North Country Public Radio

13/08/2025

"Water skiing on Schroon Lake." NCPR Photo of the Day 📸 : John McDonald

To submit a photo, email a photo and caption to [email protected]

12/08/2025

A new state report highlights big shortfalls in the number of health care providers in rural areas. Comptroller Tom DiNapoli says existing challenges to access will only get worse when federal Medicaid changes go into effect.

State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli's office analyzed 16 counties, including Essex, Franklin, Hamilton, Lewis and Washington in the North Country.

12/08/2025

"Maggie in the Water. Bloomingdale Bog Trail." NCPR Photo of the Day 📸 : Audrey Schwartzberg

11/08/2025

https://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/52090/20250806/north-country-at-work-harvesting-invasive-milfoil-in-lake-george

Divers have been pulling milfoil from Lake George since shortly after its discovery in 1985. What's it like under the water?

10/08/2025

This week's North Country at Work photo shows Borden’s milk plant in De Kalb Junction, with two large ice houses (the buildings to the right) to store ice and keep milk cold. Circa 1900-1910. De Kalb Junction, NY.

You can view this photo and more like it in person at the Town of De Kalb Historian's Office.

Find thousands of work photos from across our region online at ncpr.org/work.

09/08/2025

The invasive water chestnut was discovered in the Oswegatchie River in Heuvelton in 2020. It quickly grew out of control. The plant's dense mats of leaves on the water's surface make it difficult to impossible to boat or fish in affected areas.

Now, the water chestnut is spreading downstream into the St. Lawrence River near Ogdensburg. One scientist says he’s hopeful we’ll be able to stop it from taking over.
https://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/archive.php?livepreview=1&id=52161

09/08/2025

"On the Fly at Cary Lake" NCPR Photo of the Day 📸 : Matt Dreimiller

08/08/2025

Thousands turned out last weekend for Plattsburgh's Inaugural Michigan Fest, which honored the iconic hot-dog-and-meat-sauce delicacy. Have a listen👇
https://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/52174/20250808/thousands-turn-out-for-plattsburgh-s-inaugural-michigan-fest

08/08/2025

☄️ In the Adirondack High Peaks on Saturday, sunrise will be at about 5:52 am and sunset at about 8:09 pm. The Perseid meteor shower will peak on Tuesday night.

☀️ We’re expecting to see some scattered storms this afternoon, followed by drier and well above normal temperatures for Sunday through most of next week.

🌡️ Temperatures on High Peaks summits are expected to be in the upper-60s Saturday and lower-70s Sunday, while temperatures at lower elevations are expected to rise into the mid-80s by Sunday afternoon.

🔥 The fire danger has been raised to Moderate, across of all of New York State.

📉 The St. Lawrence and Lake Champlain valleys, including parts of the Eastern Adirondacks are Abnormally Dry according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Use caution with open fires this weekend.

💧 Rivers and streams are running at below normal levels, even for this time of year. Paddlers and boaters should be aware of low water conditions - some low water paddle routes will not be passable this weekend.

🌊 At North Creek the Hudson River is under 3 feet on the stream-gage. The Raquette River will be at about 3 1/3 feet this weekend in Piercefield. And Lake Champlain continues to fall, - it’s down to nearly 94.5 feet just north of Whitehall.

🦠 Water temperatures remain warm, mostly in the mid-70s. Be on the lookout for and avoid algae blooms which could be potentially toxic, especially to pets. Blooms have been reported in Lake Champlain and also in the Champlain Canal from Whitehall down to Fort Edward.

🧗 All rock-climbing areas have now reopened. The Avalanche Pass Trail remains closed and impassable.

🚧 Construction has begun on the Basford Falls and Rainbow Falls trailhead parking areas on Tooley Road in the Grass River Wild Forest. Those trails remain open however.

🧰 On Monday DEC will resume work on the parking area for the Peninsula Nature Trails in Lake Placid. Parking and access to the trails from Peninsula Way will be prohibited. That’s expected to reopen August 23rd.

🚫 In the Bog River area, the Otterbrook Road will be closed beginning Monday from the railroad tracks to Upper Dam Road.

🪓 And the Student Conservation Association recently completed a new 20-foot foot bridge over the Black Pond Outlet on the Bridge Brook Pond trail. They also cleared over 8 miles of the Bog River and Winding Falls trails.

⚠️ And a reminder that State Route 73 will be reduced to one lane weekdays beginning Monday, through August. A paving project will be underway between Gilmore Hill Road and Lower Cascade Lake and between Mt. Van Hoevenberg and the road to the North Elba Transfer Station.

Outdoor Conditions by John Warren from the New York Almanack
Photo and Production by Caitlin Kelly

08/08/2025

"Smokey Sunrise. Sun rises through the Canadian wildfires smoke and the trees on an August morning." NCPR Photo of the Day 📸 : Bill Chase, Queensbury NY

07/08/2025

Alcoa and the New York Power Authority have a tentative deal that could keep the aluminum giant in Massena for at least ten years and guarantee 500 jobs.

Alcoa and the New York Power Authority are closing in on a deal that would keep the aluminum manufacturer in Massena for at least another decade....

07/08/2025

We're just beyond the halfway point between the Summer Solstice and the Autumn Equinox! Which feels like a perfect time to share our favorite Spring 2025 Photo of the Day moments 🪺

We are always accepting Photo of the Day entries. You can email your photo to [email protected]. We can't wait to see the North Country through your eyes 📸

Which one is your favorite? Let us know in the comments below ⬇️

1. "From the summit of Blue Mountain looking towards the Adirondack High Peaks." Photo: Matt Dreimiller

2. "Cormorants on Paradox Lake." Photo: Ellie George

3. "Early Morning Moon Over Lake Champlain, Essex, NY." Photo: Kathryn Reinhardt, Willsboro, NY

4. "The Black Fly Challenge Challenge is limited to 1,000 racers so the rider’s meeting gets crowded." Photo: mr.wakiki

5. "Male Indigo Bunting sings his sharp warble from dead and dried Horseweed on a May morning." Photo: Bill Chase, Queensbury NY

6. "Spring is here in our old orchard in Bellmont Center, New York. I planted these trees in 1973." Photo: Wayne Rogers

7. "Fox kits are not deterred by a brisk May afternoon in Leyden, NY." Photo: Joe Lawrence, Lowville

8. "Blue-sky morning along Lake Champlain. The sunlight on the shore highlighted this peaceful scene." Photo: Chris Maron

9. "Tree paddling in high water, spring melt, on the Raquette River in Coreys NY." Photo: Nancie Battaglia

10. "After the weekend storms. Pyramid Lake, Paradox." Photo: Courtney Bradt