The latest articles on DEV Community by Jakub Blady (@jakub_blady_6b1c2af87c216). https://dev.to/jakub_blady_6b1c2af87c216 https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F3878997%2Ff3602fbe-44d4-4d88-a034-3554f08a9351.png https://dev.to/jakub_blady_6b1c2af87c216 en Jakub Blady Wed, 22 Apr 2026 12:53:48 +0000 https://dev.to/jakub_blady_6b1c2af87c216/where-do-40-million-canadians-actually-live-b49 https://dev.to/jakub_blady_6b1c2af87c216/where-do-40-million-canadians-actually-live-b49 <p>We all know Canada is huge. But when you render its population as 3D spikes rising from the surface, the answer becomes visceral. Almost everyone lives in a narrow strip hugging the US border.</p> <p>I built this map using <strong>R</strong> and <strong>rayshader</strong>. Each spike represents population density in a given hexagonal cell. Taller and darker = more people.</p> <p><a href="https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=800%2Cheight=%2Cfit=scale-down%2Cgravity=auto%2Cformat=auto/https%3A%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Farticles%2Fni9pyj48rsudug2j1qlx.png" class="article-body-image-wrapper"><img src="https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=800%2Cheight=%2Cfit=scale-down%2Cgravity=auto%2Cformat=auto/https%3A%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Farticles%2Fni9pyj48rsudug2j1qlx.png" alt="Canada Population Density Spike Map" width="800" height="565"></a></p> <h2> What Stands Out </h2> <ul> <li> <strong>The Golden Horseshoe</strong> (Toronto area) towers over everything. Nearly 1 in 4 Canadians lives here.</li> <li> <strong>Montreal</strong> dominates Quebec as a clear second peak.</li> <li> <strong>Vancouver</strong> is squeezed between the Pacific and the mountains.</li> <li> <strong>Calgary–Edmonton</strong> forms a visible dual-spike corridor in Alberta.</li> <li> <strong>Everything north of ~55°N</strong> is essentially flat. Millions of square kilometers, almost nobody.</li> </ul> <p>~90% of Canadians live within 200 km of the US border.</p> <h2> How It's Made </h2> <p><strong>Data:</strong> <a href="https://data.humdata.org/organization/kontur" rel="noopener noreferrer">Kontur Population Dataset</a> H3 hexagonal grid with population counts.</p> <p>This map is part of a larger project (Public Tender Search Engine) <strong><a href="https://znajdzprzetargi.pl/" rel="noopener noreferrer">Wyszukiwarka przetargów</a></strong> , where we use data visualization and geospatial analysis to explore public procurement and demographic data across countries.</p> canada people