# Making a canyon-and-river relief with the Canyon River preset > a carving river layered through canyon contour terraces This preset combines both directions of relief in one piece: terrain contours stepping *up* from 1000 m to 1300 m, and river depth bands stepping *down* below the waterline. The result is a model where mountains rise and the river bed sinks - terrain you can run a finger through. It loads on the Columbia River valley in the Canadian Rockies. ## What you need ### 3D printing - FDM printer; PLA - single neutral color, or multicolor via 3MF for the teal depth ramp - 3MF-capable slicer ### Laser cutting - 9 sheets of 2–3 mm [laser-grade plywood](https://yxecreations.com/collections/laser-grade-plywood) or MDF (4 terrain + 5 depth bands) plus a backplate sheet - Optional: blue-tinted [acrylic](https://yxecreations.com/pages/acrylic-sheets) for the depth bands - Laser cutter, glue, weights ### UV print / sublimation - High-res PNG, flat blank ## Step 1 - Start from the preset Open [the Canyon River preset](/map-designer?preset=canyon-river). It loads at zoom ~9.4 over the river valley - a wide regional window where the river carves a long ribbon through the terrain. When you move it, look for places where a big river or reservoir cuts through mountains: zoom 9–10.5 keeps both the valley walls and the water channel in frame. The terrain layers cover 1000–1300 m, so check the preview and retune elevations for your location (see Step 2). ## Step 2 - Tune the layers Top to bottom: - **Topography 1300m / 1200m / 1100m / 1000m** - four terrain contours at 100 m steps. If your canyon sits at a different altitude (the Grand Canyon rim is ~2100 m), shift these values to bracket your valley walls. Empty layers should be deleted. - **River depth** - a bathymetry layer with *invert as holes*, five bands from `bathymetryBand1` (shallowest, `#DDF3F1`) to `bathymetryBand5` (deepest, `#2F96B6`). Each band becomes a plate with the deeper water cut out, so the river bed steps down toward the backplate. Depth comes from a modeled approximation by default, with real charted surveys for a growing set of major water bodies, so you can pick Simplified or Advanced when you add the layer. Coverage varies by water body; if the bands look flat or missing for your river, pick a larger lake/reservoir reach nearby. - **Backplate** - `#1f2937` dark slate, the river's deepest floor. The four terrain contours default to stacked plates, but each (or the whole group, via Edit) now has a **Score** export type alongside Fill and Solid line - switch to Score to engrave the contour lines flat instead of cutting plates. For a dedicated single-sheet engraved version, see the [Topo Score Lines preset](/map-designer?preset=topo-score-lines). ## Step 3 - Export - **3D printing:** 3MF carries the teal depth ramp and terrain colors; STL gives a single-material model. - **Laser:** per-layer SVG ZIP. Run small-polygon cleanup - regional zoom plus bathymetry produces slivers. Keep the inversion toggle on so depth bands export as stepped plates rather than water blobs. - **UV print:** high-res PNG for a flat hypsometric/bathymetric poster. ## 3D Printing ### 3D printing 1. Export the 3MF and open it in the slicer - terrain steps up, river bed steps down, colors assigned. With STL, a stone-gray filament plus a brushed-on blue wash in the channel afterwards looks fantastic. 2. Print flat, no supports; 0.16 mm layers keep the depth steps visible. 3. Scale 180 mm+ - the narrowest river band needs the width. ## Laser Cutting & Engraving ### Laser cutting 1. Cut the **Backplate** first (deepest water color - consider dark blue here instead of slate). 2. Cut the five **River depth** band plates, deepest first. Each is a full plate with a successively smaller hole - label them, they look similar. 3. Cut the four **Topography** plates, 1000 m up to 1300 m. 4. Dry-fit: backplate → band5 → band4 → band3 → band2 → band1 → topo 1000 → 1100 → 1200 → 1300. 5. Glue bottom-up, weight flat, sand the outer edges flush. [3M tape](https://yxecreations.com/collections/3m-tape) (300LSE for ply, 467 or 468 for acrylic bands) bonds the stack with no squeeze-out. ## UV & Sublimation Printing ### UV print / sublimation 1. Export the high-res PNG - flat, the teal ramp reads like a nautical chart of the river. 2. Print on hardboard or press onto aluminum; the dark ground makes the light shallow band glow. ## Make it yours - Strong candidates: reservoir canyons (Lake Powell!), fjords, the Columbia and Fraser valleys, big dammed rivers. - Retune terrain bands to your altitude - e.g., 1700–2100 m for Glen Canyon, 0–400 m for fjords. - Swap the depth ramp to warm canyon tones: `#7A3B2E` deep to `#E8C9A0` shallow, for a desert-sandstone read. - Cut the depth bands from successively darker blue acrylics and skip painting entirely. - Add a Trails-style layer (`roadsPath`) on top for the rim trail. - Mark the put-in and take-out of a favorite paddling run with heart icons. - 3MF + clear PLA for the depth bands = genuinely watery river channel. --- Open the tool: https://www.mylasertools.com/learn/guides/canyon-river Read online: https://www.mylasertools.com/learn/guides/canyon-river