Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Visitor Use Management Study

OMB Number: 1024-0224
Expiration Date: XX/XX/20XX

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
Visitor Study
Master Copy

To be completed by field staff:
ID ______ Time ________

Location__________ Date _____ Field staff____________

PRIVACY ACT and PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT statement:
The National Park Service is authorized by the NPS Research Mandate (54USC100702) to collect this information for Sleeping Bear
National Lakeshore. This study will provide insight into visitors’ use and preferences for park activities, services, and facilities to
inform ongoing management of park resources and enhance visitor experiences. Your response to this request is voluntary and
anonymous. Your name will never be associated with your answers, and no contact information will be collected. No action may be
taken against you for refusing to supply the information requested. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not
required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.
BURDEN ESTIMATE STATEMENT: Public reporting burden for this form is estimated to average 13 minutes per response. Direct
comments regarding the burden estimate or any other aspect of this form to NPS Information Collections Review Coordinator, 1201
Oakridge Dr., Fort Collins, CO 80525

OMB Number: 1024-0224
Expiration Date: XX/XX/20XX
Note to Reviewer: [site] is in brackets to account for the 5 different survey intercept locations: Crystal River,
North Manitou Island, Glen Haven, Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive, and Platte River. Final instruments will be
specified to the particular site in which the respondent is intercepted. Using this “Master Copy” eases in review
since the instruments are identical with the exception of the specific site name.
SLEEPING BEAR DUNES NATIONAL LAKESHORE (“THE PARK”)
NOTE: In this questionnaire, “personal group” is defined as anyone that you are visiting the park with, such as spouse,
family, friends, etc. This does not include the larger group that you might be traveling with, such as school, church,
scouts, or tour group.
Topic Area 1: AGE1

1. What is your age ____
Topic Area 1:RES2

2. Are you a permanent resident or citizen of the United States?
❑ No – What is your country of origin? ________________
❑ Yes – What is your zip code and state of residence?
___________ State ___________ Zip Code

Topic Area 1: GROUP4

3. How many people are in your personal group, including you? _____

Topic Area 1: GROUP1

4. Please select the choice below that best describes your traveling party.
❑ Individual traveling alone
❑ Family plus friends

❑ Family only
❑ Tour or other group

❑ Friends only

Topic Area 3: CVIS3 (Variation: Expanded questions to obtain information about seasonal visitation and site-specific visitation.)

5. Please tell us about your past visitation, including this trip, to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.
a. Over the past 12 months, how many visits have you made to the park? ___________
b. If more than one trip in the last year, what times of year did you visit? (Check all that apply)
❑ Spring ❑ Summer
❑ Fall ❑ Winter
c. Including this trip, how many trips overall (total) have you made to visit the park? ___________
d. Including this trip, how many times overall (total) have you visited [survey site]? _________

Topic Area 3: DEST17

6. On this trip, how long did you stay/are you planning to stay at the park? List partial hours/days as ¼, ½, ¾.
_________ number of hours, if fewer than 24 hours

OR

_________number of days, if 24 hours or more

7-8: Topic Area 3: DEST6 (Variation: Specified wording to focus on day of intercept.)

7. What time did you arrive at [survey site] today?
________ time of day ❑ AM ❑ PM

8. At what time do you plan to leave [survey site] today?
________ time of day ❑ AM ❑ PM

OMB Number: 1024-0224
Expiration Date: XX/XX/20XX
Topic Area 2: ITN4

9. How did your visit to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore fit into your travel plans? (Select one.)
❑ The park is my primary destination
❑ The park is one of several destinations
❑ I am passing through the park to my primary destination
❑ I did not plan to visit this park

Topic Area 2: TPURPOSE1

10. On this trip, what were your main reasons that you and your personal group came to the Sleeping Bear
Dunes National Lakeshore area?
#1 #2
#3
Resident of the area
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Visit Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
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Visit other attractions in the area
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Visit friends / relatives in the area
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Traveling through – unplanned visit
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Business
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Other (Please specify) _______________
❑ ❑
❑

Topic Area 5: ACT11 (Variation: Revised to just ask about activity participation.)

11. Which of these activities did you and your personal group participate in at the park on this trip? (Select all
that apply)
❑ Biking
❑ Stargazing / Viewing the night sky
❑ Camping
❑ Canoeing/Kayaking
❑ Dune climbing
❑ Exercising to promote fitness
❑ Fishing
❑ Hiking
❑ Hunting
❑ Attending ranger-led programs
❑ Swimming
❑ Visiting historical sites
❑ Beach going
❑ Visiting the Visitor Center
❑ Tubing
❑ Other _______________

Topic Area 5: ACT11 (Variation: Expanded from primary activity to top 3 activities.)

12. Which of these activities were most important to you at the park on this trip? (Fill in up to three activities
from the list above with Activity 1 being first, Activity 2 second, and Activity 3 third.)
Activity 1 _____________
Activity 2 __________ Activity 3 _____________

Topic Area 6: EXP12 (Variation: Revised wording to focus on motivation.)

13. On this trip, what were your main motivations for visiting the park? (Select up to three, numbering 1 for
first, 2 for second, and 3 for third.)
❑ To share quality time with family/friends ❑ To learn about the history of the area
❑ To do something with my family/friends
❑ To be with people who have similar interests
❑ To enjoy the natural scenery
❑ To meet new people
To
enjoy
the
tranquility
of
the
area
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❑ To gain a sense of self-confidence
❑ To experience the solitude/privacy
❑ To develop a sense of self-pride
❑ To get away from crowded areas
❑ To experience an adventure
To
learn
more
about
nature
❑
❑ To experience excitement

OMB Number: 1024-0224
Expiration Date: XX/XX/20XX
Topic Area 3: DEST13

14. The following maps contain named locations in and near the park. For each map, select the locations that
you and your personal group visited on this trip. (Select all that apply.)
a. Park locations

OMB Number: 1024-0224
Expiration Date: XX/XX/20XX
b. Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive (if selected in Park locations)

c. Trail regions in the park

OMB Number: 1024-0224
Expiration Date: XX/XX/20XX
d. Towns/cities in the region

Topic Area 3: DEST26

15. Please list any other locations visited in the park on this trip not identified on the maps _______________

Topic Area 3: DEST17 (Variation: Worded to focus on specific location.)

16. For this trip, where did you and your personal group spend the longest amount of time in the park?
[Dropdown list of all the places selected in 13a, 13b, and 13c plus any response from #14]

Topic Area 3: DEST27 (Variation: Worded to focus on a single site.)

17. For this trip, what was your most desired location to visit in the park?
[Dropdown list of all the places selected in 13a, 13b, and 13c plus any response from #14]
SECTION 3: YOUR EXPERIENCE IN THE PARK

Topic Area 6: CROWD20

18. How crowded did you feel on this trip while at/on the [SURVEY SITE IN PARK]?
Not at all
Slightly Crowded
Moderately
Very Crowded
crowded
Crowded
❑
❑
❑
❑

Extremely
Crowded
❑

#19-#22: Topic Area 6: CROWD5 (Variation: Revised wording to match previous SLBE visitor study for comparison purposes)

19. What is the total number of other groups you saw on this trip while at/on [SURVEY SITE IN PARK]? ____
20. What is the total number of other groups you would prefer to see during your trip at/on [SURVEY SITE IN
PARK]? _____
21. What is maximum number of groups you think is acceptable to see before managers should take action
at/on [SURVEY SITE IN PARK]? _____
22. What is the maximum number of other groups you could see during your trip before you would no longer
use [SURVEY SITE IN PARK]? _____

OMB Number: 1024-0224
Expiration Date: XX/XX/20XX
Topic Area 6: CROWD9 responses and Topic Area 5: VERP1 scale and description

See up to 15 other groups
See up to 20 other groups
See up to 25 other groups
See up to 30 other groups
See up to 40 other groups
See up to 50 other groups

Neutral

Somewhat
Acceptable

Acceptable

Very
Acceptable

See up to 10 other groups

Somewhat
Unacceptable

See up to 5 other groups

Unacceptable

See no other groups

Very
Unacceptable

23. We would like to know how many other groups you think are acceptable to see without [SURVEY SITE IN
PARK] being too crowded. Please rate the acceptability of each of the following numbers of other groups
seen on your trip.

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Topic Area 6: CROWD5 (Variation: Revised wording to match previous SLBE visitor study for comparison purposes.)

24. [FOR NORTH MANITOU ISLAND VERSION ONLY] Please record the following for your wilderness visit. (Enter
a number in all three columns for both items)
Least in a
Most in a
Total for
single day
single day
trip
The number of groups that camped within sight or sound of
_____
_____
_____
your campsite on North Manitou Island
The number of groups that hiked within sight or sound of
_____
_____
_____
your campsite on North Manitou Island

OMB Number: 1024-0224
Expiration Date: XX/XX/20XX
Topic Area 2: CROWD33

25. For this trip and previous trips, did crowding change your plans during your visit to Sleeping Bear Dunes
National Lakeshore. (Select all that apply)
Changed during a
Changed during this
previous visit to the park current visit to the park
Chose not to visit the park
❑
Changed the amount of time that you spent visiting the park
❑
❑
Changed the times of the day that you visited the park
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Changed the day of the week that you visited the park
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Changed the dates or seasons that you visited the park
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Chose not to visit your desired places at the park
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Changed the times of day that you visited places at the park
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Changed the order of places visited at the park
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Chose not to participate in your desired activities at the park
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Changed the composition of the personal group with whom you
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visited the park.
SECTION 4: PARK CONDITIONS

Topic Area 6: Visitor Experiences; EXP1 (Variation: Revised wording to align with NPS managers expressed information needs.)

26. These items represent conditions you may have noticed at the park on this trip. Please indicate two things for
each condition. First, whether or not you noticed the condition during your trip. Second, whether or not you
feel the condition negatively affected or would negatively affect the quality of your trip.

Managerial conditions

Social conditions

Did you notice this condition in the
park on your trip?
Large groups
Visitor conflicts
Inappropriate behavior
Loud/noisy groups
Discourteous/unsafe driving
Lack of restrooms
Lack of parking
Poor road quality
Lack of bike lanes
Poor Wi-Fi access
Poor cellular service
Lack of ADA access
Significant commercial use
Lack of docks

No
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Yes
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Did or would this condition
negatively affect the quality of
your trip?
No
Yes
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OMB Number: 1024-0224
Expiration Date: XX/XX/20XX

Resource conditions

Did you notice this condition in the
park on your trip?
Dune erosion
Vandalism
Social trails
Vegetation damage
Degraded water quality
Litter
Improper disposal of human waste
Unexpected human/machinery
noise
Light pollution
Wildlife harassment
Invasive species

No
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Yes
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Did or would this condition
negatively affect the quality of
your trip?
No
Yes
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Topic Area 3: PA4

Neutral

Agree

Strongly Agree

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I feel like [SITE] is a part of me.

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I identify strongly with [SITE].

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Strongly
Disagree

Disagree

27. [SURVEY SITE IN PARK] may play many different roles in people’s lives. As you think about [SITE], please
indicate your level of disagreement or agreement with each of the statements.

I am very attached to [SITE].
[SITE] is the best place for what I like to do.

I get more satisfaction out of visiting [SITE] than any other place.
[SITE] is very special to me.
[SITE] means a lot to me.
Doing what I do at [SITE] is more important to me than doing it
in any other place.
Visiting [SITE] says a lot about who I am.

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OMB Number: 1024-0224
Expiration Date: XX/XX/20XX
Topic Area 8: ABV6 (Variation: Revised wording to match previous SLBE visitor study for comparison purposes)

Do not Know

Agree

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Strongly
Agree

Neutral

Sleeping Bear Dunes staff share my values about how
the [SITE] should be managed.
I share the Sleeping Bear Dunes staff’s goals for the
[SITE].
Sleeping Bear Dunes staff support my views about the
[SITE].
I trust Sleeping Bear Dunes staff in their efforts to
manage the [SITE].

Disagree

Strongly
Disagree

28. The National Park Service is responsible for managing recreation use at Sleeping Bear Dunes National
Lakeshore. Its mission is to conserve nature, wildlife, and historical objects while providing for their
enjoyment for the public and future generations. As you think about your interaction with park staff, please
indicate the extent to which you disagree or agree with each statement below.

Topic Area 7: ABV10 (Variation: Revised wording to match previous SLBE visitor study for comparison purposes)

Neutral

Agree

Strongly Agree

Do not Know

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…deserves my maximum effort to maintain.

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…is very important to me.

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…is something I am very committed to.

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The connection I have with Sleeping Bear Dunes staff…

…is something I really care about.
…is something I intend to maintain indefinitely.

…is very much like being family.

Strongly
Disagree

Disagree

29. Please indicate the extent to which you disagree or agree with each statement below. (Circle one number
for each statement)

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Thank you for your help with this survey!
Please return the tablet to the person who gave it to you.

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