Summer of Social Distancing: 30 Photos That Capture One Strange Season

This was a summer that many of us won't soon forget, but not for the usual reasons of memory-making vacations, crowded backyard barbecues, trips to the pool, and the like. Many of those options were off-limits to us in a season marked by a pandemic. But — perhaps not surprisingly — Americans still found ways to enjoy these warmer-temperature months, just usually with masks on and a bit farther apart than normal. Keep clicking for 30 across-the-nation shots that show just how surreal a COVID-focused summer can get. 

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People dine on a closed street in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, in mid-July. In June, officials announced they would host "Saturday Nights in the City," a weekly event designed to boost business for struggling restaurants.

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A masked couple heads toward the beach in Miami Beach, Florida, in June.

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Like other parks around the nation, San Francisco's Washington Square Park used circles to help park-goers social distance.

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Houston Astro baseball player Josh Reddick attempts to catch a grand slam hit by the San Diego Padres' Jake Cronenworth. Mannequins — and in some cases cardboard cutouts — took the place of fans.

Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado, held a drive-in version of its annual Film on the Rocks event this summer. Here, a man in his bathrobe drinks a white Russian while watching "The Big Lebowski" with a friend.

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Movies weren't the only events that adopted a drive-in theme. In August, a group of masked women dance while social distancing at the Ventura County Fairground's "Concerts in Your Car."

A group of masked people walk along Broadway in downtown Nashville in August. The city enacted a law requiring face masks starting July 3.

In July, a masked hiker prepares to embark upon the Bright Angel Trailhead near Grand Canyon National Park's South Rim. With other forms of entertainment limited, many Americans took to the outdoors this summer.

Prefer to stay closer to home? Check out 18 National Park Webcams Where You Can See the Wilderness from Home.

An outdoor, socially distanced workout class is held in San Anselmo, California, in mid-June. The town closed streets on weekends to help gyms, restaurants, and other small businesses survive.

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On August 24, Kenosha, Wisconsin, demonstrators protested from their cars to voice dissent against the shooting of Jacob Blake, who was shot seven times in the back by local law enforcement in front of his three children.

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A couple strolls along the boardwalk in Ocean City, Maryland, while wearing masks in the early part of the summer.

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In mid-July, people in New York City socially distance while waiting for the ferry to Governors Island.

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Restaurant patrons dine behind a plexiglass shield in Hoboken, New Jersey, in June.

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In early summer, a Nevada waterpark employee wears a mask while performing his job.

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With many public swimming pools remaining closed during the summer, people sought out watering holes like this one in Ithaca, New York's Six Mile Creek Natural Area.

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A group of women, all in masks, socially distance while doing yoga in a Manhattan park on August 22.

Students moving into Ohio State University dormitories in mid-August were required to schedule a time slot to do so, with only eight students permitted to enter any one building over the course of a single hour.

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A discarded mask floats in the water near Jersey Shore beachgoers in July.

A blackjack dealer deals from behind a plexiglass shield at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in early July.

Many young people didn't let the pandemic slow down the party. Here, a masked group attends the Rodney Atkins drive-in concert in Ventura, California in early August.

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A masked youngster practices her swing in Central Park in August.

An aerial view of Long Beach, New York, in mid-August shows a fitness training session taking place in the ocean. Jetty Fitness Club held classes called "Life Outside the Box" to help survive the restrictions the pandemic had placed on small businesses.

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Visitors take photos at Yosemite National Park's Tunnel View lookout in early June shortly after its reopening. Only about half of the average June visitors were allowed into the park, and park-goers were required to make an online reservation prior to arrival.

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Two masked women look at a phone while in the Bavarian town of Leavenworth, Washington in August.

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Hammocks in Governors Park in New York City provided a way for people to socially distance.

Masked patrons shop for fresh vegetables at a farmers market in Sandwich, Massachusetts, in August.

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A woman wears a mask while skateboarding on the boardwalk of Empire Ferry Park near the Brooklyn Bridge in June.

A young boy pulls his mask down in Miami Gardens, Florida, in order to eat his ice cream in this early July photo.

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A Coney Island beachgoer uses his mask to shield his eyes from the sun in July.

Children with face coverings ride the swings in Wildwood, New Jersey, in early July.

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