Abstract: Till geochemistry and glacial geology have rarely been integrated into Yukon mineral exploration. In the Anvil District, thick glacial deposits have consistently hampered exploration. From the initial (massive sulphide) discovery in Vangorda Creek, twenty years elapsed before the Grum deposit was discovered only two kilometres to the northwest. This work examines the utility of till geochemistry as a method to trace mineralized soil/till samples back to their source rocks in the Anvil District. The Anvil District was last glaciated during the McConnell glaciation, which had a significant impact on the local terrain. The relatively swift-flowing Cordilleran ice sheet deposited thick sequences of till in low-lying areas and eroded southeast-facing slopes and hill summits in the Swim Basin and Vangorda Plateau. This type of glacial history is conducive for till geochemical exploration. A 12 km 2 till grid was sampled northwest of the Faro deposit to map the glacial dispersion train. The till geochemistry on the -230 mesh fraction (silt and clay) indicated a broad dispersion plume for lead, zinc, and copper, extending more than 5 km west of the Faro Pb/Zn deposit. A section of the dispersion train may have a palimpsest origin. The soil geochemistry on the -80 mesh fraction, from 1964 data, indicated a much narrower dispersion plume extending directly from the Faro deposit. Till geochemistry, particularly on the fine fraction, has applications to similar drift-covered terrain, such as the Finlayson Lake massive sulphide district to the southeast.

Authors: Bond, J.D.

Keywords: glaciation, Surficial Geology

NTS Mapsheet(s): 105K

Citation: Bond, J.D., 1999. The Quaternary history and till geochemistry of the Anvil District, east-central Yukon. In: Yukon Exploration and Geology 1998, Roots, C.F. and Emond, D.S (eds.), Exploration and Geological Sciences Division, Yukon Region, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, p. 105-116.

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