State Trunk Highway 33 (often called Highway 33, STH-33 or WIS 33) is a Wisconsin state highway running east–west across central

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

. It is in length.

Route description

La Crosse to Baraboo

WIS 33 begins east of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...

where it intersects

U.S. Highway 14 U.S. Route 14 (abbreviated U.S. 14 or US 14), an east–west route, is one of the original United States highways of 1926. It currently has a length of 1,398 miles (2,250 km), but it had a peak length of 1,429 miles (2,300 km). For ...

(US 14) and US 61 just south of downtown

La Crosse La Crosse is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of La Crosse County, Wisconsin, La Crosse County. Positioned alongside the Mississippi River, La Crosse is the largest city on Wisconsin's western border. La Crosse's populat ...

. Traveling east, it intersects with WIS 35. Leaving La Crosse, WIS 33 meanders eastward. It runs concurrently with WIS 162 from Newberg Corners to Middle Ridge. Further east, WIS 33 intersects WIS 27 in Cashton. Then, it briefly runs concurrently with WIS 131 in Ontario, then briefly meanders south through the

Wildcat Mountain State Park Wildcat Mountain State Park is a state park of Wisconsin, United States, on the Kickapoo River in the Driftless Area. Sandstone bluffs topped with limestone, two of which are Wildcat Mountain and Mount Pisgah, provide views over the narrow valley ...

, and then meanders back east. Even further east, WIS 33 runs concurrently with WIS 82 west of Hillsboro and then WIS 80 in Hillsboro. Both routes branch off together north from WIS 33 in Union Center. In La Valle, WIS 58 briefly runs concurrently with WIS 33. In Reedsburg, WIS 23 begins to travel east via WIS 33. Just east of Reedsburg, WIS 136 intersects and ends at a concurrency. Further east, WIS 23 branches off from WIS 33. Just north of West Baraboo, WIS 33 joins US 12 southward at a

dumbbell interchange A diamond interchange is a common type of road junction, used where a controlled-access highway crosses a minor road. Design The freeway itself is grade-separated from the minor road, one crossing the other over a bridge. Approaching the i ...

. In West Baraboo, WIS 33 leaves US 12 at another dumbbell interchange and briefly runs concurrently with WIS 136. As WIS 136 leaves southward at a four-way intersection, Business US 12 joins in from the north. In Baraboo, Bus. US 12 branches off southward where WIS 113 ends.

Baraboo to Port Washington

As WIS 33 continues eastward, it then meets I-90/I-94 at a parclo north of the Cascade Mountain ski resort. Another parclo is present just east of I-90/I-94. This time, it meets I-39. For a brief distance, WIS 33 turns north. As soon as it crosses the Wisconsin River, it then turns back east. As it enters downtown Portage, it meets US 51 at a one-way pair and WIS 16 at the western part of the one-way pair. North of Pardeeville, WIS 33 meets WIS 22. Further east, it then briefly runs concurrently with WIS 44 in Marcellon. Even further east, it then meets WIS 146 north of Cambria, WIS 73 north of Randolph, and WIS 68 in Fox Lake. As it intersects at an intersection where WIS 68 ends, WIS 33 turns south. In Beaver Dam, WIS 33 turns east, briefly following Business US 151. It then meets US 151 at a

diamond interchange A diamond interchange is a common type of road junction, used where a controlled-access highway crosses a minor road. Design The freeway itself is grade-separated from the minor road, one crossing the other over a bridge. Approaching the ...

. At Minnesota Junction, WIS 33 intersects WIS 26. Continuing east, it intersects WIS 28 in Horicon, WIS 67 north of Neda, WIS 175 in Addison, and I-41/US 41 at a diamond interchange in Allenton. Between Nabob and West Bend, WIS 144 follows WIS 33. While they run concurrently with each other, they meet US 45 at another diamond interchange. In Saukville, WIS 33 meets I-43/WIS 57 at a diamond interchange once again. Continuing east, it ends in downtown Port Washington at

WIS 32 State Trunk Highway 32 (often called Highway 32, STH-32 or WIS 32) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Wisconsin that runs north–south in eastern Wisconsin. It runs from the Illinois border (at Illinois Route 137) north to the Michigan bor ...

west of

Lake Michigan Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by volume () and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the east, its basin is conjoined with that o ...

History

Prior to European settlement, the foot trail from Port Washington to Horicon was the most traveled of seven trails that met in

Horicon Marsh Horicon Marsh is a marsh located in northern Dodge and southern Fond du Lac counties of Wisconsin. It is the site of both a national and a state wildlife refuge. The silted-up glacial lake is the largest freshwater cattail marsh in the United Sta ...

. A road was constructed to provide access from

to the fertile hunting grounds of the marsh, to provide food for the crews of ships on the lake. Starting in 1918, WIS 33 used to travel from WIS 12 in Baraboo to Camp Douglas via parts of present-day WIS 136, WIS 33, the WIS 80/WIS 82 concurrency, WIS 80 alone, and CTH-H. In 1919, WIS 33 had undergone changes. As of 1919, it switched its service from Camp Douglas to La Crosse. The portion of the route from Union Center to Camp Douglas became WIS 94. Also, it extended eastward from Baraboo to Waupun via present-day WIS 33 and WIS 68. In 1929, WIS 33 (which served Waupun) and WIS 68 (which served Port Washington) swapped routes.

Major intersections

References

External links

*{{Commons category-inline, Wisconsin Highway 33 033 Transportation in La Crosse County, Wisconsin Transportation in Monroe County, Wisconsin Transportation in Vernon County, Wisconsin Transportation in Juneau County, Wisconsin Transportation in Sauk County, Wisconsin Transportation in Columbia County, Wisconsin Transportation in Dodge County, Wisconsin Transportation in Washington County, Wisconsin Transportation in Ozaukee County, Wisconsin