The area around the headwaters of Azure River has claimed attention for several years due to the discovery of large bodies of auriferous quartz in metasedimentary rocks of the Shuswap Metamorphic Complex. Mineralization on the War Colt claim group is located on the east bank of the Azure River immediately south of the junction between the Azure River and War Colt Creek. The Summit (083D 004), Grizzley (083D 027) and Blue Ice (083D 003,025,026) occurrences all lie to the northwest.
The War Colt claim group lies near the contact between the Hadrynian upper Kaza Group and the stratigraphically overlying Isaac Formation of the Hadrynian Cariboo Group. The country rocks, striking 255 degrees, consist of massive quartzite, quartz pebble conglomerate, quartz-sericite schist, phyllite, argillite and limestone, of the Isaac Formation. Lithologies of the upper Kaza Group consist of quartzofeldspathic psammite, phyllite, slate and minor grit.
On the War Colt claims there are a number of exposures indicating intersecting veins. The most important showing is located along the east bank of the Azure River where a short tunnel has been driven 4.9 metres from an open pit in a northeast direction and a shallow shaft put down into a massive sulphide pocket within a quartz vein conformable with host schist and quartzite. Open cuts extend the exposed mineralized quartz 13.7 metres northwest and three open cuts lie to the south and southeast exposing a number of quartz bodies.
In the adit, the innermost 1.5 metres consists of smokey quartz and siderite in a vein striking 300 degrees, dipping 60 degrees northeast and traced 15 metres along strike. This vein, up to 2 metres wide, pinch out at both ends and is conformable with host rocks and hosts the massive sulphide pocket. A second vein appears to follow a northeast fracture and is approximately 2 metres wide.
Pyrite occurs locally near the portal and a sample of the northwest vein from near the portal assayed 3.43 grams per tonne gold and 185.1 grams per tonne silver (Minister of Mines Annual Report 1927). Chalcopyrite is abundant to the northwest. Galena and lesser sphalerite are frequently seen in veinlets crosscutting carbonate and accompanied by quartz. A sample from the shaft assayed 1.37 grams per tonne gold, 445.7 grams per tonne silver, 7.8 per cent copper, 8 per cent lead and 3.2 per cent zinc (Minister of Mines Annual Report 1927).
A showing of quartz and siderite, approximately 3 metres square, crops out at the junction of Canyon Creek with the Azure River. Bands of pyrite, up to 15 centimetres wide, follow an east-west vein wall and a parallel zone of pyrite 30 to 60 centimetres wide traverses the mass. A high grade grab of this zone assayed 2.74 grams per tonne gold and 10.3 grams per tonne silver (Minister of Mines Annual Report 1938).
