NATCHEZ — Miss-Lou residents are finding many ways to keep cool this summer, whether they keep to the shade until later in the day, beat the heat with a sweet treat or stay cool in the community swimming pool.

The Malt Shop manager, Mary Catherine Butler, said shake, malt and snow cone sales are at their peak this time of year, right when students are beginning their summer vacations and the temperatures are starting to climb.

“We see a lot of kids come here from the Stanton Hall pool and now the public pool,” Butler said. “We get kids from the park and just kids or adults walking the streets come for a shake, a malt or a snowball.”

Jayme Etheridge, the assistant manager at Pig Out Inn, said he enjoys a meal from The Malt Shop on Homochitto Street at least once a month year-round — but added that his best way to beat the summer heat is just to avoid it as much as he can.

“I usually try to stay out of the sun,” Etheridge said. “I’m fair-skinned and burn pretty easily.”

Butler said business slows down during the winter but speeds up during the warmer months when Natchez hosts many tourist activities.

“Winter is usually just a little bit slower,” she said. “In fall and spring we have Pilgrimage, but summer is really our boom time.”

Butler said snow cones are her summer-go-to for a quick cool down, and she either makes them at The Malt Shop or stops at traditional snowball stands, either Snowball Paradise in Vidalia or the one outside of Weather Wrath in Natchez.

Weather Wrath owners Chris and Jessica Carney opened their snowball stand about a month ago outside of the shop on 266 Sergeant Prentice Drive.

Jessica Carney said her children have helped her run the stand this summer, which is open daily from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

“We have about 100 to 150 visitors a day when the weather is nice,” Carney said. “We even have (Keto-diet friendly) flavors …”

Some locals have braved the heat to enjoy a walk on the Natchez Bluff, including Drew Hudnall of Ferriday and his children, 8-year-old Wiley and 6-year-old Waylon.

“Every now and then we come out here, but we try to stay in the shade when it’s really hot, or we wait until there’s decent cloud cover,” Hudnall said.

“Sometimes I set up a sprinkler or pool in the yard for the kids to splash around in.”

Since the aquatics center opened a little over a week ago near Liberty Park, many locals have gratefully dived into its cool waters, including Jawarren Browders — a Natchez High School student who visited the pool last week with his younger brother.

Browders said he spent his previous summers at the bowling alley or the movie theater and was happy to find something different to try.

Natchez resident Misty Kragenberink — who formerly lived in Minnesota — said she and her 7-year-old daughter, Amricle Washington have spent the whole week at the pool and on picnics in the shade for lunch.

“The day they opened, we were at the gate,” Kagenberink said, “and we’ve been here every day since.”

The YMCA of Natchez Director, Alice Agner, said the pool had at least 50 daily patrons since opening day. The pool is open to all swimmers from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and closes for maintenance from 2 to 3 p.m. The pool opens at 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays and closes for maintenance from 1:30 to 2 p.m. Daily passes are $5 each and memberships are $35 each or $65 for a family of six.

Call 601-304-2009 for more information regarding the aquatics center.