1. Topographic Map Interpretation
A) Marginal Information Examine the marginal information to gain as much background as possible before becoming involved in the map detail. This background information could include: - map title - map scale - latitude and longitude or military grid - magnetic declination - contour interval

2. Topographic Map Interpretation
Determine what direction is north on the map. If it is not clearly shown, the rule of the thumb is to get the printing right side up so that you can read the majority of information on the map and north is straight up.

3. Topographic Map Interpretation
B) Broad Patterns Look at the whole map to get a general picture of the area. Watch for broad patterns of land and water, settlements, vegetation, and physical features.

4. Topographic Map Interpretation
D) Drainage  (The ability of an area to shed water) To help in your understanding of the drainage of an area, ask yourself the following questions:
Pattern In which direction do most rivers flow? Do the main rivers run parallel to each other or in some other pattern? Where are the main watersheds?
River Valleys How wide is the valley? How deep is it? How steep are its sides? Does the river have a flood plain? What is the valley gradient?

5. Topographic Map Interpretation
D) Drainage  Rivers and Streams What is the gradient? Do waterfalls or rapids indicate an uneven gradient? How wide is the river? How many tributaries does it have? Does the river flow relatively straight or does it meander? Is there evidence that the drainage has been altered (i.e. dams)?
Surface Water Is there standing water (lakes, marshes, swamps)? If there is a large amount of surface water, does the area have impermeable bedrock? Is the lack of surface water a sign of permeable bedrock?

6. Topographic Map Interpretation
E) Basic Landforms The shape of contour lines can indicate landforms as shown below. Many of these landforms you may not be familiar with at this time; however you will be by the end of the course.

7. Topographic Map Interpretation

8. Topographic Map Interpretation

9. Topographic Map Interpretation

10. Topographic Map Interpretation

11. Topographic Map Interpretation

12. Topographic Map Interpretation

13. Topographic Map Interpretation

14. Topographic Map Interpretation
F) Nature of Rock Hard (i.e. igneous and metamorphosis) rock and resistant rock generally produce rugged features. Soft rock (i.e. sedimentary) generally produces a more gentle relief.

15. Topographic Map Interpretation
G) Climate Use information from previous items to make deductions about the climate. The number and size of streams, the vegetation or lack of it, the existence of wells, irrigation ditches or windmills, knowledge of elevation, latitude, etc. should all help.

16. Topographic Map Interpretation
H) Land Use Utilize your knowledge of topographic map symbols to determine activities such as mining, forestry, farming, energy production, urban infrastructure, etc.

17. Topographic Map Interpretation
I) Cultural Features Place names can often give a clue as to the ethnic groups that have settled an area.

18. Topographic Map Interpretation
J) Types of Settlement: a) dispersed: houses and other buildings spread out b) nucleated: much development in a small area c) ribbon or strip development: much commercial development (i.e. retail stores) down a particular road/street.

19. Topographic Map Interpretation
K) Transportation and Communication Look for roads, the density and pattern of the roads, railways, airports, tv towers, radio towers, etc.

20. Topographic Map Interpretation
L) Forested/Wooded Areas Any area shaded green, unless stated otherwise, is forested/wooded area. White areas are either logged or have no or little vegetation or are used for farming. 

21. How to Make a Topographic Profile
300
400
200
100
This represents a very simple topographic map of a hill. The hill is steep on the left side (the contour lines are very close together) and has a gentle slope on the right side. The numbers represent the elevation of the contour lines. (*)
What would the hill look like if you were to slice it from left to right? (*)

22. How to Make a Topographic Profile
300
400
200
100
Again, think of the cardboard analogy. Every layer of cardboard would represent 100 feet of elevation (the same as a contour line). You would have 4 layers of cardboard. Viewed from the side it would look like this (*)
500 feet
400 feet
300 feet
200 feet
100 feet
Thus, you have a somewhat blocky profile of what the hill looks like. (*)
Each layer of the hill has a different piece of cardboard. To determine the size, draw lines from the hill down to the appropriate layer of cardboard. (*)

23. How to Make a Topographic Profile
Normally, the Earth’s surface is not this blocky. In a topographic profile a line is drawn from these points (red dots) producing a smooth transition. (*)
How to Make a Topographic Profile
300
400
200
100
500 feet
400 feet
300 feet
200 feet
100 feet
Thus you have a topographic profile. This is what the hill would look like if you were to cut it along the profile line and look at it from the side. (*)

24. Now it’s your turn. (*) A B
This is the profile line – from A to B. Where this black line crosses the INDEX CONTOURS (you do not have to do every contour line) draw a line down to the appropriate contour elevation (layers) below. (*)

25. A B
The contour interval of this map is 40 feet. Every index contour would then be 200 feet.
8000
7800
7600
7400
7200
7000
6800
6600
6400

26. The profile is finished. (*)A B
The contour interval of this map is 40 feet. Every index contour would then be 200 feet.
8000
7800
7600
In this region the profile line cut across the 7800 foot line 4 times. (*)
7400
7200
7000
6800
6600
6400
The profile is finished. (*)
The last step is to simply connect the “dots”. (*)

27. A B
6400
The contour interval of this map is 40 feet. Every index contour would then be 200 feet.
8000
7000
7600
7400
7200
7800
6800
6600
This is a very classic example of a butte with steep sides and a very flat top. The profile that you see here is an exaggerated scale – the vertical scale is greater than the horizontal scale. The next example is where the vertical scale is closer to the horizontal scale. (*)

28. In this example the butte is still the same horizontal distance, but the vertical scale has been compressed. If the vertical scale was bigger it would produce more exaggeration. (*) A B
These are just different representations of the same butte.

29. Topographic Map Interpretation
Complete handout

30. Topographic Map Interpretation
1) Nova Scotia
2) 50 feet
3) 0.5 km
4) Sand is being deposited by the river into the ocean. A delta is being formed.

31. Topographic Map Interpretation
Tire Plant (2051)
Paper Mill (2255) and an abundance of wooded area as evidenced by the green
Hints of Fishing - Fish Ladder at Skinner Point (2155), Fishers Grant (2755), Boat Harbour West (2655)
Shipyard activities and likely industrial area (2751) with large buildings, cleared area, and the railway.
Hints of Agriculture – Blueberry Island (2750), Cantley Raspberry (2651)
Recreational opportunities – golf course (2550)
Service sector activities in the built up areas (i.e. pink shading) of each community

32. Topographic Map Interpretation
6) The coastline is rugged as evidenced by the closeness of the contour lines which indicates a steep slope. Hard rock, such as igneous and metamorphic, is generally more resistant to erosion and therefore produces this rugged coastline.
7) The southeast part of the map has the presence of marshes which indicates sitting water. These marshes are located in an area with a less steep slope; hence the water does not drain away readily.

33. Topographic Map Interpretation
Close to transportation routes eg Highways 1, 18, 20, 22
Aesthetic Value (i.e. view of St. John’s Harbour, the Atlantic Ocean, and Quidi Vidi Lake)
Leisure Activities eg golfing (6271), Signal Hill Park (6370), fishing, boating, etc.
Economic Reasons i.e. St. John’s is the provincial capital, therefore political conferences
Minimal environmental damage
Close to amenities of downtown St. John’s i.e. shopping
Close to existing water, sewer, and power lines
Avoid the noise of being in the downtown core

34. Topographic Map Interpretation
Use a process of elimination by first asking yourself, does the profile finish higher or lower than where it started? It finishes lower; therefore A and C are eliminated.
Then either go through the process and do an actual cross-section profile to confirm your answer or try to visualize the profile as you move from the starting point to the end. Clearly, this profile simply goes up and then down a hill. Hence, the answer is B.

35. Topographic Map Interpretation
11) Steel Mill (019551),
12) British eg McQueen (0059), Queen Elizabeth Park (0753), Buckley (0156), etc. Aboriginal / First Nations eg Algoma District (0053), Algoma College (0853), Manitou (0956), Shingwauk Island (0752), etc. French eg Bellevue Park (0753)

36. Topographic Map Interpretation
13) Nucleated development as evidenced by the pink shading.
14a) Dispersed.
b)Agriculture: dispersed settlement, cleared areas, roads follow a square pattern, presence of a mushroom farm (960573)
15) Communication Tower