New York State Forest Rangers responded to several incidents in the Adirondacks over Labor Day Weekend, including a campground disturbance, and several overdue, lost, injured and unprepared hikers. [Read more…] about Overdue, Lost, Ill, Injured and Unprepared Hikers on Labor Day Weekend
Franklin County
With ‘Operation Rotten Apple’ Upstate Police Round-Ups Surge
Federal authorities arrested 2,197 people across New York last month during what they have derisively named “Operation Rotten Apple,” the highest monthly immigration arrest total since the Trump administration’s round-ups began in New York State. [Read more…] about With ‘Operation Rotten Apple’ Upstate Police Round-Ups Surge
Rock Climber Finds Beech Leaf Disease Near Tupper Lake
Bill Widrig, a volunteer with the Adirondack Park Invasive Plant Program’s Forest Pest Hunters program, was on his way to climb a rock wall on Goodman Mountain, just south of Tupper Lake, when he noticed an all-too-familiar site: the telltale leaf banding of beech leaf disease. [Read more…] about Rock Climber Finds Beech Leaf Disease Near Tupper Lake
Rangers Report Multiple Rescues of Lost, Injured Hikers
The most recent New York State Forest Rangers Report includes efforts to rescue more than a half dozen hikers lost or with knee or lower leg injuries in the Adirondacks and Catskills. [Read more…] about Rangers Report Multiple Rescues of Lost, Injured Hikers
Historic Saranac Lake Opens Expanded Museum Campus
Members of Historic Saranac Lake (HSL) and contributors to the museum’s recent expansion project were at a ribbon cutting on August 15 at the newly refurbished the Trudeau Building.
Honorary Chair of the campaign, Doonesbury cartoonist Garry Trudeau was the guest of honor. Trudeau’s great-grandfather, grandfather, and father all practiced medicine in the new museum building at 118 Main Street in Saranac Lake. [Read more…] about Historic Saranac Lake Opens Expanded Museum Campus
A Common Adirondack Public and Private Stewardship
Keith McKeever, retiring Public Information Director at the Adirondack Park Agency (APA), accepted much-deserved recognition at their recent meeting for his many years of admirable public service. In his short acceptance remarks, Keith implored all listening “to hold the line” for the Adirondack Park’s open space.
Keith’s message, as I recall it, was that the goal of protecting private open space is connected quite directly to the goal of more community development including necessary infrastructure directed to the Park’s settled areas in Hamlet and Moderate Intensity Use areas. [Read more…] about A Common Adirondack Public and Private Stewardship
Pendragon Theatre’s $11 Million New Home
Governor Kathy Hochul recently announced that the Pendragon Theatre in Saranac Lake will receive an additional $750,000 state investment to close the final funding gap for the venue.
Earlier this year, the Governor announced the opening of Pendragon Theatre’s new downtown facility in Saranac Lake, with a value at more than $11 million. [Read more…] about Pendragon Theatre’s $11 Million New Home
Backcountry Rescue Surge: Axe Injury, Cascade Fall, Lost Party of 9, Many Unprepared
Between August 3 and August 9, 2026, New York State Forest Rangers responded to a surge of backcountry rescues, many due to inadequate gear, poor navigation skills, and physical exhaustion. The following Forest Ranger reports show how unpreparedness and unpredictable events can turn a fun hike into an emergency. Use the links to navigate to stories about that geographical area. [Read more…] about Backcountry Rescue Surge: Axe Injury, Cascade Fall, Lost Party of 9, Many Unprepared
More Than Books: The North Country Library System Story
Walking into any of the 32 libraries and reading centers across Clinton, Essex and Franklin counties, visitors find friendly staff and programs tailored to local communities.
Less visible is the organization making that possible: the Clinton-Essex-Franklin Library System (CEFLS). [Read more…] about More Than Books: The North Country Library System Story
The Perseids: Summer’s Big Celestial Show
Celestial events are among the oldest and most profound human experiences of the cosmos, inspiring stories as grand as the sky is wide to explain the marvelous spectacles that arch overhead. Few natural wonders are more awesome than the blazing fireballs that streak across our night skies.
And the Perseid meteor shower, which appears during some of the warmest nights of the year, features up to 100 meteors per hour. [Read more…] about The Perseids: Summer’s Big Celestial Show
Rangers Recover Body, Make Multiple Backcountry Rescues
New York State Forest Rangers recently participated in at least seven wilderness rescue missions across New York State, including on the Appalachian Trail and near Kaaterskill Falls; two hikers within an hour near Hurricane Mountain; and several in West Canada Lake Wilderness. [Read more…] about Rangers Recover Body, Make Multiple Backcountry Rescues
First Adirondack Rail Trail User Survey Getting Underway
The Adirondack Rail Trail Association (ARTA) is asking trail users to participate in a visitor survey designed to measure the trail’s economic impact and identify how community members are using the trail.
Starting July 30 and continuing throughout the coming year, ARTA staff and volunteers will conduct surveys at trailheads and other locations along the 34-mile Adirondack Rail Trail. [Read more…] about First Adirondack Rail Trail User Survey Getting Underway
Campers Rescued from Violent Storm; Injured Cliff Jumper; Many More Rescues
New York State Forest Rangers spent a busy week rescuing numerous people from backcountry dangers, including: a 77-year-old rescued by helicopter in the Adirondack High Peaks; Lows Lake campers stranded by a violent storm; a teen medical emergency near Cranberry Lake; a capsized boat; an injured cliff jumper on the West Branch Ausable River which included a technical rope rescue; and dehydrated hikers and hikers with lower leg injuries in the Adirondacks and Catskills.
Be sure to eat before hiking and bring plenty of water and extra food that’s high in protein and calories. Read the Ten Hiking Essentials. [Read more…] about Campers Rescued from Violent Storm; Injured Cliff Jumper; Many More Rescues
Environmentalists Have Big Stake in Finch Pulp Mill Closure
The purely economic decision by Finch Paper in Glens Falls, now part of a global company, to stop purchasing Adirondack regional trees for its pulp to paper operation and to instead acquire its pulp from far beyond New York’s borders is serious – and deserves the attention it’s getting at New York Almanack, and the worries from forest product industries, harvesters, truckers, suppliers, and landowners elsewhere. [Read more…] about Environmentalists Have Big Stake in Finch Pulp Mill Closure
St. Regis Canoe Area Nuisance Black Bear Euthanized
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has reopened the popular paddle-in campsites 5 through 11 on Long Pond in the Saint Regis Canoe Area, Franklin County, after a nuisance black bear was euthanized.
The Saint Regis Canoe Area, the only designated canoe area in New York State, is very remote, with no-reservation camping along multiple access points and waterways. [Read more…] about St. Regis Canoe Area Nuisance Black Bear Euthanized
Rangers Respond to Plane Crash, High Peaks Wildfire & Backcountry Rescues
New York State Forest Rangers had another busy week across the state responding to a plane crash near the Adirondack Rail Trail, several wilderness rescues, and wildfires in the Adirondack High Peaks and in Stony Creek. [Read more…] about Rangers Respond to Plane Crash, High Peaks Wildfire & Backcountry Rescues
Henry Davis Minot’s Adirondack Warbler & ‘Diary of a Bird’
Henry Davis Minot was born near Forest Hills (part of the Jamaica Plain neighborhood of Boston) in 1859, the sixth of seven children of William and Katharine Maria Sedgwick Minot.
He took an early interest in ornithology (the study of birds), recording careful observations, including, at the age of 11, what he believed to be a new species of bird in 1871 (it turned out not to be the case). [Read more…] about Henry Davis Minot’s Adirondack Warbler & ‘Diary of a Bird’
Canadian Travel to US Down for 15th Straight Month
Canadians continue to curb their enthusiasm for American booze and travel, with no end in sight.
Canadian travel to the U.S. is down for the 15th straight month, when President Donald Trump began his tariff war against Canada, and his rhetoric about the country becoming the 51st state. [Read more…] about Canadian Travel to US Down for 15th Straight Month
Measuring and Protecting Adirondack Park Remote Places
A canoeist paddling toward the center of Middle Saranac Lake can still hear the dull, monotonous roar of car and truck traffic. Are there any places left in the Adirondacks that could still be considered remote, far removed from the sounds and sights of urbanized America? And if so, how many?
That is what a group of environmental protection organizations – the Adirondack Council, Adirondack Wild, Adirondack Wilderness Advocates and the Rewilding Institute – hope the Adirondack Park Agency and the Department of Environmental Conservation can determine. [Read more…] about Measuring and Protecting Adirondack Park Remote Places
New Adirondack Rail Trail App Launched
A new Adirondack Rail Trail App has been launched, a free mobile resource designed to enhance the visitor experience and encourage exploration of the region’s communities, businesses, and attractions.
Developed by the Regional Office of Sustainable Tourism (ROOST) in partnership with local technology company UpNCoding, the app features interactive maps, trip-planning tools, and important trail information. [Read more…] about New Adirondack Rail Trail App Launched