Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Cataract, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Cataract and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Cataract
- 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 Cataract:
- 44.087741, -90.842359
- 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 Cataract
- 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 Monroe County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Monroe County
- Since Cataract is near Jackson County and also La Crosse County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Jackson County
- eBird sighting report for La Crosse 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
Communities Also Named Cataract ...
We found five communities that share the name Cataract.
Within Wisconsin, the name Cataract is unique.
Beyond Wisconsin, we know of another five communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these five communities, four are located in the United States and one is in Canada.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Indiana
- Montana
- Ontario
- This Cataract lies 537 miles [864.2 km]<1> to the east of the Cataract that is located in Monroe County.
- Pennsylvania
- Clearfield County
- We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Pennsylvania community of Cataract [Clearfield County].
- Clinton County
- We found mention of this community, but have little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Pennsylvania community of Cataract [Clinton County].
Curious and Interesting Names Near Cataract ...
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.
- Burns
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest) - Disco
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest) - Farmers Valley
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Farmers Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farmers Valley
- Farmers Valley is located in Monroe County
- Four Corners
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Four Corners have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Four Corners
- Four Corners is located in Monroe County
- Kirby
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east) - Lees Crossing
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lees Crossing have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lees Crossing
- Lees Crossing is located in Monroe County
- Leon
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south) - Lynxville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast) - Rockland
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockland
- Rockland is located in La Crosse County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 710 people
- Shamrock
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north) - Tunnel City
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tunnel City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tunnel City
- Tunnel City is located in Monroe County
How Far From Cataract 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 community such as Cataract to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Cataract and extending to:
- Sparta, which is the Seat of Monroe County, lies 10 miles [16.1 km]<1> to the south. If you could walk a straight line from Cataract to Sparta, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take four to five hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take a little over three hours.
- Madison, which is the State Capital of Wisconsin, lies 100 miles [160.9 km] to the southeast (SE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than two hours, a buggy would take three full days and walking would take 6 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 797 miles [1,282.6 km] to the east southeast (ESE). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 32 days and walking would take 46 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,187 miles [9,957 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,937 miles [11,164 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,834 miles [7,779.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Cataract. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Monroe County: www.co.monroe.wi.us/
The official website for State of Wisconsin: https://www.wisconsin.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Cataract) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Cataract. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 44.0877, Longitude: -90.8424 In this case, the coordinates for Cataract have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <2> | If we encounter the name of what might be a community, our methodology is to add that name to our Gazetteer as a placeholder. As we find more information about that community, it will be added to our Gazetteer. Just as a reminder: Our definition of a community is rather broad and includes those places (or areas) where several families lived and had a name which identified that place. For example, you might hear somebody say that they are going over to Bird Creek to see Pete ... Bird Creek is just a gas station and a couple of homes at the crossroads. While it might not be on the map, everybody in the area knows it by that name. Places of interest include buildings at a crossroad, several families clustered in a hollow or maybe the location of a way station. It also includes places like mines, lumber camps, ferry crossings, etc. The community might still exist, is now gone or only existed for just a short period of time. Also keep in mind that Cataract could have been on the original document by mistake, misspelled, the original/alternate name of a community that we've listed elsewhere or was placed in the wrong county. Sometimes a post office or train station would have a different name than the community where it's located, so two names might be referring to the same community - we're working to straighten it all out. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <4> | 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. |
| <5> | 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 Cataract to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 316.601 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 314.108 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 309.58 degrees. |