Foothills County is home to some of the sunniest places in Canada.
On Tuesday (Sept. 24), Environment and Climate Change Canada posted an infographic showcasing the top 10 sunniest cities in Canada, with Calgary ranking fourth.
According to Environment Canada Climatologist David Phillips, both High River and Okotoks rank quite high in the sunniest places category.
"I think overall, you're going to be in the top ten," Phillips explains. "If Okotoks was ranked like it was all the other cities in Canada, then I think you would have been, certainly, in maybe the top ten of the sunniest locations."
Phillips adds that while Okotoks has the same number of dry days as Calgary, Okotoks receives almost 100 mm more precipitation each year than Calgary does.
Because of that, Phillips says Okotoks won't be quite as sunny as Calgary but would still rank high on the scale.
"Now, in terms of High River, and they actually have a lot of dry days. These are days without any kind of precipitation."
Phillips says that High River gets about 50 to 60 per cent more precipitation than Medicine Hat.
"What I am saying is that you don't quite make it like Medicine Hat would, but it certainly would be because it's dry. A lot of dry days, but when precipitates, it precipitates a little more heavily there than it would at Medicine Hat. So, my sense is that both [High River and Okotoks], would be in the top ten, but they wouldn't be quite as sunny as Calgary, Medicine Hat, or Lethbridge."
According to Environment and Climate Change Canada, Medicine Hat receives 2,513 hours of sunshine every year, while Calgary receives 2,405 hours of sunlight yearly.
So, if the sun isn't shining in Foothills County, just wait a little bit.