Kaatscast: the Catskills Podcast

John Lyons is a transportation professional, sustainability leader, solar entrepreneur, and business developer with a passion for addressing the climate crisis and creating a clean energy future. He's been incorporating remote work into his career for decades, and he shares his insights on working remotely from both employee and employer perspectives. Plus, suggestions for translating what we've learned this year into a post-pandemic strategy for workplace adaptability moving forward.

Thanks to John Lyons, and to our sponsors:

Sustainable Hudson Valley and the Central Catskills Chamber of Commerce

American essayist Ralph Waldo Emerson led the Transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century, a literary, philosophical and spiritual movement with a belief in humanity's fundamental goodness; and a reverence for self-reliance, non-conformity, and a deep, personal connection to the natural world. And while the title of his essay, "Uses of great Men," may come off as misogynistic, or at least "dated," transcendentalists like Emerson were outspoken advocates of civil rights and social justice.

This week, a reading of Emerson's "Uses of Great Men," by Rolland G. Smith.

If Rolland Smith was born a century earlier, he would likely seek fellowship in the Transcendental Club, to converse with the likes of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Margaret Fuller, and Henry David Thoreau. A child of the 20th century, however, Rolland gravitated toward broadcast media, where he reported for outlets like WCBS, NBC, and WWOR. He's interviewed U.S. presidents, reported live from the front lines in Vietnam, and served as anchor of the historic "Live Aid" concert to an international audience of 2 billion. His journalistic integrity, contemplative storytelling, and abiding faith in humankind lie in stark contrast to today's media punditry, social media scrolling, and click bait. If Ralph Waldo Emerson was born a century later, he'd probably get his news from Rolland Smith.

Here's Rolland to introduce "Uses of Great Men," followed by his narration of the essay, recorded right here in the Catskills.

This week's show was made possible by the Emerson Resort & Spa and the 52-mile Catskill Mountains Scenic Byway.

Michael Kudish is a Catskills legend and the authority on Catskills trees and forests. In 1971, Kudish earned his PhD with the thesis, "Vegetational History of the Catskill High Peaks." Five decades later, that research is ongoing.

In 2000, Purple Mountain Press published his landmark book, The Catskill Forest: A History. Now, an updated 6-volume set is in the works. I met up with Michael at his home/research library in Delaware County, to hear about his latest research sampling Catskills bogs and radio carbon dating peat and charcoal for even more insights into our Catskills forest past.

---

Thanks to this week's sponsors: Briars & Brambles Books, Hanford Mills Museum, and The Mountain Eagle.

Kaatscast is made possible through a grant from the Nicholas J. Juried Family Foundation, and through the support of listeners like you!

Kaatscast: the Catskills Podcast was just recognized for the third consecutive year as the "Best Regional Podcast" in the 2024 Chronogrammies! Thank you for your votes, and please take a moment to rate and review us on the app of your choice so even more listeners can find us!

---

00:00 Introduction to Michael Kudish and His Work

00:46 Meeting Michael Kudish: A Visit to His Research Library

01:09 Sponsors and Supporters of Kaatscast

02:09 Michael Kudish's Research Journey

04:50 Understanding the Catskills' Unique Vegetation

08:47 The Impact of Glaciation on Catskills Vegetation

12:41 Discovering History Through Bogs

19:03 Defining and Differentiating Bogs and Fens

28:41 Discovering Ancient Moss in the Catskills

29:08 Peat Sampling Techniques and Challenges

29:57 Radiocarbon Dating: Methods and Costs

31:01 Funding Research Through Retirement

32:09 Transitioning to Writing: The Next Chapter

32:54 Expanding Knowledge: From One Volume to Six

34:22 Consistent Vegetation Over Millennia

37:41 Climate Change Insights

38:39 Exploring the Extent of Catskill Bogs

39:52 Ancient Charcoal and Forest Fires

42:48 Uncovering Prehistoric Forests

47:04 The Six-Volume Catskill Forest History

50:16 The Joy and Work of Field Research

52:15 The Interconnected Lives of Trees

53:45 Conclusion and Future Work

Washington Irving was an early author to set his fictional tale in the Catskills, but he certainly wasn't the last. If Rip Van Winkle were alive today, he'd have no shortage of contemporary Catskills suspense stories to help keep him awake. Kelli Huggins is on a mission to read all things "Catskills," and she hankers for horror. If a novel features a Catskills town, hotel, or reservoir, it will likely make it onto Kelli's reading list.

Here's a short list of Kelli's recent faves:

Just Like Mother, by Anne Heltzel
The Hotel Neversink, by Adam O'Fallon Price
Echo, Thomas Olde Heuvelt
The Grave Keepers, by Elizabeth Byrne
Bellweather Rhapsody, by Kate Racculia
Night Film, by Marisha Pessl

Kelli was a speaker on one on Lize Mogel's Walking the Watershed tours, where she recommended some watershed horror tales! She's a social media specialist for the Fenimore Art Museum and the Farmers' Museum in Cooperstown.

Thanks to our sponsors:

Catskill Mountains Scenic Byway
The Mountain Eagle

Photo by rikka ameboshi: https://www.pexels.com/photo/opened-book-on-tree-root-3358707/

Paul Misko is an avid Catskills hiker, who –– true to his Boy Scout roots –– is always prepared. As spring rolls in and we pull out the hiking boots (maybe shaking out some nuts and nesting material from winter mouse habitation), Paul offers a refresher on what to pack for our walks in the woods, plus some best practices for hiking with kids and leading a group.

For more, check out Paul's blog, Catskill Forest Adventures.

And if you'd like to hear John Burroughs' own account of that ill-fated hike on Slide Mountain, we just happen to have an audio edition of his famous essay -- "The Heart of the Southern Catskills" -- on our audiobook titled Afloat & Afoot.

---

Thanks to our sponsors: Briars & Brambles Books, Hanford Mills Museum, Ulster Savings Bank, and the Mountain Eagle.

Kaatscast is made possible through a grant from the Nicholas J. Juried Family Foundation, and the support of listeners like you!