The Tony (L. 18G) occurrence is located at an elevation of approximately 300 metres on the western slope of Mount Sicker and approximately 650 metres east of the Chemainus River.

Regionally, the area is within the Cowichan uplift; one of three geo-anticlinal uplifts that expose Paleozoic Sicker and Buttle Lake Group rocks on Vancouver Island. Cretaceous sediments of the Nanaimo Group unconformably overlie the Paleozoic rocks; the contact is marked by a basal conglomerate containing volcanic fragments derived from the Sicker Group. The local stratigraphy is disrupted by folding, faulting (pre-Triassic as well as Paleogene–Neogene) and the intrusions of gabbro and diabase sills and dikes (known as the Mount Hall Gabbro) that are coeval with the Upper Triassic Karmutsen Formation.

The Sicker Group rocks mainly comprise felsic volcanic tuffs of the Middle to Upper Devonian McLaughlin Ridge Formation. The rocks in the area include graphitic schists and cherty sediments and tuffs which form a band within the rhyolitic volcanics. This is the same band of rock which hosts the massive sulphides on the Lenora-Tyee mines (MINFILE 092B 001) to the immediate east.

Locally, as defined by diamond drilling, various successions of chloritized quartz-crystal tuffs, andesitic tuff, lapilli tuff, minor rhyolites, feldspar porphyritic dacite flow, flow breccia and feldspar porphyritic dacite flow hosts disseminated and stringer mineralization of pyrite, chalcopyrite and minor sphalerite.

To the north of the area drilled and along the informally named Copper Canyon Creek sericitic schist numerous quartz veins hosting pyrite with minor chalcopyrite and occasional sphalerite are exposed.

Work History

At least two short, 4- to 6-metre long, shafts and a 25-metre long adit, likely dating to the late1890s or early 1900s, are reported along Copper Canyon Creek to the north of the occurrence.

In 1967 and 1968, Mt. Sicker Mines conducted programs of geological mapping, a 48.0 line-kilometre ground electromagnetic survey and a 3.0 line-kilometre ground magnetic survey on the Mt. Sicker property.

In 1972, Duncanex Resources completed a program of prospecting, line-cutting, geological mapping and a 34.0 line-kilometre ground electromagnetic survey on the surrounding area as the CF Group and Dawn claims. In 1974, Dresser Ind. completed four diamond drill holes, totalling 830.0 metres, on the Lenora property. During 1978 through 1980, S.E.R.E.M. Limited completed programs of geological mapping, ground geophysical surveys and soil sampling on the Rocky claims.

In 1986, Falconbridge Copper completed a 23.3 line-kilometre induced polarization survey on the area. Also at this time, six diamond drill holes (MTS-18, -19, -20, -21, -22 and -23) were completed on the Key City, Tony and XL claims to test the faulted extension of the Lenora-Tyee Mine Package, west and south of the former works. Drillhole MTS-21 yielded intercepts of 0.49 and 5.12 per cent copper with 0.11 and 0.31 per cent zinc over 0.65 and 0.12 metre at 124.55 and 231.80 metres down hole, respectively, while drillhole MTS-22, located several hundred metres to the north, yielded 0.79 and 0.17 per cent copper over 0.25 and 0.58 metres at 88.50 and 137.37 metres down hole, respectively (Assessment Report 15719).

During 1987 through 1990, Minnova completed programs of geochemical sampling and at least twenty-seven diamond drill holes, totalling 7073.0 metres, on the area as the Mount Sicker and Twin properties. In 1987, a drillhole (MTS40), located near the southwest corner of the Donald claim to the west-southwest of the 1986 drillholes, tested the ‘Southern Horizon’ zone and yield values of up to 0.04 per cent zinc, 0.02 per cent lead, 47.6 grams per tonne silver and 0.12 gram per tonne gold with 0.955 per cent barium over 3.00 metres (33.00 to 36.00 metres down hole) in a rhyodacitic quartz feldspar porphyry and lithic tuff to lapilli tuff hosting sphalerite, pyrite and chalcopyrite stringers with trace galena (Assessment Report 16716).

In 2008, Westridge Resources completed a 440.3 line-kilometre airborne geophysical (magnetic and electromagnetic) survey on the area as part of the Fortuna property. In 2010 and 2011, Rock-Con Resources completed a program of prospecting and rock sampling on the Mount Sicker property. In 2013 and 2014, Conarry Ventures Inc. conducted programs of prospecting and rock sampling on the area as the Mount Sicker property.

In 2020, 911 Mining Co. conducted a program of prospecting and geochemical (rock and silt) sampling on the area as the Mount Sicker property. Six rock samples (S-26, S-27 and S-29 to S-32) from mineralized quartz veins along Copper Canyon Creek yielded values from 1.89 to 21.12 per cent copper with 0.01 to 0.62 per cent zinc (Portable-XRF assays; Assessment Report 39405).

In 2021 and 2022, Scenc Resources Corp. completed a minor program of geological mapping, rock sampling, a 1.8 line-kilometre ground electromagnetic survey and four backpack drill holes, totalling 14.9 metres, on the Mount Sicker property. Two outcrop samples of sulphide-quartz vein from the Copper Canyon Creek area yielded an average of 4.98 per cent copper, 1.83 per cent zinc, 0.11 per cent lead, 30.0 grams per tonne silver and 0.45 gram per tonne gold (Assessment Report 40298).

Later in 2022, Sasquatch Resources Corp. completed a program of prospecting, geological mapping, drillcore and rock sampling and a 418.2 line-kilometre airborne electromagnetic survey on the Mount Sicker property.