This series of river maps is done up in a style inspired by urban transit maps such as those pioneered by Harry Beck in the 1930s for the London Underground. Straight lines, 45-degree angles, simple geometry. The result is more of an abstract network representation than you would find on most maps, and it’s not meant to be taken too seriously — I would not recommend actually transiting through these rivers, as many portions of them are not navigable. But they do, nonetheless, connect us.

If you’d like to know a bit more about how the maps were made, including the many many semi-arbitrary decisions that go in to them, click here.

An Atlas of North American Rivers: Free PDF

It took quite a few years to finish up, but I’m pleased to offer a free PDF covering 43 major river systems of North America.

Poster Prints

Interested in putting a river system on your wall? I’ve got a lot of print-on-demand poster options for you. Most every system from the atlas is here, plus several exclusive maps that are only available in poster form.

Click on each thumbnail to have a look, or click the link to be taken to a print on demand service. You’ll notice a few different styles, just based on how the graphics evolved over time as I kept producing/revising maps.

While I offer most of these maps as free PDFs, they do take time and effort; if you derive some value from them, you are welcome to make a donation to support my continued work.