This Spring, Summer and Autumn has been a very unusual tourism year. David Thompson Country saw almost no tourism in March and April as restaurants, campgrounds, hotels, trail rides and parks shut down, but then businesses were allowed to start opening up in late May and we were almost instantly overwhelmed with visitors coming to enjoy our wilderness, wildlife and waterways.

With the increase in the number of people we also saw a rise in accidents and rescue calls, and an upsurge in trash and waste being left behind during the summer months. Fortunately, our area is well served by Rocky mountain House Search and Rescue (Rocky SAR) and Clearwater Regional Fire & Rescue Services (CRFRS), and there have been multiple volunteer groups who have cleaned up other peoples’ messes.  We would prefer people plan ahead to stay safe and keep David Thompson Country clean.

Despite the challenges that 2020 has presented, we have seen some amazing pictures this year. Here are 13 of our favorites showing what 2020 was like.

1. Climbing mountains with Girth Hitch Guiding near Nordegg.

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Looking to get out for a couple days and improve your climbing skills? One of the reasons we love the Nordegg area is that it offers something exciting for every skill level! . . . If you're having trouble finding a place to stay in Nordegg, don't let it hold you back! Rocky Mountain House is only an hour away and has many hotels to choose from. #adventuremakesyoubetter #davidthompsoncountry #rockclimbing #getoutside

A post shared by Timothy Taylor | ACMG Guide (@girthhitchguiding) on Jul 14, 2020 at 6:14am PDT

2. Riding downhill trails with the Baseline Mountain Biking Club west of Rocky Mountain House.

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Getting Monday's Motivation from @gkr.imagery and another epic photo of his as he captured @jonhandbury flying down the black diamond trail Old Dh during summer Solstice on Saturday! ⛰ Where did your biking adventures take you this weekend?! 🚲 🤘DIG THE STOKE AND BURY THE HATE🤘~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Our Friends: @davidthompsoncountry @clearwatercnty @oldesmokeysbbqshack @wipeout_ski_and_bike @lowesindustries @tamarackjackshoneyandmeadery @bigchiefbeef @drunkin_daisies @wheelersbicyclerepair Our Can Co. in Sundre, AB Jensen Log Creations in Bearberry, AB ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tags: #baselinemtb #dtcountry #loam #albertamtb #mtbcanada #ridetherockies #pinkbike #mountainculture #rockymountains #ridemoremtb #mtbstyle #freeridemtb #yyc #enduromtb #downhillmtb #mtbenduro #mondaymotivaion #mtbstunt #yeg #mtbworld #mtblife #theflannelcrew #mtbtricks #mountainbike #mountainbiking #mtbphoto #igersmtb #mtbphotography #trailbuilding #centralalberta

A post shared by Baseline Mountain Biking Club (@baselinemtbclub) on Jun 22, 2020 at 4:22am PDT

3. Trailrides with McKenzie’s Trails West near Nordegg.

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Pack trips allow us to get up to higher elevations where our guests can enjoy beautiful day trips to high alpine views while riding horses. @travelalberta @explorecanada #rockymountains #canadianrockies #canada #explorecanada #trailriding #ridinginthemountains #horses #cowboy #cowboyfeatures

A post shared by Mckenzie’s Trails West (@mckenzies_trails_west) on Aug 21, 2020 at 3:45am PDT

4.  Relaxing views with Lazy M Lodge near Caroline.

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#sundaythoughts This week, #thelazymlodge was officially re-opened after the closing during the pandemic. And we were excited to be able to welcome guests to our 10th Anniversary quilting weekend. How wonderful to be able to share our deck again with you and hear laughter echoing over the creek. We missed being your place to #restrelaxrecharge and are very happy and thankful to be able to spend the summer in the company of guests. A quote by Evan Davis reminds us about gratitude: „It’s not a bad idea to occasionally spend a little time thinking about things you take for granted. Plain everyday things.“ Joy and Happiness from our valley to your homes. Welcome back! #guestlodge #carolinealberta #davidthompsoncountry #lovealberta #hideaway #countryliving #dtcountry

A post shared by LazyMLodge (@lazymlodge) on May 31, 2020 at 10:57am PDT

5.  Autumn views of Abraham Lake with Rockies Heli Tours west of Nordegg.

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O•B•S•E•S•S•E•D 🍃 🍁 🍂 . 📸 @worldly_wanderer #fallcolours #fall #autumn #leaves #changingoftheseasons #dtcountry #abrahamlake #explorealberta #rockiesheli #aerialviews #helicopter #helitour #heliflight #viewsfromabove #goexplore #bucketlist #workperks #aviation @travelalberta @explorecanada @canadasworld

A post shared by Rockies Heli Canada (@rockiesheli) on Sep 19, 2020 at 7:11pm PDT

6.  Kayaking the creeks and lakes near Expanse Cottages in Nordegg.

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Kayaking Shanks Lake 😁👌👌 … Just a 10 minute drive from us!

A post shared by Expanse Cottages (@expansecottages) on Jun 13, 2020 at 8:37am PDT

7.  Ahlstrom Air getting some great views around Abraham Lake.

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Abraham Lake. #clearwatercounty #nordegg #davidthompsoncountry #rockies #rockymountains #glacierblue #glacierlake #airbus #astar #as350 #westcountry #alberta #canada #heli #mountaintop #mountainview #verticalmagazine

A post shared by Ahlstrom Air Ltd. (@ahlstromair) on Oct 4, 2020 at 2:58pm PDT

8. David Thompson Corridor Climbing Association organized the David Thompson Corridor Cleanup and picked up a lot of garbage.  Great job to them, and for everyone else we need to do better.

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Excited we were able to support the David Thompson Corridor cleanup organized by @andrewtheabel and @jordyyh. What an amazing turnout. Special shout out to @rusochiquitico one of our directors for doing some scouting to find the areas to clean up. #davidthompsoncountry #cleanup #wildplaces #nature #canadianrockies #travelalberta #alberta #canada

A post shared by DTCA (@dt_climbingassociation) on Jul 6, 2020 at 9:30am PDT

9. Gorgeous views hiking around Abraham Lake.

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Reposted from @allie572 • • • Rainbows, lakes and mountains!! Best Sunday vibes!! #climbing #mountains #nordegg #outdoors #nature #visionquest #steepclimb @davidthompsoncountry #DTCountry

A post shared by DavidThompsonCountry (@davidthompsoncountry) on Sep 22, 2020 at 4:40am PDT

10.  Autumn view of Crescent Falls near Nordegg.

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“Look deep into nature and you will understand everything better” – Albert Enstein Image from Crescent Falls Lookout. . . . . . #crescentfalls #crescentfallsalberta #nordegg #nordeggalberta #waterfall #albertaparks #canadalife #explorealberta #explorecanada #travelalberta #dtcountry #loveyourheadwaters #travelalberta #canadaswonderland #clearwatercounty #davidthompsoncountry #waterfalls #canadasworld #roadtrips #igalberta #bighorncountry #yegphotographer #edmontonphotographer #hiking #landscapephotography #travelphotography #canadagems #canadaswonderland #albertatourism #nordegglife #bighorncountry

A post shared by Aslinah.S (@aslinah.s) on Sep 22, 2020 at 2:37pm PDT

11. Views from the cabins at Ride The Wind Ranch near Rocky Mountain House.

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Gorgeous evening at the cabin #ridethewindranch #sunset #cabinrental #albertacanada🇨🇦 #dtcountry #davidthompsoncountry #albertaviews #sunset #painthorses #cabinporchview

A post shared by Ride the Wind Ranch (@ride_the_wind_ranch) on Jul 30, 2020 at 8:39pm PDT

12. Paddle boarding on Abraham Lake in Autumn.  It is rare to see the lake this calm as it is usually quite windy and choppy.

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And just like that , it's the first day of Fall. Not that the Rockies got the memo. Fall's been going strong for a little while now. We witnessed some pretty special conditions last week; the trees, in their prettiest fall coats, were partly submerged because of the high water levels. This meant we could go paddle through this beautiful submerged Fall scene.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .#adventurevisuals  #exploremore#pnwlife #explorealberta #pnwparadise #travelblog #wildernessculture #vsco#allaboutadventures #travelphotography#canada #explorecanada #borntoroam#thatpnwlife #livefolk #pacificnorthwest#wanderlust #wilderness #lifeofadventure#ourcamplife #northwestcreatives #keepitwild#thevisualscollective #liveadventurously#wondermore #explorecanada #fallingforfall #fall

A post shared by Victor Aerden (@victoraerden) on Sep 22, 2020 at 12:00pm PDT

13.  End of summer pictures at the Pioneer Ranch Camp on Crimson Lake near Rocky Mountain House.

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#fall #autumn #nature #love #photography #summerending #october #instagood #seasonschange #pumpkin #travel #leaves #photooftheday #style #autumnvibes #beautiful #art #naturephotography #pumpkins #like #landscape #followforfollowback #fallcolors #autumnleaves #instagram #bhfyp #davidthompsoncountry #dtcountry

A post shared by Nothing To Declare ❤️ (@claudia.cisterna) on Oct 1, 2020 at 6:47pm PDT