The HW9 showing was located on HW9 claim at the headwaters of Nude (Niut) Creek, in the Niut Range of the Coast Mountains. The HW9 showing is located 7 kilometres south-southwest of Blackhorn Mountain.
In 1990, the HW9 claim was staked by Louis Berniolles as a western extension of the HW1, HW4, HW5, and HW6 group of claims. In 1991, all accessible areas of the 500-hectare (20 units) property were prospected by a three-person team, for a total of 42 man/days in 1991. Eleven rock samples and 11 stream sediment samples were collected and sent for analysis.
The HW9 showing occurs near the thrust fault contact of the Eastern Waddington thrust belt imbricate zone with the Lower Cretaceous Ottarasko Formation consisting of calc-alkaline volcanic rocks. Conglomerate is known to occur as part of the imbricate zone.
Sample HW-91-10, reported as subcrop or localized float, consisting of iron sulphide-rich (pyrite?) gold-bearing quartz taken from quartz boulders which originated not too far upslope from HW-91-10. Samples taken upslope included HW-91-3, 4, and 9 where pyritized conglomerate hosts quartz lenses and veinlets which outcrop over an area of about 30 to 40 square metres. Sample HW-91-10 assayed 2.43 grams per tonne gold, 7.0 grams per tonne silver, and only 112 parts per million copper and 3 parts per million arsenic; sample HW-91-11 from the same location assayed 0.92 gram per tonne gold, 7.3 grams per tonne silver, 34 parts per million copper, and 2 ppm arsenic (Assessment Report 21861).
See Blackhorn Mountain (092N 019) for related area geology and work history.