On this content page I am going to explore different terms and details involved with topography and topographic maps.

A.  Contour Lines are imaginary lines on the Earth connecting points of equal elevation. They are shown in brown on standard topographic maps.  When contour lines cross streams, they bend upstream, and what I mean is that contour lines  will "V" in an upstream direction.  Closed contours shown as ellipses or circles represent hills.  Closed contours with short lines pointing downward are closed depressions and have no outlet.  Steep slopes are shown by closely spaced contours, gentle slopes by widely spaced contours.

B. Township Lines are used to show east and west boundaries.  They contain thirty-six sections and each section is divided into quarters to be more precise.

C.  Range Lines are lines that run north and south and mark township boundaries.  Latitude-Longitude and Township-Range lines are used for giving locations.

D.  Topographic Maps are also used to show features created by streams.  Youthful regions have flat surfaces and are located between two larger rivers.  They drain poorly and have very few other rivers to empty into plus they are straight and narrow.  Mature regions cause the valley to become wider and a flood plain forms.  These streams drain well.

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