The Dutchy occurrence is located at an elevation of approximately 2104 metres in the headwaters of Copper Creek, a tributary of Dutch Creek, and south of Coppercrown Mountain.
Regionally, the area is underlain by Proterozoic clastic sedimentary rocks of the Purcell and Windermere supergroups and by Cretaceous intrusive rocks (Geoscience Map 1995-1). The Purcell Supergroup strata include the Aldridge, Creston, Kitchener, Dutch Creek and Mount Nelson formations. The Windermere Supergroup overlies the Purcell Supergroup rocks and includes the Toby Formation and Horsethief Creek Group (Paper 1990-1).
In the vicinity of the occurrence, rocks of the Kitchener and Dutch Creek formations have been further subdivided and assigned to the Van Creek and Gateway formations (Open File 1990-26). The Van Creek Formation consists mainly of coarse- to medium-grained, light-grey to dark-green quartzite, siltstone and silty argillite. The beds have consistent thickness of between 20 and 50 centimetres with slightly undulose bases and truncated tops. The Van Creek Formation grades upwards into thinly bedded quartzite of the Gateway Formation. The Gateway Formation is subdivided into the Hg1 and Hg2 members. The Hg1 member consists of an interbedded sequence of quartzite, green siltstone and buff dolomitic siltstone and dolomite. Bed thicknesses vary from generally 2 to 10 centimetres in the fine-grained quartzite to 10 to 50 centimetres in the upper dolomite. The contact with the underlying Van Creek Formation is gradational or marked by the basaltic flows of the Nicol Creek Formation. The Hg2 member consists of a 90-metre thick, cream to buff-weathering dolomite unit. The dolomite displays stromatolitic laminations, cream-coloured chert intercalations and rare salt casts. Bed thickness varies from 50 centimetres to 2 metres. The sedimentary rocks have undergone regional metamorphism to at least greenschist facies.
Mineralization is hosted within siltstone and chloritic schists of the Gateway Formation and consists of chalcopyrite and pyrite associated with centimetre-wide quartz veins within a vertical shear, 0.9 to 9 metres wide, that strikes north. Limonite is also reported. The sulphide mineralization averages 5.5 metres in width and has been followed in surface trenches for a distance of 300 metres along strike.
In 1968, a channel sample from a trench assayed 2.81 per cent copper across 3 metres, whereas a previous channel sample from the adit is reported to have assayed 5.37 per cent copper across 1.5 metres. (Property File - unknown [1968-09-10]: File note RE: Dutchy Property visit). A possible reserve of 362 874 tonnes averaging 0.40 per cent copper and 108 862 tonnes averaging 0.60 per cent copper was reported (Property File - Cominco [1968-09-24]: Map of Dutchy Group of M.C.'s Copper Creek tributary of Dutch Creek).
In 1969, average assays from the prospect were 0.7 and 0.49 per cent copper over 3.6 and 5.6 metres, respectively (Assessment Report 14232).
During the 1890s, the prospect was explored with a 10 metre long adit and several small pits and trenches. In 1968 and 1969, Cominco examined the area and completed 60 metres of trenching. In 1970, a ground electromagnetic survey was completed. During 1984 through 1987, Even Resources completed programs of geochemical sampling and ground geophysical surveys.
