Northern Light

(Oct 27, 2025) Democrat Michael Cashman and Republican Brent Davison are vying for a state Assembly seat in an upcoming special election; to mark the 200th anniversary of the Erie Canal, a replica boat is recreating the first trip from Buffalo to New York Harbor; and we talk with St. Lawrence professor Dan Look, the author of “Math Cats: Scratching the Surface of Mathematical Concepts.” 

(Oct 24, 2025) Gov. Kathy Hochul is weighing whether to sign legislation that would allow someone with a terminal illness to end their life; after workers with newly remote jobs left cities for the countryside during the pandemic, some who moved to the North Country are still here;  and John Warren checks on trail conditions in the Adirondacks.

(Oct 23, 2025) An environmental group wants Ontario's transportation ministry to include wildlife over and underpasses in its plans to expand a major highway that cuts through a critical pathway for animals; Watertown's Zoo has seen a surge of donations after The New York Times published an article about it last week; and we hear a review of a thriller set in a fictional Saranac Lake follows a murderous coven of man-killing witches. 

(Oct 22, 2025) Advocates for people incarcerated in New York State are pushing Gov. Hochul to sign a bill that would expand prison oversight and require more cameras; we trek up McCauley Mountain in Old Forge with NCPR's engineers as they prep a transmitter for winter; and one of NCPR's founding mothers, Martha Foley, joins us in the studio to talk about building the station into a community resource.

(Oct 21, 2025)

(Oct 20, 2025) About 7 million people across the country took to the streets over the weekend to protest the Trump Administration, including more than a thousand people in Potsdam; a private group chat is having big consequences for Republicans around the country and in New York; and sit down with a local philosopher and Quaker to talk about what makes for effective demonstrations. 

(Oct 17, 2025) Gov. Hochul wrote a letter last week expressing interest in the state purchasing 32,000 acres of the Whitney estate in the Adirondacks; we meet an elementary school librarian in Malone who doesn't think her library should be quiet; and Catherine Wheeler and a friend hike up Jay Mountain for some fall leaf-peeping. 

(Oct 16, 2025) Many New York families could lose their SNAP benefits next month following federal policy changes; teens in LaFargeville are determined to fix up a local basketball court that's fallen into disrepair; and a European band is reviving the talharpa, a stringed musical instrument, to create a unique sound.

(Oct 15, 2025) The Indian River High School thespian troupe is exploring explores workers' rights, corporate profit, and one of the very first workers' compensation cases in their staging of the play ‘Radium Girls.'

(Oct 14, 2025)

(Oct 13, 2025) We break down what's happening after federal prosecutors secured an indictment of New York Attorney General Letitia James last week; amid the ongoing drought, farmers in Vermont are wondering if their water will be enough to last them through the winter; and we get a preview of the Halloween events lineup at the Chapman Museum in Glens Falls.

(Oct 10, 2025)

(Oct 9, 2025) New Yorkers on unemployment benefits could see their payments rise by hundreds of dollars per week; we take you to a competition for utility arborists that happened last weekend in Burrville, just ouside Watertown; a North Country native has made it past the first round of "The Voice;" and a conversation with Lake Placid author Joan O'Leary, who is will be signing books and giving a talk tonight in downtown Lake Placid.

(Oct 8, 2025) As the APA moves forward with plans to build a new headquarters in downtown Saranac Lake, critics are asking the board to question the reasons behind the move; Cornell scientists have come up with a way to use apple scraps to make healthier meatballs; and the DEC has some updates to regulations, including that hunters can now use electronic hunting licenses and tags.

(Oct 7, 2025) Limitations to federal visa programs and ramped up immigration enforcement are creating creating uncertainty for some North Country farmers and farmworkers; we break down federal COVID-19 vaccine guidance after lots of confusion; and a woodworker in the southern Adirondacks is incorporating technology into his pieces. 

(Oct 6, 2025) This year marks 25 years since the creation of the Northern Forest Canoe Trail, a 740-mile route that connects the Adirondacks to northern Maine; New York State won't be facing major federal cuts to their counterterrorism budgets after President Trump's administration reversed course; and every fall, a band of dancing witches descends on the southern and central Adirondacks. 

(Oct 3, 2025) Two colleges in the region have lost funding for a federal college prep program; we revisit an audio postcard from a sailing trip with Potsdam's Jim Benvenuto, who died in a motorcycle accident a couple weeks ago; and ahead of this weekend's World Cup mountain biking races in Lake Placid, we listen back to a story about the races last fall.

(Oct 2, 2025) It can be tricky to earn a living while running a seasonal tourism business. A Schroon Lake couple is trying to make it work to be in a place they love; a "tree rodeo" is being held in New York, perhaps for the first time, and it's happening here in the North Country; as the fall colors are hitting their peak, we take a walk along the Bloomingdale Bog trail in the Adirondacks; we preview the adventurous fall lineup at Lake Flower Landing in Saranac Lake.

(Oct 1, 2025) We speak with St. Lawrence University professor Alexander Stewart about how Canton just had its driest summer on record; inflation rebate checks will start arriving in New Yorkers' mailboxes this week—and they'll have to pay federal income taxes on the money; and Chef Curtiss Hemm shares a recipe for an autumnal kale salad.

(Sep 30, 2025) As federal health care subsidies are set to expire in just a few months, many lower and middle-income families could start paying a lot more for insurance; the Newton Falls paper mill caught on fire Sunday; and we'll head to the Ogdensburg Public Library for a conversation with NCPR's book reviewer Betsy Kepes about a new thriller on a search and rescue effort.

(Sep 29, 2025)

(Sep 26, 2025) Police believe the Cohoes murder suspect is injured, but alive as the manhunt continues in the Adirondacks; below average water levels on Lake Champlain have led one ferry operator in Essex County to cease operations for the season; a 16-year-old in an attempted murder investigation in Jefferson County has been located; and, a preview of events around the region, including the Ottawa Latin Jazz Orchestra.

(Sep 25, 2025)

(Sep 24, 2025) We listen back to a profile on Mercy Care for the Adirondacks, a volunteer organization that tackles elder isolation with friendship that's currently seeking new volunteers; conditions inside New York's prisons haven't improved much for inmates and corrections officers since a three-week wildcat strike earlier this year; and News Director David Sommerstein joins the show to preview Adia Victoria's performance at St. Lawrence University this Friday titled “Skip James is My Analysis: An Evening On The Abyss,” which will feature a set of songs and a candid conversation about mental health and the blues. 

(Sep 23, 2025) After decades of trying to restore Lake Champlain's native salmon population, state and federal officials are using a new tool to figure out what stocking strategies are working; a museum in the Adirondacks is facing criticism after auctioning off more than a dozen historic boats; and a crime novelist's newest book focuses on a love story during the tuberculosis era in Saranac Lake. 

(Sep 22, 2025)

(Sep 19, 2025) Skier Jessie Diggins was training in the Adirondacks this week, ahead of World Cup finals in Lake Placid; NYS organizations and officials are preparing for the November election; Republicans claim the Democratic candidate in the 115th Assembly District race violated state law; Police say they haven't found any signs of the Cohoes murder suspect whose truck was found near Paul Smith's last Sunday; and, longtime community celebration Peru Applefest returns to the Champlain Valley!

(Sep 18, 2025) We head out to the woods with St. Lawrence County Public Health to survey mosquitoes following an increase in mosquito-borne illness reports; Republicans in the 115th Assembly District have officially nominated Brent Davison as the candidate they want to replace Billy Jones; and we preview today's talk by Akwesasne Cultural Center Director Justin Cree at the St. Lawrence University Brush Art Gallery exhibit titled "A Culture Is Not a Costume."

(Sep 17, 2025) State policymakers are considering whether closing some of the state's psychiatric hospitals could help close the state's budget gap; we speak with a reporter at the Adirondack Explorer about public school enrollment trends in the Adirondacks; and a conversation about Corning's ultra-low expansion (ULE) glass, which is made in Canton and is a finalist in the state Business Council's "The Coolest Thing Made in New York" contest.

(Sep 16, 2025) A local nonprofit has been leading an effort to train officers across the Adirondacks; Today's North Country at Work story starts in childhood, from growing up cleaning grounds and shucking corn for the family business;  and astronomer Aileen O'Donoghue guides us through what to look for in this month's night sky.

(Sep 15, 2025)

(Sep 12, 2025) The Adirondack Rail Trail is seeing steady traffic and boosting business in the Trilakes area; 2025 was a big summer for fishing tournaments in Massena, and it's becoming more nationally recognized as a fishing destination; and we drop by the Downtown Artist Cellar in Malone to talk with North Country artists Mary Woodcock Johnson and Angela Nephew.

(Sep 11, 2025) Democratic Assemblyman Billy Jones, who stepped down last week to take a job at a local community college, reflects on his nine years in office; as colleges and universities begin a new school year, many are grappling with how to implement and regulate the use of artificial intelligence; and we preview the Jazz at the Lake festival in Lake George this weekend.

(Sep 10, 2025) Gov. Kathy Hochul was in Plattsburgh yesterday to attend the grand opening of a bus manufacturer that helped save hundreds of local jobs and highlight funding for northern border security; federal officials arrested dozens of people at a food processing plant in Central New York last week; and North Words host Mitch Teich talks with Giles Blunt about his new book "Bad Juliet," which is set at a tuberculosis sanitarium in the Adirondacks.

(Sep 9, 2025)

(Sep 8, 2025) We have an update on the St. Regis Falls Central School District, a year after major turmoil; experts share how they think summer's drought will impact the colors changing this fall; and we have a conversation about the unexpected services that North Country libraries offer. 

(Sep 5, 2025) Students across New York went back to school this week, and this year, they'll have limits on using their cellphones at school; we head to Schroon Lake to meet someone working behind the scenes in the performing arts; and we'll venture to the starting line of this year's 90 Miler Canoe Classic in Old Forge.

(Sep 4, 2025) NCPR reporters Cara Chapman and Emily Russell preview the roundtable discussion they're co-hosting in Lake Placid on Monday; state lawmakers voted to study the standards and fees for annual motor vehicle inspections. It comes at the urging of service stations and car dealerships across New York; and, the Otis Mountain Getdown music festival is back in Elizabethtown this weekend. We listen back to a conversation with one of the 30 bands in the line-up, Petite League.

(Sep 3, 2025) Plattsburgh Town Supervisor Michael Cashman officially launched his campaign for an anticipated special election in the 115th Assembly District yesterday; we talk with the logistics coordinator of the 90-Miler Canoe Race about what it takes to keep everyone safe and everything running smoothly; and as apple season begins, Chef Curtiss Hemm shares a recipe for a quick apple cake.

(Sep 2, 2025) Despite the Trump administration asking schools to end diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, one local district says it has no plans of stopping; the chairs of the Democratic county committees in the 115th Assembly District say they're nominating Plattsburgh's town supervisor for an upcoming special election; and many hiking enthusiasts know the basics of the story, but the Adirondack History Museum in Elizabethtown put together a special exhibit to dive deeper into the history of the first 46ers.

(Aug 29, 2025) Sen. Chuck Schumer says the ROTC program at Clarkson University in Potsdam will not shut down, a reversal of a previous Army announcement; a volunteer who works with children who have been abused shares why the work is valuable to him; NY-21's Elise Stefanik addressed concerns that ICE recruitment would take away from local police hires; we tag along with Emily Russell for a trail run in the Mediterranean; and, a preview of the Northern Current Music Festival in Saranac Lake.

(Aug 28, 2025) After more than a year and a half of planning, moving and renovating, Clinton Community College started classes at its new campus this week; we stop by a state park where New York has been offering free swimming lessons this summer; and a conversation with artist Margaret Jacobs of the Akwesasne Mohawk community about her sculpture "Carrying Knowledge: Mint," now on permanent display at the Adirondack Experince: the Museum on Blue Mountain Lake.