The Noranda (Bugaboo) occurrence is located at an elevation of approximately 1030 metres, south of Lendrum Creek and approximately 4.2 kilometres northwest of Ainsworth.
Regionally, the area is underlain by hornblende schists, limestone and banded quartzite of the Upper Mississippian to Permian Milford Formation and basaltic volcanic rocks of the Carboniferous to Permian Kaslo Group. Granodioritic intrusive rocks of the Middle Jurassic Nelson Batholith are exposed to the west.
The principal rocks of the Noranda occurrence are schists and limestone of the Mississippian to Permian Milford Formation. Granite also outcrops in the vicinity. The mineralization on the claim group is described as consisting of quartz and siderite containing galena, sphalerite, pyrite, pyrrhotite and minor chalcopyrite.
In the Noranda adit, lead-zinc mineralization more than 1 metre thick was followed for more than 30 metres and was eventually mined out in 1964 and 1965, amounting to 2177 tonnes of ore (Bulletin 53).
Work History
The Hercules-Silver Glance group consists of the Hercules, Sullivan, Noranda, Silver Bell, Glen Ellen, Harrison, Free Silver and Silver Glance claims. Three of the claims, formerly called the Pataha, Ellen and Bugaboo, were relocated in 1951 under the respective names of Hercules, Sullivan and Noranda, respectively.
Most of the development work on the Hercules claim was done in approximately 1890. The workings consisted of 36.5 metres of tunnel in two adits, a shaft 4.5 metres feet deep and some trenching. In approximately 1895, a 22.8-metre shaft was put down on the Sullivan claim. Nubar Mines Ltd. of Toronto held an option on the claims in 1951 and are reported to have done some diamond drilling. The Asbestos Corporation Ltd. did about 914 metres of diamond drilling in 30 holes in 1952. The results of this work have apparently not been released by the company.
The Silver Glance claim, which lies astride the South Fork of Woodbury Creek, approximately 3 kilometres from its mouth, has had the most development work done on it. The property was located in 1896 and was apparently worked intermittently for approximately four years. A tunnel at creek level follows the vein in a 110 degree direction for 66 metres. Here the vein splits and is followed by two branches of the tunnel, one going 85 degrees for 23 metres, in which the vein appears to pinch out, and the other extending for 18 metres at 110 degrees with the vein still in the face.
In 1952, Guichon Mine Ltd., owners of the Buckeye claim, held an option on all the above claims; however, their work was apparently confined to the Buckeye. Between 1951 and 1957 considerable work was done by Triumph Mines Limited. In 1956, Highland-Bell Ltd. conducted a program of geological mapping on the area as the Big Bluff, Fred, Mar and Nick groups of claims.
In 1964 and 1965, ore was mined from the Noranda adit and shipped to the Yale Mill in Ainsworth. By 1967, the property was owned by Blue Star Mines limited. In 1971, Hi-Lode Minerals Ltd. completed an 8.5 line-kilometre ground magnetic and electromagnetic survey on the area as the Laurier, Tam-Rak, RFG and Attended Crown-granted claims.
In 1979, the area was held and explored by Ainsworth Resources Ltd. The following year, 12 diamond drill holes, totalling 480.4 metres, were completed.
In 1981, Boundary Gold Corp. completed five diamond drill holes, totalling 226.5 metres, on the area as the J & D property. Drilling yielded intercepts including: 1.85 per cent lead, 2.86 per cent zinc and 102.2 grams per tonne silver over 1.5 metres in hole 81-1 and 7.06 per cent lead, 5.78 per cent zinc and 152.6 grams per tonne silver over 1.1 metres in hole 81-3 (Assessment Report 9802). The drilling indicated that the mineralized zone is continuous along the downdip extension to the west-northwest for at least 30.5 metres, with a possible 794 tonnes grading an average of 2.61 per cent lead, 3.81 per cent zinc and 86.4 grams per tonne silver (Assessment Report 9802). Also at this time, samples from the dump are reported to have yielded 13.10 per cent lead, 8.56 per cent zinc and 247.3 grams per tonne silver (Assessment Report 9802).
In 1996, a program of prospecting and geochemical (rock, silt and soil) sampling was conducted by George Addie on the area as the Silver Hoard property. A sample (90201) of galena-sphalerite-pyrite in limestone from the Bugaboo adit yielded 41 grams per tonne silver, 2.38 per cent lead and 4.53 per cent zinc, and a grab sample (90228) of galena-pyrite mineralization hosted in a narrow shear zone in schists, located 400 metres to the northwest, assayed 124 grams per tonne silver, 1.40 per cent lead and 9.52 per cent zinc (Assessment Report 25055).
During 2007 through 2011, Goldcliff Resource Corp. completed programs of prospecting, geological mapping, geochemical (rock, silt and soil) sampling and an airborne geophysical survey on the regionally extensive Ainsworth Silver property. In 2008, two mineralized outcrop samples (2740527 and 2740528) from the occurrence area both yielded values of greater than 1.00 per cent zinc and lead, each, and greater than 30 grams per tonne silver (Assessment Report 29641).
In 2015, Goldcliff Resource Corp. conducted a program of prospecting, geological mapping, geochemical (rock, silt and soil) sampling and a 4.1 line-kilometre ground electromagnetic survey on the area as part of the Ainsworth Silver property.
In 2020 and 2021, Goldcliff Resource Corp. conducted a further program of geochemical (rock, silt and soil) sampling and a 508.0 line-kilometre airborne magnetic, electromagnetic and radiometric survey on the Ainsworth Silver property.
