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On-site, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 51 groups of campers in Mt. Jefferson Wilderness to understand their perception and evaluation of impacts to vegetation, soil, and trees. At campers' sites, measurements of vegetation loss, mineral soil exposure, tree damage, and site size were made for comparison with visitors' numeric evaluations of conditions. Content analysis of qualitative responses revealed that 75% of groups noticed vegetation impacts, 52% noticed soil impacts, and 51% noticed damage to trees. More than 70% of evaluative comments about conditions were positive, with many related to the functional benefits of impacts. Sites ranged in size from 13 m2 to 453 m2, but there were no statistically significant relationships between 6 measured impact parameters and campers' numeric evaluations of conditions. The difference between visitors' and managerial evaluations of impact conditions will present considerable challenges for selecting and successfully implementing management policies.
Introduction
According to the 1964 Wilderness Act, wilderness managers must maintain wilderness resources so as to preserve their natural condition. However, research has identified a variety of impacts that result from wilderness visitation (Hammitt & Cole, 1998). For example, camping-related impacts to vegetation and soils have been well documented, and many wildernesses have programs to monitor and/or limit such impacts. Impacts of specific concern include increased mineral soil exposure, loss of soil organic material, changes in soil moisture and density, loss of vegetation cover, alteration of species composition, and damage to trees (Marion & Cole, 1996; Stohlgren, 1986).
Wilderness managers care about such recreation-related changes because they are inconsistent with policy to maintain natural conditions, but apart from this, it has been suggested that site impacts are important because they may detract from the quality of visitor experiences (Hammitt & Cole, 1998; Roggenbuck, Williams, & Watson, 1993). Such assumptions have been used as arguments for site restoration, camping regulation, and even use limitation. However, few studies have tested whether impacts actually affect experience quality (Lucas, 1990), and there is reason to believe that managers and researchers may be more sensitive to anthropogenic change than visitors. This paper compares and contrasts wilderness campers' perceptions and evaluations of vegetation and soil impacts with campsite condition assessments of the type performed by managers and researchers.
Greater understanding of the relationships between visitors' perceptions and...