Mining News: Endurance Gold identifies new Elephant Mountain drill targets

Endurance Gold Corp. July 24 said induced polarization and ground magnetic surveys carried out at its Elephant gold property in Interior Alaska have identified four prioritized geophysical anomalies that warrant drilling. The largest of these is a linear east-west trending low that entirely bisects the area covered by 43 line-kilometers of IP and 39 line-kilometers of magnetic surveying completed during the program. This dominant anomaly is interpreted to represent the resistivity expression of the Elephant Mountain Fault traversing the intrusive. In addition, at least three linear northwesterly trending resistivity lows intersect the Elephant Mountain fault complex. A well-defined chargeability feature extends northwest from the Elephant Mountain fault. For targeting purposes, this chargeability feature has been broken into two separate lobes – North Zone and Pump Zone – defined by east-west oriented areas of higher chargeability. This anomaly is directly associated with a large gold-in-soil anomaly. Hole EL 16-13, drilled in the North Zone in 2016, cut 147.1 meters averaging 0.40 grams per metric ton gold. Endurance said portions of the stronger chargeability features associated with the North Zone target remain untested by drilling. The Pump Zone Target is newly recognized and remains untested by either trenching or drilling. A resistivity anomaly identified south of the Elephant Mountain Fault is associated with the South Zone. Hole EL 16-14A, the 2016 South Zone discovery hole, cut 4.6 meters averaging 4.09 g/t gold in an altered shear zone with bands of massive arsenopyrite and stibnite. Adjacent and on the east side of this resistivity feature and discovery hole is a near surface chargeability feature that remains untested by drilling. Endurance said the size of the North Zone and Pump Zone chargeability targets, combined with the associated wide low-grade gold intersections and gold-in-soil anomalies, indicates the potential for a large-tonnage low-grade gold resource. Drilling at these targets is recommended to focus on discovery of the feeder zones and oxidized lower grade gold zones. At the South Zone target, drilling is recommended to focus on expanding on the South Zone Discovery drill hole and identifying the source of the near surface chargeability anomaly which may represent a currently unrecognized sulfide-bearing shear zone. Located 76 miles northwest of Fairbanks, the Elephant property anchors three properties – Elephant, Trout and Wolverine – that form the Elephant Mountain gold project. The project is situated upland from a number of placer gold bearing streams in the Rampart-Eureka-Manley Hot Springs mining district and is easily accessed by the all-weather Elliott Highway.

–SHANE LASLEY