Field Trip to Clear Creek

I am totally fascinated by this little community. It is a small unincorporated community in Carbon County, located at the south end of State Route 96 and the Pleasant Valley Branch of the Union Pacific Railroad. Whenever we go to Scofield, it is a tradition to take the 6 mile drive around dusk up to Clear Creek to look for deer. However, this year we have been pleasantly surprised by all of the different types of wildlife that we have been able to observe. We saw several deer on the route, but just as we entered Clear Creek, we made the turn and to our right we saw this fox:

Rick jumped out of the Honda and snapped a photo just as the fox turned around to look at us. We think he had a potgut in his mouth.

We circled around town (which takes about 12 seconds) and took a little dirt road that we want to go back and ride on the 4 wheelers (about another 24 seconds) and then headed back down the little canyon. As we exited the town we saw 4 baby fox playing in a field in front of an old warehouse. I grabbed the camera, but the best I could do was to snap these 2 guys:

We watched them play for a few minutes and then we saw the daddy fox off to the right (the one from above).

We also saw some badgers:

There were a total of 3 badgers, but you can only see 2 in this shot. It is a hoot to watch them dig. Dirt goes flying everywhere. Kinda reminds me of Cole in my flower beds. These guys are located on the route where Rick runs. He says that badgers are a bit mean so he stays on the opposite side of the road when he gets to this area. I don't think I run fast enough to take this route. I will stay away.

Uncle Dick used to take this drive often, as well. However, he often did it with his shotgun. So, we think that the reason that there is such an abundance of wildlife may have to do with the fact that Uncle Dick is no longer with us and is unable to practice his shooting skills. :)