m (5486 ft), lies in that range on the west side of Spences Bridge, and was named by pioneer John Murray for the similarly-named mountain in Edinburgh, Scotland. Flora and fauna The climate is varied, though mostly dry, especially on the west and southeast. The interior of the range gets more waterfall and is heavily treed relative to the canyons flanking it Typical boreal forest and mountain wildlife prevail: grizzly bear, black bear, black-tail deer, moose, and various rodents. The range's reptile populations include several varieties of dryland lizard and also the timber rattlesnake; the Clear Range is the farthest northwest extent of the rattlesnake. History and culture The Clear Range is largely the domain of the Nlaka'pamux peoples, although the northwest edge of the range is occupied by communities of the St'at'imc people and a rancherie of the Bonaparte River band of the Secwepemc people at Marble Canyon, whose territory also includes southeastern portion of the range along the Thompson. There are no urban settlements or towns in the range although it is skirted by three major highways and also three rail lines (the BCR, CPR and CNR). Due to its location, it overlooked the great movement of goldseekers during the Fraser Canyon and Cariboo Gold Rushes although no major mines or deposits were found on its slopes. At its northern extremity there is a large deposit of low-grade lignite, adjacent to Marble Canyon on the northwestern edge of the Hat Creek basin that has long been proposed for a major open-pit coal mine and coal-powered generating plant. The area is heavily logged but thereby interlaced with logging roads and other trails popular with 4x4 recreationists, mountain bikers and others. References Bridge River-Lillooet Country Archive Clear Range in the Canadian Mountain Encyclopedia Thompson Country Fraser Canyon Mountain ranges of the Interior Plateau