Northern Light

(Sep 18, 2026) The Strand Center for the Arts in Plattsburgh will stay open after announcing it was on the brink of closure; we go to the shores of Lake Ontario for a late-summer stroll through the El Dorado Coastal Preserve in Henderson; and John Warren checks on trail conditions for a weekend in the Adirondacks.

(Sep 17, 2026) Massena's Town Board voted against a 6-month moratorium on a controversial data center project; a woman in Champlain is balancing her work in health care with caring for her family; and we talk with Ottawa Valley singer-songwriter Mimi O'Bansawin, who is putting her ancestors' language into her latest album “Evoke.”

(Sep 16, 2026) A controversial proposal to test military cannons in the Adirondacks is heading back to the APA for a final vote; the Army is cross-training its medics to improve its ability to care for dogs wounded in battle; and NCPR book reviewer Betsy Kepes talks about the latest novel from Pulitzer Prize finalist Daniel Mason.

(Sep 15, 2026) New York State is walking back its plans to explore building a new prison that could house up to three thousand inmates; we join a Saranac Lake man with cerebral palsy on his journey to walk all 34 miles of the Adirondack Rail Trail; and astronomer Aileen O'Donoghue preps us for what to expect under autumn skies.

(Sep 14, 2026) A new wooden troll made by a globally celebrated artist has moved into the Wild Center and is making a permanent home in the Adirondacks; the ferry that connects Cape Vincent to Wolfe Island in Canada is slated to get up and running thanks to a community member; and we're debuting a new segment called Adirondack Selections.

(Sep 11, 2026) It's been 25 years since the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and we hear how people around the North Country played a role in the aftermath; John Warren checks on trail conditions in the Adirondacks; and we talk with NCPR news director David Sommerstein live at the starting line in Old Forge for the 90-Miler Canoe Classic that kicks off this morning.

(Sep 10, 2026) Counties across the North Country are preparing to pay more for SNAP benefits after the Trump Administration shifted the majority of the cost to states; folks will get the rare opportunity to climb up the Macdonough Monument this weekend during the Battle of Plattsburgh Commemoration; and we take a look at NCPR's community calendar and preview a few events, including a genealogy workshop in Ogdensburg and a folk performance in Edwards.

(Sep 9, 2026) The Strand Center for the Arts in Plattsburgh is at risk of closing if it can't raise $50,000 to keep itself afloat; The Village Mercantile in Saranac Lake is closing its doors after 15 years; and we have a conversation with a teacher in St. Regis Falls about why her fifth graders mean so much to her.

(Sep 8, 2026) The town of Plattsburgh's former Air Force Base has been added to a federal program that will fund a study by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; there may be a slow start to this year's fall foliage season, but forest researchers are still expecting vibrant colors across the landscape; and we preview Afrofestival Ottawa, a celebration of African music, fashion, food, and culture in Canada's capital, coming up this weekend.

(Sep 4, 2026) We visit the Evans Mills Raceway in Jefferson County ahead of big races this weekend; we tag along with kids at the Little River Community school outside Canton, as they paint local wildlife for nature trail signs; John Warren checks on Adirondack trail conditions for this first weekend in September; and we have a preview of the Northern Current Music Festival in Saranac Lake this weekend.

(Sep 3, 2026) Immigration arrests surged across New York State last month after ICE conducted what it calls "Operation Rotten Apple"; we tag along with a professional 'treetop rescuer' in the Southern Adirondacks; and Kitty O'Neil joins us for a conversation about what's going on on North Country farms this month.

(Sep 2, 2026) Even though New York is barring local police from collaborating with ICE, other programs, especially here along the northern border, encourage local police and federal border agents to work together; we meet a crossing guard in Canton who delights kids with her fun chatter and collection of funny hats; and Chef Curtiss Hemm of the Carriage House Cooking School joins us for a discussion about cookbooks.

(Sep 1, 2026) The crisis within New York's prison system is driving staff away from jobs that used to be sought after in the North Country; we go to Dekalb in St. Lawrence County, where an educational program immerses kids in the Revolutionary War era; and we get a preview of the Bike the Barns event in the Champlain Valley, where cyclists can get an up-close view of the region's farms.

(Aug 31, 2026) We speak to people along the North Country coast about President Trump's executive order renaming Lake Ontario; a law prohibiting local law enforcement in New York from signing formal cooperation agreements with ICE is getting backlash from the state's Republicans; and we listen back to a story about a small group of Americans and Canadians who want to preserve the relationship between the two countries amid the challenges of the second Trump administration.

(Aug 28, 2026) An immigrant advocacy group in the North Country is getting new funding to expand its work with families dealing with the impact of ICE detentions; we visit a summer basketball camp in western New York, where college athletes are preparing for the sport they love; we check out the trail conditions in the Adirondacks for this final weekend of August.

(Aug 27, 2026) As rural healthcare struggles nationwide, Clifton-Fine Hospital, the smallest hospital in the state, has found a way to survive and add new services; a musician from Jefferson County says he has an unlikely figure to thank for his career; and we go to Blue Mountain Lake for a preview of a musical that's taking its show on the road across the Adirondacks.

(Aug 26, 2026) A new study from Jefferson Community College puts data behind how a lack of child care options is impacting residents and the local workforce; the permit application for a controversial weapons testing range in the Adirondacks is stuck in legal limbo; and we hear from one of the top anglers in the country about why the St. Lawrence River is his favorite spot to fish.

(Aug 25, 2026) Since last summer, food insecurity has climbed by 14%  in some North Country counties and nearly 20% for children; a new state law restricts local police from making formal agreements with ICE, but some officials are resisting; and astronomer Aileen O'Donoghue is in the studio to guide us through the expanding darkness.

(Aug 24, 2026) Clinton County is looking at ways to transform the former Clinton Community College campus; some Adirondack paddlers are in France this week for an international dragon boat competition, which they say has become a means of therapy for thousands of women with breast cancer; and we have a conversation with a journalist who is recounting caregiving and post-traumatic stress disorder in a new memoir.

(Aug 21, 2026) Federal prosecutors have arrested an Albany woman for allegedly plotting to blow up the New York State Capitol building; the Plattsburgh YMCA's board plans to launch an independent investigation into abuse allegations at its child care center; and John Warren checks on weekend trail conditions in the Adirondacks.

(Aug 20, 2026) A new program in Johnsburg is helping the community's older residents make a few home improvements so they can stay in their homes as they age; we go to Champlain, where a paramedic says the hectic moments keep him thinking on his feet; and Plattsburgh children's book author and illustrator's latest book shares some things you might not know about the singer Cyndi Lauper.

(Aug 19, 2026) Many international students in the North Country have to choose between going home to see their families or staying in the U.S. until they graduate because of a federal travel ban, a new study shows that the Buffalo Bills' new stadium is the most expensive venue for families to attend an NFL game; and we meet three of the Seagle Festival's returning artists for a conversation about the community.

(Aug 18, 2026) The Adirondack Common Ground Alliance is ending after nearly two decades of creating a culture of cooperation inside the park's blue line; a Clinton County non-profit wants to bring the joy of cycling to everyone, and in turn, bring people together; and Ottawa singer-songwriter, Mia Kelly, drew inspiration from van life, self-help books and medical aid in dying for her new album.

(Aug 17, 2026) The Adirondack Community Foundation gives out about 10 million dollars in grants each year and is working to strengthen rural communities in the park; police in Akwesasne are warning community members about an illegal drug called pink cocaine that contains dangerous ingredients; and we listen back to a conversation with North Country sculptor Margaret Jacobs and her take on the Adirondack pack basket.

(Aug 14, 2026) The Adirondack Park Agency had a complicated debate over a logging project in southern St. Lawrence County at its meeting yesterday; wooden trolls have taken over Tupper Lake, and they're on a mission to help us reconnect with our environment; John Warren checks on trail conditions in the Adirondacks; and we have a preview of Songs at Mirror Lake's 20th anniversary festival in Lake Placid this weekend.

(Aug 13, 2026) President Trump's 50 percent tariff on many Canadian goods is scheduled to take effect next week, and the uncertainty is straining businesses that rely on cross-border trade; this week marks the 249th anniversary of the end of the siege at Fort Stanwix in central New York; dozens of the country's top pro anglers are in the North Country this month to compete for the title of Angler of the Year.

(Aug 12, 2026) Republican Bruce Blakeman is running to oust Governor Kathy Hochul, and he's taking a page out of President Trump's playbook on immigration; some scientists in St. Lawrence County are spending the summer collecting mosquitoes to test for diseases; and a forester in Vermont is out with a new book to empower people to be more hands-on with forest management. 

(Aug 11, 2026) State and volunteer crews have been working this summer to clean up and rebuild the trail through Avalanche Pass; the state is pushing for more adults without college degrees to enroll in a program that allows them to attend community college for free; and we have a conversation with Kingston Whig-Standard reporter Gare Joyce who has written a series of articles for the paper, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the time the Summer Olympics came to Kingston.

(Aug 10, 2026) A new documentary from Vermont Public re-examines what happened on the March day when local and state police and ICE clashed with protesters on a busy street in South Burlington; plus, a federal judge has issued a split ruling on New York's laws for federal immigration agents; and, you're invited to a film screening of the musical “1776” tonight in Schroon Lake in honor of America's 250th anniversary. Organizers are hoping it will help you grapple with some of the complicated parts of the country's founding.

(Aug 7, 2026)

(Aug 6, 2026) More than 50 people showed up at the Adirondack Park Agency public information session to voice their opinion on the agency's proposed move to Saranac Lake; a flower farmer in Keeseville spends her summers growing and arranging colorful blooms; and we hear from one of NCPR's music hosts, Barb Heller, about some of her unusual experiences on the road as a touring musician.

(Aug 5, 2026) St. Lawrence County's sheriff says the plan to partner with ICE isn't moving forward after the state banned certain collaborations between ICE and local law enforcement; we get an update from a local reporter covering the trial of a man accused of killing his daughter in Essex County last year; and Chef Curtiss Hemm of the Carriage House Cooking School joins us for a quick weeknight dinner recipe that takes advantage of those farmers market greens.

(Aug 4, 2026) Gov. Kathy Hochul visited Lake Placid yesterday to promote the state's potential bid to host the Winter Olympics in New York City and the Adirondacks; we meet a group of women in Akwesasne who are working to reclaim their ancestors' medicine-making traditions through foraging; and we have a conversation with Canadian singer-songwriter Jenn Grant about her new album that she says is personal, painful, and in process.

(Aug 3, 2026) Hundreds of items from Whitney Park, one of the largest privately owned estates in the Adirondacks, are going up for auction; our capital reporters break down the latest state news; and we get a preview of Seagle Festival's staging of the modern, American opera, Dead Man Walking. 

(Jul 31, 2026) Hundreds of people at a public hearing this week spoke out against the proposed closure of labor and delivery services at the hospital in Ogdensburg; Plattsburgh's Michigan Fest, honoring the region's iconic hot-dog-and-meat-sauce combo, returns this weekend; our chief engineer Kurt Lanning is in the studio to tell us about how those radio waves get to you.

(Jul 30, 2026) Farmers in multiple North Country counties who were impacted by spring freeze events may be eligible for federal emergency loans; we go back in time to learn about the creative ways a kid from Ticonderoga used to make his own money; and our North Country at Work coordinator Ana Williams-Bergen is in the studio to give us a peek behind the curtain at how the series gets made.

(Jul 29, 2026) We visit the Long Lake Fish & Game club, where the school's trap shooting team competes each spring and fall; the New York State Fair opens in about a month, and one day is free for SUNY students; our Adirondack reporter Emily Russell breaks down her reporting process.

(Jul 28, 2026)

(Jul 27, 2026) The missing piece of a cannon that exploded during an early battle of the Revolutionary War was brought out of Lake Champlain last week; a new lawsuit is challenging New York's Medical Aid in Dying law; and we have a conversation with our station manager Mitch Teich about how NCPR is faring amid the end of federal funding for public media.

(Jul 24, 2026) A food collection event in Potsdam aims to help food pantries stock up ahead of a busy summer; the state DEC wants to implement a new strategy for pheasant conservation that focuses on recruiting new hunters; and we check in with John Warren for trail conditions ahead of a beautiful weekend in the Adirondacks.

(Jul 23, 2026) A food pantry in Watertown says need is sharply increasing amid the rise in food insecurity and reduction of SNAP benefits; we go to a video game shop in Ticonderoga, where they're creating a safe space for the community; and we have a conversation about an upcoming conference in Potsdam that's starting the conversation about fire risk in the North Country.

(Jul 22, 2026) Amid months of financial turmoil, the North Star Health Alliance announced it's cutting labor and delivery services at the hospital in Ogdensburg; a new amphitheater is set to host year-round concerts on the shores of Lake George; and we take a tour through the historic Edwards Opera House in St. Lawrence County.