Live Maps

I sprang for a WordPress plugin that lets me place live maps or satellite imagery in the website. There are three choices:

  • OpenMaps - excellent free street maps
  • GoogleMaps - not quite as good street maps from Google that may not be free
  • GoogleEarth - satellite imagery from Google that may not be free

I say may not be free because Google's terms are complicated and depend on the amount of traffic you get. I'm guessing it will be free, but I can't be sure yet. So far Google has not cost me anything.

The plugin is: WP Google Maps - https://wpgmaps.com

I looked at a bunch of plugins, and this turned out to be the best. In fact, it was one of the few that actually worked, and the only one that offered an alternative to Google. You can make one map with the free version, unlimited maps with the paid version, which starts at $40 for 3 websites. Ironically, this was the first mapping solution I tried, and the rest was a waste of time.

The first live map I made on this site was Old Bridge - South River.

Later I replaced the entire front end of the plugin with my own code.


Laurence Harbor
( 40.45105, -74.27258 )

  1. Lake Lefferts - Matawan ( 40.41563, -74.23362 )
  2. Raritan Bay - Cliffwood (E) ( 40.45089, -74.22033 )
  3. Raritan Bay - Cliffwood (W) ( 40.45216, -74.22269 )
  4. Raritan Bay - Cliffwood (Whale Creek) ( 40.45090, -74.22274 )
  5. Raritan Bay - Keyport (W) ( 40.43921, -74.20160 )
  6. Raritan Bay - Laurence Harbor (E) ( 40.45877, -74.24622 )
  7. Raritan Bay - Laurence Harbor (W) ( 40.46223, -74.25482 )
  8. Raritan Bay - South Amboy (N) ( 40.48343, -74.27059 )
  9. Raritan Bay - South Amboy (S) ( 40.47946, -74.26831 )
  10. Raritan Bay - South Amboy Ramp ( 40.48401, -74.27416 )
  11. Raritan River - Perth Amboy ( 40.50057, -74.27712 )
  12. Superfund Site ( 40.45776, -74.24129 )
  13. Wagner's Marina - Matawan Creek ( 40.43540, -74.21416 )

Much of this part or Raritan Bay is fenced-off because of lead pollution from the industrial slag used to build jetties and seawalls in the 1970s. Supposedly, most of it has been cleaned up, but the whole area remains 'off-limits'. Since the toxins leach into the water and are carried off by the currents, you really have to wonder about the entire bay. A quick search online will reveal more on this subject than you ever wanted to know.