Shaded USGS Topo Maps

Introduction:

 These topographic maps are great for planning hiking/bicycling trips, environmental research, land use planning, and many other uses.  They also make a great base map for using Google Earth in off-line mode for those times when a high speed wireless connection is not available.  

The Topographic Map Mosaics are available in downloadable bundles designed to be viewed with Google Earth.  Each map was created by combining up to 64 7.5-minute series (1:24,000 scale) USGS topographic maps into a seamless mosaic covering an area up to 1x1 degree is size (about 3,000 to 4,000 square miles).  In addition, the 10-meter National Elevation Dataset (NED) was used to apply hill shading to the maps, which greatly enhances the topography.  The maps align with the underlying imagery in Google Earth which allows you to adjust the transparency of the map to compare it to the aerial photography of Google Earth.

You can purchase multiple map bundles and they will join together seamlessly in Google Earth.  

Installation:

Each map is downloaded as a ZIP file.  Simply unzip the contents of the zip file into a folder and then double click on the KML file to add the map to Google Earth.

PC users can also change the ZIP extension to EXE, then double click on the file to automatically install the map into Google Earth.

Mac users may need to install the maps using the unzip command in the Terminal application (“unzip N46W123-Setup.zip” for example).  There is also a free Mac program call The Unarchiver will allow you to run the EXE file directly.  

I've also heard that they work fine on Linux.  As far as I know, they do not work with any of the tablet versions of Google Earth, iPads, hand-held GPS units, etc.  Hopefully some of these platforms will support downloadable KML content in the future.

Finding Your Map:

Currently, the eastern, western and southern portions of the United States are completed.  I plan on releasing the central portion of the country by the end of April.  To download a map bundle, first locate your area of interest on the index map provided below and make a note of the map ID (eg N46W123).   Then enter the Map ID into the search box at the top of the page, or browse through the maps until you find the one you are interested in to add it to your cart.

There is also a KML version of the Map Index available for download.  This will overlay an index of the available maps onto Google Earth.  Simply click on one of the rectangles to be taken to the page for that map.

Currently, the map bundles are only available by electronic delivery.  PayPal is the only payment option available at this time  However, a Pay Pal account is not necessary.  You can use a credit card to make the payment through PayPal and you do NOT need to create a PayPal account.  Simply use the Guest option in Pay Pal.

A free map covering the San Francisco Area of California is available so you can try a map before you buy.  Please try before you buy as there are no refunds.

Current Coverage Area Map