Work History

Staked as Bid cl 1-24 (Y12947) in May/77 by J. Graham and optioned to a joint venture between Cyprus Anvil Mining Corporation and Hudsons Bay Oil & Gas Ltd, which explored with mapping, geochem, mag and EM surveys later in the year.
Restaked as part of a block of 758 Ram cl (YA71576) in Sep/84 by Regional Resources Ltd, which performed an extensive program of mapping, geochemical and geophysical surveys in 1985 and transferred its interests to Fairfield Minerals Ltd in 1986. Fairfield performed mapping, geochem and geophysical surveys in a joint venture with Equity Silver Mines Ltd in 1987 and 1988.
Pacific Comox Resources Ltd acquired a 100% working interest in the Ram claims in Jan/93. In the summer of 1994, Pacific Comox used a reverse circulation drill to test previously flown airborne magnetic and VLF-EM anomalies. The company completed 30 holes totalling 412 m on its Tay-LP property. None of the holes were collared on this occurrence. The company subsequently lapsed a large number of Ram claims including those covering the occurrence.
Restaked as Bid cl 1-12 (YB70102) in Oct/95 by B. Hall under an agreement with Oro Bravo Minerals Ltd. Oro Bravo optioned the claims to Atna Resources Ltd in 1997. Atna carried out a small reconnaissance prospecting/geological mapping and soil sampling program in Jul/98.
The Bid claims expired in Oct/2001. The occurrence lies within an area presently withdrawn from staking due to land claims negoiations.

Capsule Geology

The occurrence is located southwest of the Tintina Fault Zone within the Pelly Mountain volcanic belt, a arcuate shaped belt of volcanic rocks approximately 80 km long by up to 25 km wide that forms part of the Cassiar Terrane. The Cassiar Terrane is a curvilinear shelf which formed, between mid-Cambrian to Silurian time, roughly parallel to the western edge of the North American craton, but separated from it by the Selwyn Basin. Shallow water deposition on the platform continued until Late Devonian time. Block faulting and local uplift during the Late Devonian and Mississippian resulted in deposition of carbonaceous shale and chert pebble conglomerate in the Selwyn Basin and across the Cassiar Terrane. Local explosive volcanism produced thick tuffs and flows (Pelly Mountain volcanic belt) whose extremities intertongue with surrounding black shale. Some of these volcanic centres contain base metal mineralization. Calcareous argillite of Upper Paleozoic to Triassic age was deposited above the shale and volcanic sequence (Hunt, 1999).
The area is underlain by volcanic flows and pyroclastic rocks and associated sediments, probably of the Mississippian aged Pelly Mountain volcanic belt that have been extensively intruded by syenite to monzonite dykes, plugs and/or sills. At the occurrence location a sequence of shale, chert-magnetite-siderite iron formation and pyroclastic rocks is intruded by a syenite stock.
Two types of mineralized float have been reported: coarse-grained sphalerite and galena in a quartz-carbonate matrix within the syenite; and fine-grained, massive pyrite within the sediments. A specimen of the first type assayed 9.6% Zn 47.6% Pb and 1217.1 g/t Ag, while a specimen of the second type assayed 2.2% Zn, 8.6% Pb and 75.4 g/t Ag.
A small 10 by 10m outcrop of massive to semi-massive magnetite, hosted by mafic volcanic rocks (?) was also noted. It is interpreted to represent skarn type mineralization related to the adjacent syenite.
Soil sampling by Cyprus Anvil outlined 3 separate areas around the occurrence that returned strongly anomalous Pb-Zn values and anomalous Cu values. Two anomalies were related to quartz-carbonate vein material containing galena and sphalerite, while the third anomaly occurred in the vicinity of massive pyrite boulders. A ground magnetometer survey returned a strong magnetic anomaly over the magnetite iron formation.
Regional Resources explored this occurrence as part of their large Ram claim group. A grab sample collected in 1984 from a a small vein of disseminated galena returned 548 g/t Ag, 0.034 g/t Au, 16.60 % Pb and 0.51% Zn. Fairfield Resources carried out a cursory examination of the occurrence in 1986 but did not collect any samples.
Atna Resources optioned the property to search for massive sulphide mineralization similar to that discovered at the Wolf deposit (Minfile Occurrence #105G 008) located 60 km to the southeast at the southern end of the Pelly Mountain volcanic belt. . Geological mapping confirmed the work of previous operators. Soil sampling outlined several strongly anomalous Pb-Zn and Ag anomalies which Atna contributed to the sphalerite and galena bearing quartz and quartz-carbonate veins commonly occurring on the property. The lack of barium float and barium enriched geochemical samples and the lack of volcanic units typically associated with massive sulphide mineralization in the region led Atna to drop the option.

References

ATNA RESOURCES LTD, Apr/99. Assessement Report #093977 by P. Holbek and R. Wilson.

CYPRUS ANVIL MINING CORP., Feb/78. Assessment Report #090279 by P. Dean.

FAIRFIELD MINERALS LTD, Sep/87. Assessment Report #092096 by J.J. Hylands.

FAIRFIELD MINERALS LTD, Nov/88. Assessment Report *#092604 by J.J. Hylands.

GEORGE CROSS NEWSLETTER, 18 Jan/93.

HUNT, J.A., 1999. Preliminary stratigraphy and distribution of Devono-Mississippian massive sulphide-bearing volcanic rocks in the Mount Vermillion (Wolf) area, Pelly Mountains (105G/5 and G/6 southeast Yukon. In: Yukon Exploration and Geology 1998, C.F. Roots and D.S. Emond (eds.), Exploration and Geological Services division, Yukon, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, p. 73-89.

MINERAL INDUSTRY REPORT 1977, p. 84.

PACIFIC COMOX RESOURCES LTD, Jan/95. Assessment Report #093286 by M.A. Mitchell.

REGIONAL RESOURCES LTD, Jan/86. Assessment Report #091768 by M.A. Stammers.

YUKON EXPLORATION 1985-86, p. 219-221.

YUKON MINING AND EXPLORATION OVERVIEW 1988, p. 23.