When Smoke Burleigh and his wife Monica Shaw, of Lake Itasca, Minn., began their voyage down the Mississippi River at Memphis, the weather was the least of their worries.

“It wasn’t cold when we put in, but as we made our way down the river the temperature dropped a lot,” Burleigh said.

So when the couple saw the sun beaming down over Natchez a week ago, it was the perfect time to bask in the sun before a lunch break at the Isle of Capri Casino.