The Lewis River Hydroelectric Projects - PacifiCorp

audience
Lewis River Interpretive & Education Plan
This section presents general guidelines regarding audience characteristics for
interpretive and educational programs. Regardless of the specific parameters to
an interpretive project, these audience characteristics are universal and need to
be considered in the development of an effective program.
General Audience Characteristics
No matter how cleverly designed, aesthetically appealing, or accessible,
interpretive experiences are meaningless unless they satisfy an audience’s needs
and interests.
• Users need and expect orientation information. The Lewis River
recreation sites are spread along 30 miles of the Lewis River’s valley.
Several lie off of the primary travel routes along the river. Users will
need and expect orientation information. Where are the sites that offer
lake access Where can they camp Where can they park Where can
they hike What are the fees
• Users will need and expect to find public restroom facilities. Restroom use
is obviously not the reason underlying the use of any outdoor recreation
facility, but a recreation experience without access to restrooms,
or without restrooms that are accessible, can create a maintenance
nightmare.
• Users will expect interpretation. More and more trail users benefit from
and even expect to find interpretive materials, in a variety of media, that
address local natural and cultural history. It is part of the experience.
• Visitors will want information about other recreation activities.
Surrounding public lands such as Gifford Pinchot National Forest/Mt.
St. Helens National Volcanic Monument offer many outdoor recreation
opportunities.
Irrespective of demographics, interpretive audiences—especially trail/park
users— share at least two primary characteristics: they are a non-captive
audience, and they will benefit directly from any and all measures that increase
physical and programmatic accessibility.
The Audience is Non-Captive
Interpretively speaking, trail/parks audiences are generally regarded as noncaptive.
Non-captive audiences visit parks, campsites and trails of their own
volition—they decide to visit, stay, and pay attention of their own free will.
In contrast, visitors attending a lecture or live interpretive presentation are
considered a captive audience. Captive audiences are generally compelled to
stay and pay attention. Although there are many differences between these
Sea Reach Ltd • 146 NE yamhill Street • Sheridan, OR draft 3 • November 2008 • page 11