Wisconsin Dells deserves to be the first post in this section! It is the biggest tourist trap on Earth!

How in the world did you ever get out of the biggest trap in the world?

We took both tours, and when they were over, I wondered why!

[This message has been edited by ROADRUNNER (edited 07-07-2001).]

I have no problem with tourist traps but what I object to about the Dells is that Wisconsin allowed what was probably a beautiful place to denegenerate into perhaps the worst honky tonk in America. Lake Tahoe should take the Dells as a lesson.

Even worse than being a tourist trap is the practice of stopping out-of-state cars for speeding even when they aren't speeding. I know everyone says they aren't speeding, but my wife was stopped last year and believe me, she was not over the limit. She is the type of driver that if the speed limit is 30, she goes 25, 55 she goes 50, etc. As it turns out, she wasn't even on the street the ticket said she was speeding on.

I called to complain about this and after many phone calls and letters the result is that Wisconsin Dells has a special class of ticket you can switch to if you get stopped for speeding. I forget what it's called, but the difference is it costs a little bit more and IT'S NOT CLASSIFIED AS AN AUTO OFFENSE (read: your insurance company does not know about it). I think it was something like disturbing the driving peace. How handy. I opted for that, paid the fine, and swore I will never set foot in Wisconsin again (but I will, it's a nice state).

If the SOB stops you for speeding, ask to see the radar gun he used. I asked to see the radar gun when I was stopped on LSD in Chicago and all of sudden "It was my lucky day" as he had to go to another call.

If you were "tailed", (I'm not sure on this one) but I believe the "Tail" must be for more than 1/2 a mile, which would be tough to do when driving through the Dells.

There is ONE redeeming factor of the Dells.
IF you have young kids, the indoor water parks during the cold months we have here are very enjoyable.

Hi Sweet Willie,

My wife did ask to see the radar gun and the cop said he did not have to show it to her. I asked the prosecutor why the cop didn't have to show it to her and he said there was no law that said he did. I also asked about the fact that my wife wasn't on the road she was ticketed on and was told it was the cops word against her's.

We just finally decided it wasn't worth taking time off from work to go to court (I know, that's what they figure people will do). It's just an additional vacation expense I guess.

What makes it even worse is that we were on vacation with our neighbors and the neighbor woman was in the car with my wife and new she wasn't on the road the ticket said. I thought I had the case won for sure with her being a witness, but her daughter goes to college in Wisconsin and she was afraid to testity for us because the figured the cops would stop her next time she was in Wisconsin to visit her daughter.

SweetWillie,

IMHO, you shouldn't be driving "on LSD" or any other halucinogen.

In California, they do not have to actually use a radar (they usually do). Apparently they have been trained to look at a car and be able to tell how quickly a car is going within a one or two MPH. I wish we had that option of paying more to have it off the record though. I hate traffic school.

Ok...What is the Wisconsin Dells?

Wingless,

The Wisconsin Dells are a stretch along the Wisconsin River where the river gets very narrow and is surrounded by thick forest, and fascinating cliffs, rock outgrowths, rapids, moss, trees, etc. It is actually a beautiful place that is both geologically and historically interesting.

The area surrounding the river (two towns called Wisconsin Dells and Lake Delton) is overrun with boat trips, WWII Duck Rides, Go-kart tracks, roller coasters, cheesy amusments and "Muesuems", mini-golf, hundreds of mom-and-pop hotels, fudge shops, stuff-yourself-silly buffets, and acres and acres of (indoor and outdoor) water parks.

"The Dells" are located 50 minutes north of Madison (MSN) and about 3 hours northwest of ORD, or 3.5 hours SE of MSP. That's driving time by the way, of course if you're speeding, you can get there a lot faster.

[deleted]

[This message has been edited by Frequent Freak (edited 07-11-2001).]

I did the Dells once when I was working in Chicago. For some unknown reason, we thought it'd be fun to go up there for a weekend. All I remember was greyhounds, a very low-rent casino (nickel slots, $3 BJ), a bunch of cheap pink motels, bad restaurants, very wierd liquor laws, and throngs of tacky tourists. It's not exactly a "sophisticated" place.

On the way back, we spent a night in Madison. Night and day difference from the Dells! Madison is very nice, easy to get around, and quite sophisticated for a mid-sized city. Great places to go out, good hotels, etc.

HA HA HA HA HA!!!

I should have followed this advice when I was in my young, experimental stage. Thankfully, I never did have any accidents or problems when "road tripping". I have to thank the big one for my luck.

I would suggest this to anyone who received an out of state traffic ticket. I was driving straight through from Baltimore to Chicago this Spring and got careless about my speed in Indiana. Got a ticket for 86 in a 65mph zone.

When I got home, I called the IN courthouse and asked if they had some "supervision" type program where I would plead guilty, pay a fine, but the ticket would not go on my record. The courthouse called it a deferral and set me up w/a different court date. I then called a lawyer who agreed to show up for me to obtain the deferral. Cost me around $250 total and no ticket on my record AND no increased insurance costs!!

What are the Dells?

Hey dingo, you're fortunate you have to ask.