Top Stories from NCPR

New Yorkers have the power on Nov. 7 to decide whether some state officials convicted of a felony should be stripped of their pensions.

Repairs are getting underway at two mausoleums in Clinton County. Whispering Maples, which includes a mausoleum in Plattsburgh and one in Ellenburg, had financial problems and the facilities have been rundown for years. There's a leaking roof, bad air circulation, and other maintenance issues. Hundreds of people's family members interred at the two mausoleums and waiting for the repairs has been painful.

Ravens were once a rarity in the North Country, but now they are becoming a common sight. They have a similar appearance to crows, but if you see the two birds together the difference is obvious. For one thing, ravens are big. For another, crows caw, while the cry of a raven is more of a croak.Martha Foley and Curt Stager discuss other ways to tell the two apart, why ravens became a scarce presence in recent times, and why they might be making a comeback now.

The devastation from the wildfires in Northern California hits home for a lot of people, including people in NY's winemaking industry.August Deimel, the head winemaker at Keuka Spring Winery in Penn Yan, spent his early days learning about the wine industry while visiting Northern California. He said, "To see all of this is very strange and a little, makes you a little sick to your stomach."

New York state forest rangers face a growing pace of searches and rescues in the Adirondack Park. Today we're looking at one of the big factors contributing to the spike of emergencies in the back country. State officials and outdoor experts say too many hikers and campers are coming to the North Country unprepared. Sometimes that leads to tragic outcomes.

At a special state hearing in Oswego County Tuesday, government officials admitted that there's effectively no way to prevent Lake Ontario from once again reaching the record high levels seen this year. In fact, they said it's bound to happen again. But, they think there may be ways to reduce the amount of damage the flooding caused along the shoreline.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is more prominent on the national stage these days, leading some to wonder whether he is running for president.In Cuomo's first term as governor, he made a point of never leaving the state, even taking vacations within its borders, saying the state is so beautiful that he never needed to leave it. He discouraged any talk of seeking higher office. Lately, though, that has changed.

There are hobbies, and there are passions. Wayne Lincoln's decades-long mission to rescue player pianos from destruction belongs in the second category. For over forty years now, Wayne has taken apart, restored, and put back together "40 or 50 player pianos, half a dozen pump organs, and one J.P. Seeburg KT Nickelodeon."

St. Lawrence University astronomer Aileen O'Donoghue is good friends with the sky around us. She can look up, and know where she is.She welcomes the shorter days of fall and winter, and hopes we will, too.This month, she's orienting us to the Milky Way high above us, the Southern Triangle of Deneb, Altair and Vega in the SSW, and the disappearance of Jupiter from the night sky in the west.

The Adirondacks are booming with more hikers, more campers, more rock climbers and paddlers than ever before. But that popularity means a growing pace of emergencies and search and rescue operations for the 140 New York state forest rangers. Some rangers warn that the pace is spreading them too thin, causing exhaustion and burnout.