Delhi

Josh Turan. Photo courtesy of David Turan.

To his friends, 22-year-old Josh Turan was a thrill-seeker: A goofy, fearless kid who liked snowboarding, motocross racing, and parkour, and would rather spend the night outdoors than under a roof.

But when he was killed in a motorcycle accident on Route 10 in Delhi on Saturday, May 12, Turan wasn't doing anything particularly daredevilish. He was driving to Meredith, on his way to see a community-theater production of "James and the Giant Peach" directed by his uncle.

State police said that around 5:30 on Saturday afternoon, Turan's 2001 Triumph was hit by a 2005 Subaru making a left-hand turn from Falls Mills Road onto Route 10. The driver was 48-year-old Betsy Clark of Delhi. Turan had severe injuries from the collision, and was pronounced dead at the scene. Police are investigating the crash.

The news of Turan's death has been a devastating blow to his family, and to the close-knit community where he was involved in theater and had many friends.  Read more

In the Catskills this year, Memorial Day is going to be epic.

For the first time in history, four of the six west-of-Hudson New York City reservoirs will be open to boating and paddling for the masses. A new bike event will bring the spirit of the Tour de France to the Pepacton. There will be festivals, parades, street fairs, and general partying all over the region.

And we're going to keep track of it all in our soon-to-be-published Catskills Memorial Day Guide.

Advertise in the Memorial Day guide by May 15. To advertise, check out our rate sheet and get in touch with me at sales@watershedpost.com or at 845-481-0155.

To get your event listed in the guide for free, click here to enter your event into our calendar system. (You need to register for an account with us first.)

Our goal is to list every single parade, barbecue, and get-together in the Catskills. Help us make it happen.

  Read more

Above: A comparison of last year's "supermoon," on March 19, 2011, with a more average full moon from December 20, 2010. File from Wikimedia Commons.

Cross your fingers for clear skies this Saturday night, when a phenomenon called a "supermoon" should make for some stunning skywatching.

This Saturday evening, the moon turns full at 11:35pm. At midnight, the moon will reach its perigee -- the point at which it is closest to the Earth during its regular orbit of the planet, which takes 29.5 days. Full moon at perigee happens about once every 14 months.

Astronomer Joe Rao writes in the Christian Science Monitor that the best time to see Saturday's supermoon will be right around moonrise (which, here in upstate New York, should be just before 7pm):  Read more

Photo of blossoms on a Pennsylvania apple tree, taken April 22 by Steve Guttman. An early, warm spring followed by many unseasonally cold nights has made this a challenging season for apple and other fruit growers across the Northeast. Photo published under Creative Commons license.

If you've still got tender plants that have managed to survive this spring's wild mood swings, you'll want to cover them up tonight. The National Weather Service has issued a freeze warning for south-central New York, including Delaware and Sullivan County:

Freeze Warning Remains In Effect From 11 PM This Evening To 9 AM EDT Saturday... * Locations...Northeast Pennsylvania And Central New York * Temperatures...In The Mid 20S. * Impacts...Any Sensitive Vegetation Will Be Vulnerable To Damage With Below Freezing Temperatures.   Read more