Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Wisconsin Dells, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Wisconsin Dells and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Wisconsin Dells
- Astronomy & Satellites ...
- Whether using binoculars, a small telescope or the naked-eye, the Heavens-Above website can help you to find your way around the night-time sky. In addition to detailed sky charts, their website will help you find planets, asteriods, comets, satellites and their tracks across the sky.
- To give accurate results, Heavens-Above requires the latitude and longitude of your location. As a starting point, when we link to Heavens-Above, we pass this GPS location for Wisconsin Dells:
- 43.627642, -89.769205
- Once you're on the Heavens-Above website, you can improve its accuracy by giving a more precise longitude and latitude as your actual position.
- The Heavens-Above Website, centered on Wisconsin Dells
- Bird Watching ...
- We enjoy finding new spots for bird watching and we use the eBird website for local sighting reports and to help identify hotspots.
- The eBird website is organized on a county-by-county basis. We have selected Columbia County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Columbia County
- Since Wisconsin Dells is near Sauk County and also Adams County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Sauk County
- eBird sighting report for Adams County
- Waymarking ...
- Looking for somewhere out of the ordinary? Find a unique place and want to share it with others? Then it's time to visit Waymarking.com:
- Waymark.com
Curious and Interesting Names Near Wisconsin Dells ...
As we travel, we always see a community with a name that gives pause. While there are names which are interesting or familiar, some catch our attention or strike our fancy. We always wonder about such a name. If time permits and the community is not too far, we'll usually try to make a side-trip.
- Big Spring
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Big Spring have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Spring
- Big Spring is located in Adams County
- Dell Prairie ‑ Historic
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dell Prairie have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dell Prairie
- Dell Prairie is located in Adams County
- Endeavor
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east) - Lemonweir
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lemonweir
- Lemonweir is located in Juneau County
- Moe Settlement ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Moe Settlement have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moe Settlement
- Moe Settlement is located in Columbia County
- Plainville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Plainville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plainville
- Plainville is located in Adams County
- Portage
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Portage
- Portage is located in Columbia County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 10,381 people
- Reedsburg
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest) - Rock Springs
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rock Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Springs
- Rock Springs is located in Sauk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 361 people
How Far From Wisconsin Dells to ...
We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers, Almanacs & Directories that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a city such as Wisconsin Dells to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<2> beginning in Wisconsin Dells and extending to:
- Portage, which is the Seat of Columbia County, lies 16 miles [25.7 km]<2> to the east southeast. If you could walk a straight line from Wisconsin Dells to Portage, with an average speed<3> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take most of a day to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take five to six hours.
- Madison, which is the State Capital of Wisconsin, lies 42 miles [67.6 km] to the south southeast (SSE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than an hour, a buggy would take just about two full days and walking would take about three full days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 736 miles [1,184.5 km] to the east southeast (ESE). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 29 days and walking would take 42 days.
- The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,173 miles [9,934.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,920 miles [11,136.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,813 miles [7,745.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Wisconsin Dells. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Columbia County: www.co.columbia.wi.us/
The official website for State of Wisconsin: https://www.wisconsin.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <2> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Wisconsin Dells) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Wisconsin Dells. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 43.6276, Longitude: -89.7692 |
| <3> | While we have tried to pick reasonable speeds, the rate of travel is very theoretical - obstacles like fences, hills, lakes, river crossings and rest stops have been ignored. When we say 'Days' of travel, we're assuming 8 hours of travel per day. |
| <4> | The shortest line can be visualized by stretching a string on a Globe from Point A to Point B - this is known as a Great Circle Route. Where you might expect the shortest route from Wisconsin Dells to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <5> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 315.865 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 313.206 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 309.147 degrees. |