The Spray occurrence is located at an elevation of approximately 2050 metres on a southeast-facing slope, north of Texas Creek and approximately 7.8 kilometres southeast of Mount Brew.
The area is underlain by a thick sequence of schistose argillites of the Jurassic-Cretaceous Relay Mountain Group that have been intruded by a sill-like body of porphyritic quartz diorite that is more than 200 metres thick. A north-trending swarm of vertical to steeply west-dipping micro-quartz diorite/dacite dikes intrude the sediments and the porphyritic quartz diorite. The dikes are cut by a later set of northwest-trending andesite dikes.
The porphyritic quartz diorite and, to a lesser degree, the enclosing sediments, have undergone multiple episodes of fracturing and related quartz veining. Disseminated pyrrhotite and subordinate pyrite are ubiquitous. Molybdenite and minor chalcopyrite are associated with the quartz stockwork veining. A later set of larger (5- to 160-centimetre), 090 to 130 degree–trending pyrrhotite-, pyrite-, molybdenite-, sphalerite- and arsenopyrite-bearing quartz veins cut the porphyritic quartz diorite and the enclosing sediments. The micro-quartz diorite dikes crosscut the late quartz veins and are not veined or mineralized. Surface oxidation has leached nearly all sulphide minerals from the exposed surface of the veins.
An extensive biotite hornfels aureole postdating the porphyry-type mineralization envelopes the intrusion and the sediments.
Drillholes reveal zones of intense silicification with accompanying sericitization that totally obscure porphyritic textures and most quartz veinlets.
In 1981, two diamond drill holes (81-03 and 81-04) are reported to have yielded intercepts including 2.10 and 3.67 grams per tonne gold over 3.00 and 21.00 metres, respectively (Kutluoglu, R. [2020-03-24]: National Instrument 43-101 Technical Report on the Empirical Property, Southern Interior, British Columbia, Canada).
In 1986, diamond drilling yielded intercepts including 3.20, 3.30 and 10.27 grams per tonne gold over 1.75, 1.01 and 0.88 metres in holes 86-01, 86-04 and 86-05, respectively (Assessment Report 15835).
In 2019, rock samples from the occurrence area yielded values of up to 3.175 grams per tonne gold, 0.103 per cent zinc and 0.051 per cent molybdenum (Kutluoglu, R. [2020-03-24]: National Instrument 43-101 Technical Report on the Empirical Property, Southern Interior, British Columbia, Canada).
Work History
Old claim posts and small trenches that date from the 1960s are evidence of past work.
In 1978 and 1979, geological mapping, geochemical sampling and prospecting were undertaken on the Tow 1-4 claims by Duval International Corporation to evaluate the molybdenum potential. The North (see Tow, MINFILE 092INW090) and South (this description) zone mineralized areas were discovered. Work completed by Duval during 1980 consisted of geological mapping and geochemical sampling in and near areas of known molybdenite mineralization, the construction of helipads and drill sites, and the excavation of trenches.
In 1981 and 1982, two diamond drill holes totalling 450 metres were completed by Duval on the Tow 1 and 2 claims. In 1984, Duval closed their Vancouver office and their claims expired in 1985. The claims were subsequently re-staked as the Spray and Brew claims in 1985 and were optioned to Geostar Mining Corp. and Miramar Energy Corp., who took limited soil and rock samples in June and July 1986. In 1986, Southern Gold Resources undertook investigative geological examinations and a six-hole, 264-metre diamond drilling program to substantiate Duval's results on the South zone. In 1988, Kerr Addison Mines optioned the Spray property, diamond drilled 746 metres in five holes and completed a geological and geochemical survey.
In 2019, Clarity Gold Corp. completed a program of prospecting, geological mapping and geochemical (rock and soil/talus fines) sampling on the area as the Empirical property.
