Routing & Elevation

Detailed contour map of Gem Lake Hills Golf Club with 2‑, 5‑, and 10‑foot elevation intervals highlighting slopes, ridges, and low areas across the landscape.

This Routing & Elevation map details Gem Lake Hills in White Bear Lake, Minnesota as a prototype. Craig Spatial downloaded Ramsey County parcel data, road centerlines, and MnTOPO LiDAR digital elevation model for terrain, then symbolized the contours with bold 10‑foot intervals, intermediate 5‑foot lines, and thinner 2‑foot lines. Craig hand‑drew the hole centerlines, tee boxes, and downhill/uphill indicators.

Craig exported the default elevation profiles from QGIS into Google Sheets for further customization, combining the elevation‑in‑feet profile with the hole atlas. Each layout rotates so the tee box sits at the bottom, the putting green at the top, and the scale bar in yards along the side to help the golfer read distance and slope instantly. A darker ovular gradient draws focus to the area of emphasis around each hole.

This workflow can be replicated for any golf course, disc golf layout, ski hill, or trailhead in the country, and reflects Craig’s passion for the outdoors, golf, and maps.

A topographic map of a golf hole, marked as Hole 4, measuring 157 yards with a par 3. The map shows the hole layout over satellite imagery, with contour lines indicating elevation, and features such as trees, water hazards, and the fairway. An elevat
A satellite view of a golf course hole 7, showing the fairway, green, and surrounding terrain with elevation contours. A yellow dashed line marks the hole's path from the tee box to the hole, and there's a diagram at the bottom illustrating the eleva
A topographic map of a golf hole with satellite imagery background, showing the layout of Hole 12, which is 132 yards and a par 4. The map includes contour lines indicating elevation, a yellow dashed line marking the golf shot path, and a hole marker
Top-down aerial view of a golf hole map, showing hole 17 on a golf course. The map includes a yellow dashed line indicating the ideal shot path, red and white details marking hazards and features, a contour elevation map with red lines, a north arrow

The blue matches the official colors of the golf course, and the contours on Holes 4, 7, 12 and 17 really demonstrate the elevation changes. The elevation profile at the bottom sits in a consistent centered position and uses a 5‑foot delta on the Y‑axis for clarity. Overall, this was a very fun project for Craig.

Detailed contour map of Gem Lake Hills Golf Club with 2‑, 5‑, and 10‑foot elevation intervals highlighting slopes, ridges, and low areas across the landscape.
Detailed contour map of Gem Lake Hills Golf Club with 2‑, 5‑, and 10‑foot elevation intervals highlighting slopes, ridges, and low areas across the landscape.
Elevation profile of hole 17, a 154-yard par 3, showing a downward slope from around 940 feet to below 920 feet over 150 yards.