MEETING – The annual Mineral Exploration Roundup got underway Jan. 23 in Vancouver, according to CBC News. While a British Columbia organization puts on the event, the North garnered much of the spotlight. This was the 29th edition of the Roundup in Vancouver. It attracts thousands of mining representatives from all over the world each year. One of the recurring themes this year will be the mining boom in the North. In Nunavut, exploration spending was up 23 percent, which is close to C$400 million — the most in the North. Yukon’s mining sector also continued to grow at a hectic pace with a record amount of claims staked. Lee Pigage, the acting head of mineral services with the Yukon Government, said the territory is on everyone’s radar screen. There is a special night at the conference dedicated to Yukon, and Pigage will deliver the territory’s keynote address on the roundup’s first day. He said his message is that it’s time to move from exploration to working mines. “Now they’re going to be committing themselves because they’re going to have to work on their claims,” he said. When that happens, those mines could bring even more money into the North’s economy. Organizers also planned another spotlight event dedicated to mining in Alaska at the conference.
GOLD – Goldstrike Resources Ltd. Jan. 23 reported positive results from the final seven soil samples that were taken in 2011 from the Gold Rush Zone on its Plateau North property. Three of the seven samples returned more than 1,000 parts per billion (1 gram per metric ton) gold, and the remainder were all anomalous. The highest gold value was 4,375 ppb (4.375 g/t). Background values for all 1,060 soil samples taken to date on the Plateau North property are: gold 10 ppb, arsenic 20 parts per million, antimony 3 ppm, mercury 0.02 ppm, and thallium 0.1 ppm. The Gold Rush structure is a recessive zone that has been traced for 1 kilometer and remains open 350 meters of the structure were sampled in detail late last fall at about 15-meter intervals. The results from the seven additional samples confirm consistent and anomalous gold, arsenic, mercury, antimony, and thallium values found in earlier samples, and are consistent with Carlin-style mineralization. The Gold Rush zone is only one of a number of recessive zones that have been identified and remain to be explored on the Plateau North property along a 12.5 kilometer strike length. In addition, a rock grab sample taken during additional staking in the Plateau South area has assayed 1.15 g/t gold. It was taken from a gossan that was traced for over 700 meters along an intrusive-sedimentary contact where mineralized veins and veinlets are hosted by a pyritic quartzite unit. This new gold discovery is 6.7 kilometers east of the Yellow Giant trend, where previously reported rock grab samples assayed 159.5 g/t (4.65 oz/t) and 30.15 g/t (0.88 oz/t) gold. Two creeks at Plateau South that returned anomalous gold values in silt between 4.2 and 47.1 ppb also have been covered by the staking. Extensive quartz veining was also identified while staking this ground. Assays have now been received for all of Goldstrike’s samples taken in the Plateau area in 2011, including 1,060 soil samples, 191 rock grab samples, and 9 silt samples. Based on the extremely positive results coming from the Plateau area, Goldstrike has increased its land holdings five-fold from the original 180 claims in 2011 to 1,062 claims today, equivalent to about 22,000 hectares (54,850 acres). During follow-up staking to cover the widespread gold mineralization identified in the area, company prospector Tom Morgan observed multiple areas of massive quartz veining, stockwork, and alteration that are planned to be fully explored in 2012. An aggressive exploration program that is planned to include trenching, diamond drilling, prospecting and mapping is slated for 2012 to trace the full extent of the gold mineralization on the Plateau property. The widespread gold mineralization already discovered at this early stage clearly demonstrates the potential for the Plateau area to evolve into a new gold district.
Goldstrike also reported positive initial results from its first-pass exploration of the Emerald and Canol properties. Goldstrike’s Emerald property is contiguous with the TUT property owned by Carlin Gold and Constantine Metals, where a large gold and arsenic anomaly 6.5 kilometers long and 300 to 1,200 meters wide has been reported. On the Emerald property, Goldstrike collected a total of 147 reconnaissance soil samples and 80 rock grab samples over a three-day period late in the exploration season. Seventeen of the soil samples returned anomalous values between 20.1 ppb and 56.2 ppb gold, while the remainder returned values from 20.1 ppb to below detection. Eight of the soil samples were anomalous in arsenic, returning values between 20 and 100 ppm. Values above 20 ppb gold and 100 ppm arsenic are considered to be anomalous in this area, based on the local geochemistry.
GOLD – Colorado Resources Ltd. Jan. 19 reported final results from its 2011 exploration program and that planning is underway for an expanded 2012 exploration program on its Oro Property in MacMillan Pass, Yukon Territory. The Oro Property covers about 36,000 hectares (88,956 miles), is located in the mineral-rich MacMillan Pass area of the Yukon. Nearby and adjacent properties are owned by Newmont, HudBay, Teck, Carlin-Constantine, Golden Predator and Ryan Gold. The property was originally acquired due to its favorable geological setting along the Yukon “Carlin Gold” Trend, which also hosts Atac’s Rau, Osiris and Tiger zones. The Oro Property hosts the historic Neve Minfile occurrence which contains orpiment and realgar mineralization, previous trench results up to 2.49 grams per metric ton gold over 44 meters from Talus fine material, previous drill results up to 0.50 g/t gold over 65.9 meters and has documented comparisons to Nevada’s Carlin belt. Work completed in 2011 on the Oro Property included flying a 2,000-line-kilometer helicopter-borne EM/Magnetic survey; collection of 13,808 soil samples, 339 silt samples, and 1,233 rock samples; the excavation of 15 trenches totaling 1,368 meters; and detailed mapping of the Neve occurrence area. The 2011 exploration program significantly expanded the Neve occurrence and identified several new target areas. Highlights of the results at the Neve showing (which includes the J.O., Saddle and Canol zones) are the expansion of the soil geochemical anomaly hosting the Neve showing to over 4 kilometers in length (extending the historic anomaly by 3 kilometers) - the anomaly is well defined by arsenic (greater than 100 parts per million with a maximum value of 4469 ppm) and gold (greater than 25 parts per billion with a maximum value of 1,490 ppb), with sections of elevated thallium (greater than 1.8 ppm with a maximum value of 36.1 ppm), silver (greater than 2.0 ppm with a maximum value of 23.0 ppm) and antimony (greater than 10 ppm with a maximum value of 593 ppm); the identification by airborne geophysics of a pronounced 4 kilometer long structure that hosts the Neve showing; the identification in new trenches of Carlin-type lithologies containing occurrences of orpiment and realgar within broad zones of strongly anomalous gold mineralization (up to 36 metres of 0.446 g/t gold); determination of the bedding orientation of the favorable Sapper Formation silty limestone unit - this information will be used to infer its probable buried intersection with the Secondary Fault, leakage from which may be responsible for the broad gold soil geochemical anomaly in the J.O., Saddle and Canol zones; and the identification of orpiment-realgar bearing quartz phyric Cretaceous dykes in contact with limey lithologies at shallow depths. New target areas defined by airborne geophysics and wide spaced (450- and 900-meter) reconnaissance geochemistry lines include the Repeater Zone, Area 51, North Steel, Golden Hinge, Golden Ridge, West Zone and Limey Ridge. These new targets show very encouraging results, often over substantial areas. With additional exploration work, any of these additional target areas could show economic significance equal to or better than the original Neve occurrence. One of the highest priority areas for follow up in 2012 is the Golden Ridge – Golden Hinge anomaly, which covers a 6-kilometer strike length of elevated gold soil geochemical values (ranging from detection up to 814 ppb) within a 10-kilometer long trend of elevated silver soil geochemical values (ranging from detection up to 35.1 ppm). Anomalous gold and silver values on these wide spaced soil lines vary from single stations to up to 700-meter widths along the lines. This zone sub-parallels a thrust faulted contact between the black carbonaceous Portrait Lake Formation and the MacMillan Pass Member conglomerates. The technical team is extremely pleased with the results of the 2011 program and a work program of up to C$5million is being proposed for the property with field work scheduled to commence in June. Priority drill targets are the intersection of the silty limestones of the Sapper Formation with the Secondary Fault and the intersection of similar limey (and therefore reactive) units but at shallower depths with orpiment and realgar bearing Cretaceous dykes.
GOLD/SILVER – Ansell Capital Corp. Jan. 16 reported final assay results from the summer 2011 drill program at the Charlotte gold project in the Tintina gold belt of , Yukon Territory. Complete assays have now been received for all of the 21 diamond drill holes covering 3,654 meters completed on the Flex and Orloff King zones at the Charlotte property located in the prolific Tintina belt. Results for the first nine holes drilled were released by Ansell in September. Results from an additional seven holes were released in November. Highlights of the remaining five holes include 8.19 grams per metric ton gold and 193.4 g/t silver over 15.53 meters in DDH-11-271 starting at 35.62 meters depth; 6.56 g/t gold and 162.5 g/t silver over 16.66 meters in DDH-11-272 starting at 47.71 meters; and 5.84 g/t gold and 156.7 g/t silver over 4.80 meters plus 4.08 g/t gold and 212.5 g/t silver over 12.02 meters in DDH-11-274 starting at 79.50 meters and 118.90 meters depth, respectively. 2011 drilling confirmed and expanded known high-grade gold and silver vein-hosted mineralization. The strike length of the deposit, on the Flex Zone alone has been extended to 580 meters long and up to 90 meters wide and remains open to the south, southwest and at depth. The current working deposit model is similar to other surrounding vein deposits (the Webber, Huestis, and the past producing Brown-McDade as well as to the Flex deposit), forming a set of mineralizing shears. The mineralizing fluids filled in pockets formed during an extension period and have been subsequently faulted. The deposit is a braided series of gold-silver bearing quartz veins accompanied by significant base metal mineralization. The veins crosscut both the gneisses of the Yukon Terrane and the intruded feldspar and quartz feldspar porphyries of the Mt. Nansen volcanics. The northern extension of the deposit has been intersected by the Webber Creek fault, a dextral strike-slip fault with unknown horizontal and vertical displacement. It is hypothesized that the extension is to the northeast, and this presents an attractive target for the 2012 exploration program. The 2011 regional geochemistry soil program, along with geophysics and geological mapping, identified six new targets, in addition to several other targets from previous work, located up to 5 kilometers from the Flex zone, but still on Ansell’s Charlotte property.
GOLD – Stina Resources Ltd. Jan 10 reported results from the final six holes drilled in the East Anomaly on its Dime property located 67 kilometers (41.5 miles) southwest of Dawson City. DDH-11-13 to DDH-11-19 were drilled on the East anomaly over trench anomalies on the zone. The East anomaly is 2.5 kilometers (2 miles east of the West anomaly and was located using auger soil sampling and trenching results. Drill and assay results indicate a Northwest-Southeast trending zone of gold mineralization. As with the West anomaly mineralization is associated with silicified zones and with quartz sulphide veins in a cupola zone at the top of a mafic poor intrusion. Mineral zones contain elevated pyrite-arsenopyrite mineralization. Drill holes DDH-11-08, 11-10, 11-13, and 11-18 did not return significant results, however nine of 15 holes drilled to date on the property have returned anomalous or mineral grade zones. DDH-11-19 was drilled off the same pad as DDH-10-05 and intersected a quartz sulphide vein at shallow depth that returned 5.092 grams per metric ton gold over 0.40 meters. DDH-10-05 returned 0.164 g/t gold over 22.0 meters from 6.10 meters and included 0.75 meters of 0.726 g/t Au from 22.5 meters. Mineralized intercepts on the East anomaly now extend over 250 meters in a northwest-southeast trend. The East Anomaly consists of a cupola zone of leuco-granite intrusion with rafts and xenoliths of metasedimentary rocks.
