ANN's Best Tips For Getting To AirVenture 2004
By ANN Contributor Chris Armstrong
Going By Auto
If you are like the vast majority of people who go to
Airventure, the biggest aviation gathering on the planet, you
arrive by car. If you were planning on flying and haven't yet made
arrangements to arrive at Oshkosh, here's a hint: you're either a
driver or a pedestrian. A check of the Wisconsin DOT web site and the
Federal Highway Administration web site will
give you a heads up for road construction projects that you might
want to avoid. The Wisconsin DOT site has a handy map of all construction projects for the
year. Only a few of those listed are underway during
Oshkosh week, so check the individual listings for when they are
scheduled. If you are traveling through the Milwaukee area,
make sure you go online to check the current
congestion.

For many states the 511
traffic information service is available. The Chicago
area is covered as well as many states west of Wisconsin. Just Dial
511 to receive traffic conditions for any road in the covered
area.
If you are traveling from Michigan one option to reduce your
drive around the lake is the Ludington (MI) to Manitowoc (WI) car ferry.
The crossing takes four hours and costs $47 per adult one way, $78
round trip, plus $49 per car each way. State rooms are available
for $34 one way and $66 round trip. Campers and trailers are
additional.
The Ferry Leaves Ludington at 0800 ET, and 1955 ET arriving in
Manitowoc at 1100 CT and 2255 CT. The return trips leave Manitowoc
at 1315 CT and 0030 CT arriving in Ludington at 1815 ET and 0530
ET. There is a 20% discount on the 0030 "redeye."
A new high speed ferry service started operation last month.
The Lake Express Catemaran,
travels from Milwaukee (WI) to Muskegon (MI). This ferry is nearly
twice as fast as the SS Badger, taking two and a half hours to
cross versus the four hours of the Badger, and the cost is not much
more. The Lake express can take small campers and trailers for at
additional cost but maximum height is 8 foot 6 inches, maximum
width is 8 feet and maximum trailer length is 18 feet. The service
is new and some passengers have reported some problems as might be
expected in the first few weeks of operation, but most are pleased
with the service.

When traveling to Oshkosh some great places to stop include the
Wisconsin Dells, Devil's Lake State Park, Mill Bluff State Park,
Kohlar park Dunes in the Kohlar-Andrae State Park, Cave of the
Mounds, and the Kettle Moraine State Forest. Check the Wisconsin DNR page for details on state
parks. If you prefer scenic back roads to highways a few
great scenic drives on the way to Oshkosh are Kettle Moraine Scenic
Drive, the Wazee Trail in Black River Falls, and the Wild Goose
Parkway in Horicon.
Finally, if you feel like straying from AirVenture at some point
during the week, there are quite a few other fly-ins and aviation-oriented events to
check out. You can find a list of them on the Wisconsin DOT
website.