Work History

Similar to the Robin Egg occurrence (MINFILE occurrence 115O 148), the claims were originally staked as Jennie (495) in January, 1899 by F.W. Dunham and surrounded in 1899-1901 by Snowbird (496), Eldorado Lode 2 (87A), Crown Point (4161), Enterprise (4144), Independence (4145), Jennifer (495) and Gold Coin (4422). The Jennie was relocated as Jennie (5179) in September, 1901 by W. Foster, who explored with shallow shafts and trenches until 1904. The area immediately north of the Jennie claim was staked as the Homestake (10757) and Louise (10780) in July, 1908. The Jennie was re-staked as the Robin (10977) in July, 1909 and surrounded in 1909-1912 by the Lyda (11091), Shamrock (11094), Edinburough (1381), etc. claim.

Re-staked as DN cl (YA32946) by Klondike Ken Ventures Inc., which optioned the claims to Dawson Eldorado Gold EL in 1981. Dawson Eldorado carried out a photogrammetric survey in 1981 and did geological mapping and geochemical sampling in 1983-1984. In June, 1986, the property was optioned to Arbor Resources Inc., which explored with linecutting, magnetic and VLF-EM surveys in 1986 and airborne magnetic and soil surveys, grid geochemistry, EM and IP surveys and bulldozer trenching in 1987. Faith ML optioned 50% of Arbor's interests in June, 1989. In 1990, Arbor Resources performed rotary drilling and mechanical trenching on the DN claims in the vicinity of the Nugget zone between 27 Pup and Oro Grande Gulch.

In August, 1992 Kennecott Canada Inc. optioned the claims from Arbor Resources. In 1994, Kennecott carried out a reconnaissance of the entire Lone Star property (including the DN claims), including digitizing of previous data, geological mapping, rock sampling, trenching and backpack soil augering. In January, 1995 Kennecott terminated the option agreement. In January, 1996 Arbor Resources Inc. changed its name to Klondike Gold Corp and performed trenching in the Nugget area.

Klondike Gold Corp. optioned a 50% interest to Klondike Star Mineral Corp. (KSMC), which became a 50/50 joint venture. In 2004, the companies performed trenching, prospecting, geochemistry in the Nugget area. A bulk sample was also taken from historical trench 94TR02 as a 20 cm thick panel over a 4.5 m width.

In 2005, Klondike Star Mineral Corp held a 55% interest in the DN and surrounding claims and became the main operator all claims, including the Lone Star zone (MINFILE occurrence 115O 072). Trenching work and bulk sampling was continued in the Nugget zone in 2005 with six bulk samples taken from historical trench 94TR02 and trench 05TR04. In 2006, KSMC drilled 3 NQ holes at the Nugget zone and took one bulk sample from the southern end of historical trench 94TR02.

Klondike Gold Corp. resumed work in 2011 and purchased Klondike Star Mineral Corp. in 2015 to restore a 100% interest. No work was done on the Nugget zone until 2011 when Klondike Gold Corp. performed backhoe trenching at 90° to existing trenches and enlarging of existing trenches, as well as chip sampling of trenches. In 2012, Klondike Gold Corp. performed property wide prospecting, as well as contracted AECOM to provide a detailed surficial terrain map for the entire property, including the Nugget zone.

In 2015, Klondike Gold Corp. performed ground magnetics surveying, orthophoto surveying, and prospecting on the Lone Star property, including the Nugget zone. The company also performed induced polarization geophysics, chip sampling of quartz veins in outcrop and a drilled a total of seven NQ holes on the Nugget zone during the 2015 exploration program.

Klondike Gold Corp. drilled twenty-one NQ holes in two phases at the Nugget zone during the 2016 exploration program, five NQ drill holes during the 2017 program, and twenty NQ drill holes totaling 1,905.83 metres during the 2018 program. During the 2018 program, SRK Consulting Inc. was contracted to perform detailed structural and lithological mapping on the Lone Star property, including the Nugget zone. Airborne magnetics and prospecting were also performed in 2018 on the Lone Star property, including the Nugget zone. The Nugget zone, which encompasses the Nugget and Glacier Gulch (MINFILE occurrence 115O 183) occurrences, was renamed the Stander zone in 2019.

Regional & Property Geology

The Nugget occurrence, similar to the Lone Star occurrence (MINFILE occurrence 115O 072), is located within the Klondike region, which is underlain by the Permian Klondike Schist Assemblage of the Yukon-Tanana terrane (YTT). The Klondike Schist represents a transition from plutonism to arc volcanism that has undergone greenschist facies metamorphism and consists of metaplutonic Sulphur Creek orthogneiss in the west that transitions eastward to a package of metavolcanic and metasedimentary units including: felsic to mafic (quartz-mica ± chlorite) schist, graphitic schist, and quartz augen schist (PKf and PKs). Evidence of five deformation events (D1 to D5) are present in within the Klondike Schist Assemblage as a result of obduction and regional thrusting and faulting related to uplift, which have produced a visible S2 and S3 foliation fabric in the schist units.

The lithological units of the Klondike region commonly contain both large, foliaform quartz veins associated with D3 folding and thrusting and discordant quartz veins possibly associated with D4 brittle faulting. Mineralization is generally hosted in the discordant quartz veins, however, the exact mineralization age and timing in the Klondike region is currently unknown. A structural mapping program completed by SRK Consulting Inc. in 2018 on the Klondike claims in the Lone Star property area identified a newly defined “D4” fault system interpreted to be the primary conduit for gold mineralization fluids that suggests a younger mineralization age than previously assumed. The white to locally oxidized, discordant veins are generally mineralized with sulphides (pyrite, rare galena, chalcopyrite), as well as visible gold, and are rarely more than 2-3 metres thick. Where present, visible gold is commonly noted along the selvages of both fresh and oxidized pyrite grains and can also occur as free grains within the quartz veins.

Mineralization & Results

Mineralization at Nugget in the Stander zone is commonly noted as pyrite associated visible gold contained in crosscutting, discordant quartz veins and quartz vein arrays within brittle mafic and felsic (quartz-mica +/- chlorite) schist units. These mafic and felsic schist units are in proximity to a large “D3” fault in the area (the “Nugget Fault”). Barren foliaform quartz veins are also abundant in the Stander zone.

In 2018, Klondike Gold Corp. re-evaluated 2015 and 2016 drill holes to confirm the presence of broad intervals of disseminated gold mineralization, similar to that noted in 2016 at the Lone Star zone (MINFILE occurrence 115O 072), that contain smaller sections of higher grade mineralization. M. Grimshaw (2018) attributes disseminated gold deposition to porosity in the schist unit developed in pressure shadows around pyrite formed during greenschist metamorphism in the region.

In 1990, Arbor Resources performed rotary drilling on the DN claims in the vicinity of the Nugget zone between 27 Pup and Oro Grande Gulch that returned anomalous gold values up to 0.1236 oz/t Au over 5 feet.

1994 trenching by Kennecott Canada Inc. (94TR02) returned assays of 2.35 g/t Au over 12.0 metres and 26.5 g/t Au over 2.0 metres.

2004 sampling of historic trenches by Klondike Star Mineral Corp. (KSMC) in the Nugget area returned anomalous gold values up to 7.28 g/t Au over a 2.0 m continuous sample and up to 43 ppm Au in grab samples. No bulk sampling results were returned until the 2005 program. Collected samples from the 2005 program weighed between 1.4 tonnes and 2.8 tonnes and had gold grades ranging from 1.95 g/t Au to 8.61 g/t Au.

KSMC drilled three NQ holes in 2006 at the Nugget occurrence that returned high grade gold values over narrow widths, including: 27.5 g/t Au over 3.25 m, including 98.6 g/t Au over 0.9 m, in hole 06-NZ-02 and 5.89 g/t Au over 4.9 m, including 30.15 g/t Au over 0.9 m, in hole 06-NZ-03.

Regional prospecting by Klondike Gold Corp. and a regional surficial terrain mapping program by AECOM Consulting was performed in the 2012 exploration program. Several grab samples from prospecting returned anomalous gold values ranging from 0.5 g/t Au to 179 g/t Au.

Chip sampling of quartz veins in outcrop at the Nugget occurrence in 2015 returned anomalous gold values ranging from 1.3 g/t to 20.8 g/t over 0.2 m to 4.3 m. Klondike Gold Corp. also drilled seven NQ holes that returned significant intervals, including: 4.6 g/t Au over 7.65 m in hole EC15-01; 7.4 g/t Au over 1.4 m and 5.3 g/t Au over 6.1 m in hole EC15-02; 5.3 g/t Au over 6.1 m in hole EC15-03; and 5.7 g/t Au over 3.0 m in hole EC15-04.

In 2016, Klondike Gold Corp. drilled twenty-one NQ holes at the Nugget occurrence that encountered several significant intervals, including: 5.1 g/t Au over 14.34 m, including 147 g/t Au over 0.22 m, in hole EC16-32; 336.6 g/t Au over 0.22 m in hole EC16-54; and 3.3 g/t Au over 11.93 m, including 8.2 g/t Au over 3.3 m, in hole EC16-55. Drilling in 2018 at the Nugget occurrence consisted of twenty NQ drill holes totaling 1,905.83 metres, which returned several significant gold intersections including: 0.89 g/t Au over 23.55 m in hole EC18-222; 2.36 g/t Au over 22.86 m in hole EC18-230; and 23.5 g/t Au over 1.5 m in hole EC18-231.


 

Assessment Reports that overlap occurrence