The large leaves of the skunk cabbage appear after the plant has bloomed in early spring. At the Blacklick Valley Natural Area, where this photo was taken, several large wetland areas are filled with skunk cabbage leaves by the middle of April. Skunk cabbage is a long-lived plant, some of the roots of skunk cabbage have been recorded to live as long as 200 years.
The Conemaugh Gap is the deepest gorge east of the Mississippi, deeper than the famed Pennsylvania Grand Canyon. Note a pile of coal in the foreground. Yes, we still mine coal in Indiana County, contrary to the notion by many that the coal industry is no longer with us.
