On a recent trip to the Grand Mesa in Colorado, my eyes kept returning to the amazing stands of what many locals call skunk cabbage unfurling from the recently snow-covered meadows. The species, Veratrum tenuipetalum, is not related to the Eastern skunk cabbage. Other folks call the plant corn lily, though it is not a lily. Whatever you call it, the plant is photogenic harbinger of summer in the high country. Here are a few shots:
For more images of the West, or to post your own, visit our Flickr group.
Paul Larmer is the executive director of High Country News.
Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.
