Eleven ways to escape the summer heat in Sonoma County

This week, Sonoma County experienced record-breaking heat, with highs that reached over 100 degrees in the county - the hottest temperature reached so far is 110 degrees in Cloverdale and Healdsburg!

If you're stuck at home with no air conditioning and feel like you're melting away, drink plenty of water, and then try a few of these local ways to stay cool around Sonoma County.

1. Head to the coast. Our Sonoma Coast is known for its year-round chilly weather. In the summertime, this provides a welcome respite from the blazing inland temperatures. While the rest of Sonoma County was withering in 100-degree weather earlier this week, Bodega Bay was a balmy 67 degrees.

2. Keep windows open at night, but close them during the day. Just because you don't have AC doesn't mean you need to suffer. Take advantage of the cool night air by inviting it in overnight. But as soon as the sun starts to come up, close the windows, draw the curtains and keep the lights off. It might not create cold air, but the indoor temperature will be a little cooler than normal.

3. Head to any of Sonoma County's swimming spots. From swimming lagoons to community pools, here are some of our favorite places to swim.

4. Go wine tasting. Many of Sonoma County's wineries and tasting rooms are a cool place to visit when its ultra warm outside. Here are some of wine writer Virginie Boone's favorite places to find good wines to sip.

5. Curl up in the shade with a good book. Looking for a recommendation? Here are some of my personal favorite fairytale retellings, loved by adults (and a few for kids, too).

6. Go to the theater. Sonoma County is known as one of the best places to catch a live performance. This week is “Becky's New Car” with Sonoma Arts Live, “West Side Story” with SRT, “Broadway Under the Stars” with Transcendence Theater Co., and more! See a full line-up of this season's summer theater here.7. Visit a garden. If the weather outside is frightfully hot, spend some time in the lush, green shade. Find reprieve at Quarryhill Botanical Garden in Glen Ellen, or the beautiful Hallberg Butterfly Garden in Sebastopol, the sweet-smelling Russian River Rose Garden in Healdsburg or the historic Luther Burbank Home & Gardens in Santa Rosa. Find a list of upcoming garden tour events here.8. Enjoy a crafty day. When its hot outside, the last thing most of us want to do is move around a lot. So why not pass the time sitting with some crafts? Make mermaid crowns with all those extra seashells you've collected over the years. Paint pottery at The Pottery Studio in Santa Rosa. Or “paint” rocks with melted crayons, like the video below (instructions here):

9. Have a water fight. Use water guns, sponges, water balloons or even just cups of water.

10. Go ice skating. Nothing banishes the heat like putting yourself on ice. When the temperature is at its peak, chill out at Snoopy's Home Ice for an afternoon of ice skating. If you're not feeling that coordinated, you can still spend an air-conditioned afternoon in the Warm Puppy Cafe with some delicious, organic food, or next door at the Charles Schulz Museum.

11. I scream, you scream, keep cool with ice cream! Here are 24 local flavors you'll want to try all at once. How do you beat the heat? Let us know in the comments.