you knew the significance of these
areas to locals?
Topic Area 6: OPMGMT2
27. What could the managers at (Location Specified Here) do as they plan for the future to manage sport
hunting and transporter services related to land use in the preserve?
Topic Area 6: OPMGMT3
28. Before we end, is there anything else that you and your personal group would like to share with me, or
any other comments you would like to add regarding what we talked about today?

4