Enjoy the View — visual resources inventory report: Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve

Meyer, Mark; Sullivan, Robert

At Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve (GAAR) the visual setting is a vital element to providing opportunities for wilderness recreation and traditional subsistence uses in an undisturbed, natural landscape. As authorized in its enabling legislation, the Ambler Mining District Industrial Road is proposed to pass through the Preserve to provide access to the mining district southwest of the park. This visual resource inventory (VRI) was undertaken to identify the scenic quality and importance of the visual landscape to the NPS and its visitors and provides a baseline against which to compare potential impacts of the proposed routes for the road. The NPS inventory process consists of two components – scenic quality and view importance. The inventory determined that nearly all views have high scenic quality. The views from all locations lacked any evidence of human presence except from a high elevation viewpoint on the west side of Walker Lake, where a visible cabin added a positive element to the view. Importance Values were mostly rated as moderate to low with one view each very high and one as very low. Subsequent viewshed analyses showed that relatively small areas of GAAR would potentially have a view of one of the two proposed routes, and the majority of these areas are within the National Preserve. Of the visible area from the northern and southern alternatives, approximately 49% and 41%, respectively, received a Very High Scenic Inventory Value. Because it is located farther away, the southern alternative would be less visible from within the park/wilderness area.

Enjoy the View — visual resources inventory report: Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve

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