Forever Wild: How to manage record crowds in the Adirondacks

Forever Wild: How to manage record crowds in the Adirondacks

From Connections Podcast by WXXI News

June 10, 2026 · 51 min

About this episode

The episode discusses the management of increasing visitor crowds in the Adirondack Mountains and the impact on the forest preserve.

The Adirondack Mountains are becoming an increasingly popular destination. We examine how this impacts the forest preserve, which the state Constitution requires to be kept “forever wild.” Guest host Julie Philipp sits down with officials from the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation and the Genesee Valley Chapter of the Adirondack Mountain Club to find out what is being done to manage the influx of visitors and how we can help protect this natural resource. Our guests also talk about hiking safety and the Love Our New York Lands campaign. Our guests: Katie Petronas, deputy commissioner for natural resources for the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Josh Clague, forester and forest preserve and conservation chief for the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Cortney Koenig Worrall, executive director of the Adirondack Mountain Club Sarah Mastro, outdoor expo chair of the Genesee Valley Chapter of the Adirondack Mountain Club Mark Brand, forest ranger for the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation --- Connections is supported by listeners like you. Head to our donation page to become a WXXI member today, support the…

People in this episode

Host: Julie Philipp

Guests: Katie Petronas, Josh Clague, Cortney Koenig Worrall, Sarah Mastro, Mark Brand

Topics covered

  • Adirondack Mountains
  • environmental conservation
  • hiking safety
  • visitor management
  • natural resource protection

Keywords

  • Adirondack Mountains
  • visitor management
  • environmental conservation
  • hiking safety
  • Love Our New York Lands campaign

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, Genesee Valley Chapter of the Adirondack Mountain Club

Places: Adirondack Mountains

More episodes of Connections Podcast

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Connections Podcast podcast page.