Rules To Follow When Using Topographic Maps
*Things to remember:
 Contour lines never cross or intersect.
 When a contour line crosses a river (stream) the contour line
forms a “V” bend. The “V” always points upstream. This tells
you the direction the river is flowing (water flows out of the
“V” bend). Water always flows toward the lowest elevation
(indicated by decreased contour number values for elevation).
 The slope (gradient) is steepest when the contour lines are
close together, and gradual (flat) when they are far apart.
 Contour lines form loops or are lines that go the edge of the
map. The higher elevations on a map are found when the
contour lines make smaller closed loops.
 A depression on a contour map is shown by contour lines with
small “hachures” pointing toward the lowest depression.
 A profile is a vertical cross-section (side view) of a land
surface between two points on a topographic map representing
the shape of the land. (line up with paper, mark, and draw).
Topographic Map