Meanders of the Little Patuxent River

map of a river valley showing meanders

This is a relative elevation model of the Little Patuxent River, in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, where the river flows through the Patuxent Research Refuge. A REM takes digital elevation data and adjusts it so that it displays heights relative to the water’s surface as a river flows downstream, emphasizing abandoned channels and side channels that are hidden under trees in aerial photos.

aerial photo
foggy marsh in winter

A marsh just south of the river.

aerial photo and digital elevation model of a log jam

A log jam on a bend of the river, in a 2023 aerial and in the relative elevation model.

foggy river valley in winter

The Little Patuxent River, seen from the Northeast Corridor tracks.

map of meanders

Detail of the area just upstream of the railroad tracks.

Data sources: Anne Arundel County–State of Maryland 0.3m DEM, 2023, and Maryland Six Inch Imagery, 2023.

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