Lets talk about Contour Lines, Townships, and Range Lines.

Contour Lines- these are the imaginary lines on the Earth connecting points with equal elevation. These lines are identified in brown on Standard Topographical Maps. When using these maps there are five things to remember about contour lines.

1. When contour lines cross streams, they bend upward in a "V" like direction.

2. The circles on the maps represent hills.

3. Closed contours with short lines pointing doenslope are a closed depression with no outlet.

4. Steep Slopes are shown by closely spaced contours.

5. The maximum relief is the difference in elevation between the highest and lowest point of an area.

Next when using Topographical maps you will use township and Range lines. These lines are just like the latitude and longitudinal lines on a regular map. The Township lines are the east and west boundaries and the Range lines are the north and south boundaries of a map. This helps identify certian places on a map. I hope after this preview of Topographical maps you are ready to use your own Topographical map.

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