The creeping vole is the smallest vole in Oregon. It has an exceedingly short tail and tiny eyes. The short, dense fur on the dorsum ranges from sooty gray to dark brown or black, with scattered yellowish hairs. Hair on the venter is dusky washed with buff or white; the tail is blackish, slightly darker above that below; and the fur on the ears is black.
In Oregon, it ranges from Brooks Meadows and Crater Lake west to the Pacific Ocean. The species has been seen at some localities in the Willamette Valley. However, hiatuses in the distribution occur in the northern Coast Range and on the west slope of the Cascade Range in Clackamas, Marion and northern Linn counties and in southern Lane, Douglas, and northern Jackson counties.