page_title: Portage, Wisconsin
section_title: Geography
hierarchical_section_title: Portage, Wisconsin / Geography
caption_attribution_description: English: Aerial view of the City of Portage, Wisconsin, USA on the Wisconsin River. Upstream end of project showing cofferdam protecting river borrow area. Portage canal leading to the Fox River, visible on the right.
context_page_description: Portage is a city in and the county seat of Columbia County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 10,662 at the 2010 census making it the largest city in Columbia County. The city is part of the Madison Metropolitan Statistical Area.
  Portage was named for the Fox-Wisconsin Waterway, a portage between the Fox River and the Wisconsin River, which was recognized by Jacques Marquette and Louis Joliet during their discovery of a route to the Mississippi River in 1673. The city's slogan is "Where the North Begins."
context_section_description: Portage lies in the Wisconsin River valley. The city is surrounded by prairies and grasslands. Approximately three miles (5 km) west of the city are the Baraboo bluffs.  According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 9.62 square miles (24.92 km²), of which, 8.82 square miles (22.84 km²) is land and 0.80 square miles (2.07 km²) is water. The location of the town at the split of the Wisconsin and Fox river is what gives it the name "Portage", which means carrying a boat of its cargo between two navigable waters. In addition to the rivers, the city has access to Swan Lake and Silver Lake.
caption: Aerial view of Portage, Wisconsin
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