Outdoor Recreation

(05/24/12) Over the last week, tightrope walker Nik Wallenda's been in Niagara Falls, practicing for his June 15th walk over the famous Falls.
The Innovation Trail's Daniel Robison joined hundreds of people at the scene and found Wallenda's presence inspired an eclectic, carnival atmosphere in the hard scrabble city of 50,000. more

(05/24/12) The Adirondack Interpretive Center in Newcomb will try a new twist on the "rubber duck race" on Saturday, using rubber loons instead. The event is part of the center's celebration of its first anniversary under the leadership of the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. Proceeds will support educational programs at the center.

The event will focus on the two most iconic symbols of human and natural history in the Adirondacks: logs and loons. Some 500 black-and-white rubber loons will be dropped into the Rich Lake outlet for a 425-yard floating race. Prizes will be awarded for those who sponsored the winners. Visitor's center program coordinator Paul Hai told Todd Moe that a California company, CelebriDucks, manufactured the rubber loons for the race.

(05/23/12) A new ruling by a state Supreme Court could force five counties in the North Country and the Hudson Valley to pay millions of dollars a year to help fund dam operations in the southern Adirondacks. The decision found that it is reasonable for counties to be charged for the benefits they receive in the form of flood protection from dams located on Great Sacandaga and Indian Lake.

As Brian Mann reports, county leaders in the North Country say footing the bill for dam operations would add new pressure on taxpayers at a time when budgets are already tight. more

(05/23/12) Governor Cuomo has taken the reins of the troubled New York Racing Association Board. As Karen DeWitt reports, the governor is saying he needs to "restore the public trust" in a rapidly changing, and expanding, gaming industry. more

(05/22/12) It's been an on-again, off-again sort of spring, but last weekend was picture perfect in the North Country, with sunshine and hot days. Brian Mann took advantage of the weather to make the eight-mile round trip hike to Tirrell Pond, a pristine lake in the Blue Mountain Wild Forest in the central Adirondacks. He sent back an audio postcard. more

(05/21/12) Every spring, a Department of Environmental Conservation biologist drives along north country highways at dawn or dusk, stopping every so often to pull over and listen. They're listening for the distinctive "peent" of the singing American woodcock, a brown speckled bird a little larger than a songbird with a long, narrow beak for pulling earthworms out of the ground.

The little game bird is under threat New York state, and the survey each year is meant to get a handle on what population trends are in this region. DEC regional spokesman Stephen Litwhiler is the happy host to several of the birds in his backyard in southern Jefferson County. He says the birds' appearance each year is his personal "harbinger of spring."

For this Heard Up North, reporter Joanna Richards donned camouflage and hid behind the birds' favorite tree in Litwhiler's backyard to get a close-up look - and listen. more

(05/17/12) A crew from one of the country's most famous clothing companies has been at a historic Adirondack great camp this week to shoot photographs for its fall and winter 2012 catalog.

A crew of about 20 from L.L. Bean, based in Freeport, Maine, was at White Pine Camp on Osgood Pond on Monday and Tuesday. The rustic Great Camp was built in the early 1900s and served as the "Summer White House" for President Calvin Coolidge in 1926. Chris Morris dropped by the set. more

(05/15/12) St. Lawrence University physics professor Aileen O'Donoghue shared news of big events in the solar system in conversation with Martha Foley this morning. She explained how a solar eclipse can begin on May 21st and end on May 20th; Mars is on the move, and we'll have a once-in-a-century chance to see Venus "transit" in front of the Sun on June 5.

(05/15/12) The state Department of Transportation has modified its plan to repave the highway from Lake Placid to Saranac Lake this summer. The new design will widen the shoulders and accommodate cyclists a little better.

The department will now aim to leave as much room as possible along the shoulders of state Route 86. DOT officials say the changes were made following input from local officials and cycling advocates. Chris Morris reports. more

(05/14/12) Boxes and pots offer a great chance for small-scale and perfectly located flower gardening. Cooperative Extension horticulturist Amy Ivy has tips on how to assemble and maintain successful containers, including how to recycle potting mix from year to year. She talks with Martha Foley.