Sometimes you just need a place to stay cool.

Hopkins, along with the rest of Hennepin County, is under a heat advisory and hazardous weather outlook, according to the Twin Cities National Weather Service.  The heat advisory is in effect from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m Wednesday. Temperatures are expected to hit a high near 93 degrees Wednesday and near 90 degrees Thursday, remain in the high 80s for the rest of the week.

“A much warmer and humid air mass will move into Minnesota Wednesday morning,” the weather service said on its website. “By the afternoon, the combination of heat and humidity will create heat index values between 95 and 105. The heat and humidity will increase the risk for heat related illnesses.”

The National Weather Service offers a few precautionary tips on their website to reduce risk during the heat advisory.  

Here are five of Hopkins Patch’s suggestions of ways to beat the heat throughout the summer. Have an idea to share? Where will you be going to cool off? Tell us in comments!

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Want to enjoy the water without dragging out the boat?

• Shady Oak Beach is the swimming hole for Hopkins residents. The beach is open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. through Aug. 1 and from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Aug. 2 through Aug. 26. Swimming ends a half hour before sunset. Click here for full details on prices.

Be sure to nominate your favorite parks in our Readers Choice contest. 

Looking for a way to cool down without going in the water?

• Several business offer ice cream, frozen yogurt or cool treats, including Cold Stone Creamery, the Mainstreet Dairy Queen and the Blake Road DQ Chill and Grill. Nominate which cool treats business you think is the “best of” Hopkins in our recent Readers Choice contest.

You don’t have to eat to escape the heat. These fun activities that come with air conditioning:

• With a $2.50 matinee, A/C doesn’t come any cheaper than a ticket to Mann’s Hopkins Cinema 6. Built from the ground up for movie-goers on a budget, it maintains a quality feel that few can match. Click here for showtimes.
• Tuttle’s is a family entertainment destination with a full spectrum of cool activities to enjoy. It has a 24-lane cosmic bowling center and attached game room and runs the Shady Oak Grill and bar.
• SS Billiards is a local hangout for billiard and pinball enthusiast. The 11^th Avenue business has been in operation since 1972 and has five regulation-size pool tables, 20 pinball machines and a variety of video games.

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