Pretty maps are one of my favorite things to look at, but until very recently, I have always struggled to make one. I need to make a pretty simple map of Delaware Bay with all of our sampling stations for my research. I remember that making a map code was the most daunting task. First, I have made a simple map with Delaware Bay.
But then it was too simple. Making a map code in R is quite tricky for me. Then after many hours of searching the internet, I made a rudimentary map like this. This map was made by me in the first couple of months of my Master’s, and to this day, I do not understand how even to change the circle color of this map.
I used this map for one and a half years, everywhere! But I really wanted to learn about making colorful maps, perhaps with bathymetry or salinity data?
Later, I made a basic inset map like the figure below. Better, but not good enough!
Then in the science visualization course, I learned how to use QGIS, and I kid you not, it is the best tool ever invented. Maps are so hard to make via code (if you are a basic coder like me), but they are so easy to make and manipulate on the site like QGIS and ArcGIS. So here you go, my final product which I am pretty happy about.
Did I mention that all my blogs end with a footnote that “still a longgggggggggggg way to go”??