MADISON, Wis. -- Holiday travel is picking up as some drivers try to beat the weather.

Getting to many parts of the Midwest could begin being difficult Wednesday, and that has some travelers heading out a couple days early.

A winter storm watch remains in effect for portions of southwestern Wisconsin from Wednesday afternoon through Friday afternoon. A transition back and forth between snow and freezing rain will be seen across the area from Wednesday afternoon through Christmas. From Wednesday afternoon through Christmas, significant snow and some ice accumulations appear likely -- although exact amounts are still uncertain, according to NWS.

State troopers said Tuesday that they are already seeing holiday travelers on the roads.

"Weather predictions kind of have things deteriorating for the next few days leading into the Christmas Eve holiday and Christmas Day," said Trooper Tim Redman. "So I think people want to get a jump on the weather and get where they're going."

"Wednesday would not have been a good travel day; what I kept seeing was that Wednesday was going to be really bad," said Marie Fejedelem, of Rochester, Minn., who was heading to Michigan. "We always plan so we can just stop if it gets bad. We don't ever try to push through a bad storm."

Those trying to miss the weather are packing up the car and making their long trips early in some cases.

"Trying to get out a little bit earlier before the next one comes in, because that one is supposed to be freezing rain," said Maggie Klingberg, who was traveling to Illinois.

Some said they are concerned they'll miss the most important part of the season.

"I want to beat the weather and I just want to see my nephew and haven't seen him for about six months," said Rich Colborn, of Superior, who was traveling to Beloit.

But the State Patrol is cautioning that if people don't leave early, they shouldn't count on the traffic or the snow and ice to be light.

"People are just going to have to make their own decision if they think it's worth risking driving on bad road conditions, because either way I think there will be a lot of traffic out there," said Redman.

Wisconsin Emergency Management hasn't activated its emergency operations center, but it is monitoring the storm.

Meteorologists said that hazardous travel, associated with snow- and ice-covered roads, is expected from later Wednesday afternoon through Friday.

A winter storm watch means there is a potential for significant snow, sleet, or ice accumulations that might impact travel.

WISC-TV meteorologist Gary Cannalte said that Wednesday will be mostly cloudy and windy with flurries in the morning and light snow developing in the afternoon. The daytime high will climb to 33 degrees.

Wednesday night will be mostly cloudy and windy with snow mixing with freezing rain. Overnight lows will dip to 27 degrees with winds from the east reaching 15 to 25 mph. Cannalte said snow accumulation of 1 to 4 inches is possible, with heaviest amounts west of Madison. He said minor ice accumulation of up to 1/10 inch is likely.

Thursday -- Christmas Eve -- will be mostly cloudy with occasional freezing rain and sleet, possibly mixed with snow northwest of Madison. Some ice accumulation is likely. The freezing rain will change to snow at night. Cannalte said ice accumulations of ¼ inch are likely.

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