Top Stories from NCPR

You may have heard of it or seen it on Facebook - the goat yoga trend is huge, and it's here in the North Country. News interns Claire Mendes and Kelsey Mattison went to Glass Goat at River Road Farm in Hammond to check it out.

It remains a busy time in the Adirondacks. Trailhead parking areas and popular campsites fill early, especially in the High Peaks. For the next several weeks, consider visiting less popular areas of the Adirondack Park.

The company that's restoring an iconic Saranac Lake hotel has dropped its lawsuit against local officials over a potentially competing hotel.Roedel Companies, which owns the Hotel Saranac, isn't saying why it discontinued the litigation. The case surrounded the village Planning Board's approval of the controversial Lake Flower Resort and Spa.

Plattsburgh's Common Council has voted to adopt Mayor Colin Read's plan to abolish the city's human resources, information technology, engineering, and recreation departments. That puts four city managers out of a job at the year's end. Their departments will be absorbed into other city services.

The Republican drive to repeal "Obamacare" took a huge blow last night, with a 51-49 Senate vote rejecting the so-called �skinny bill�, a measure to roll back parts of the Affordable Care Act without any replacement strategy.At the end of a night of high suspense in the U.S. Capitol, it was unclear if Republicans can advance any health bill despite seven years of promises to repeal Obama's signature legislation.Senate Majority Leader Mitch Connell said, "This is clearly a disappointing moment." He also said after the early Friday vote: "I regret that our efforts were not enough, this time."Planned Parenthood leaders in New York are keeping a close eye on the Republican led Congress�s actions. The say in all the GOP versions so far, their health care centers faced drastic reductions.

June 27: Little Italy's first day in Canton. The official grand opening isn't for a few weeks, but the restaurant is already packed with customers. Around us everything is in motion: employees twist garlic knots, chat with customers, and open and close the doors to the large pizza oven. The lighting is soft, the walls exposed brick.

David Haggard, one of two Democrats running for prosecutor in St. Lawrence County, has run into problems getting on the primary ballot this fall.

Since the November election, we've been looking at the very different ways that Americans see our politics. One of the things that divides us is the different media we use to get our information. More and more conservative voters, especially in rural areas like the North Country, are turning to right-wing media sources like Fox News and radio host Rush Limbaugh. They often get a very different picture of events and ideas than you see in mainstream media.This morning, we look at how conservative media are treating Russia and the story of how Moscow meddled in last year's presidential election. There are three separate probes underway, looking in part at whether Donald Trump's campaign or his family helped Russia in that effort. Conservative outlets regularly portray the Russia issue as fake news, a conspiracy designed to cripple President Trump.

The city of Plattsburgh is nearing fiscal stress, according to a state Financial Restructuring Board report published last month. It says the city could save money by letting Clinton County take over certain departments.Mayor Colin Read is embracing those recommendations in his 2018 budget, and he's now proposing to lay off "about a half dozen" city leaders as their departments are eliminated or consolidated.

Dr. Curt Stager took students to Walden Pond, the retreat of philosopher and citizen scientist Henry David Thoreau, to take sediment samples and compare modern observations with the meticulous records kept in Thoreau's journals.They found evidence of a changing climate and a lake ecology that has been altered by human use. The graphic novel that records the expedition might have bemused and amused the famed transcendentalist. Curt talks about the work with Martha Foley.