The Golden Loon (Low Grade Zone), also called the Golden Loon 2 or GL-2 occurrence, is located approximately 550 metres southwest of Dum Lake and 6 kilometres west of Little Fort.
The area is underlain by dioritic intrusive rocks of the Triassic to Jurassic Dum Lake Intrusive Complex, which consists of a mafic portion composed of diorite, gabbro, microdiorite and intrusion breccia and an ultramafic portion composed of dunite, wehrlite, pyroxenite and serpentine. The Dum Lake Intrusive Complex is believed to be an Alaskan-type intrusive complex (Fieldwork 2000). It is in contact with granodioritic rocks of the Triassic to Jurassic Thuya Batholith on the west. On its eastern side the Dum Lake intrusive rocks intrude siltstone, argillite, chert and limestone of the late Paleozoic Harper Ranch Group and mafic volcanic rocks, related volcaniclastic rocks, clastic sediment, chert and limestones of the Upper Triassic Nicola Group.
Locally, a northwesttrending, carbonate-silica-chlorite–altered shear zone has been exposed along strike for approximately 150 metres. Trenching has exposed greater than 6 metres of pervasive silicification containing disseminated and fracture-controlled specularite and pyrite (Assessment Report 25432; Fieldwork 2000).
In 1990, sampling of trenches is reported to have yielded gold values in the range of 0.5 to 2.5 grams per tonne occurring throughout the trench and an average of 1.17 grams per tonne gold for all samples (Assessment Report 25434). Diamond drilling, performed below the trench(s), yielded 2.67 grams per tonne gold over 10.4 metres and 1.16 grams per tonne gold over 14.3 metres (Property File - W. Kovacevic [1996-01-01]: Fact Sheet - Golden Loon).
A second area of mineralization, located approximately 100 metres along strike to the southeast of the trenched and drilled area, consists a north-trending vein up to 70 centimetres wide. Samples of the vein have yielded up to 8.3 grams per tonne gold and 66.7 grams per tonne silver, while the bleached and silicified wallrocks have yielded values of up to 2.0 grams per tonne gold (Assessment Report 25431).
Another silicified alteration zone is reported to be exposed approximately 70 metres southwest of the second mineralized zone. The zone varies from 1 to 2 metres wide and dips steeply. Minor disseminated chalcopyrite occurs in the propylitic alteration haloes, whereas pyrite occurs along fractures. Samples of the zone have yielded up to 4.5 grams per tonne gold over 1 to 2 metres (Property File - W. Kovacevic [1996-01-01]: Fact Sheet - Golden Loon).
The earliest record of prospecting in the area dates from the 1920s, when placer gold was recovered from the Eakin Creek (MINFILE 092P 055). In 1967, Noranda Exploration Company completed a soil sampling survey over the Kira claims after obtaining anomalous results in a reconnaissance stream sediment sampling program. The program outlined zones of anomalous copper and nickel. In 1973, Rio Tinto Canadian Exploration Limited completed another soil geochemical sampling program on the Dum Claim Group, outlining copper, zinc and lead anomalies west of Dum Lake. Teck Corporation reportedly staked the Minerva Group in 1980 on the west side of the Golden Loon property and undertook a magnetometer survey and a soil geochemical survey, obtaining several silver anomalies.
In 1984, The Golden Loon Claims were staked by Barnes Creek Minerals and a prospecting program was undertaken. In 1985, additional prospecting was undertaken and magnetometer, VLF-EM and soil geochemical surveys were completed. In 1987, Mineta Resources completed a program that included soil geochemical surveys (548 samples), line cutting (34.6 kilometres), lithogeochemistry (18 samples) and stream sediment geochemical sampling (70 samples), locating some high-grade float boulders and outlining some gold-in-soil geochemical anomalies. In 1988, Mineta completed 78.2 kilometres of line-cutting and 61.0 kilometres of VLF-EM and magnetometer surveying, and collected 1571 soil geochemical samples. In 1989, Mineta completed 25.0 kilometres of VLF-EM and magnetometer surveying, as well as soil geochemical (556 samples) and lithogeochemical (20 samples) surveys.
In 1990, the property was optioned to Corona Corporation and an extensive program of prospecting, geological mapping, soil geochemical sampling (637 samples), geophysical surveys (25 kilometres of magnetometer and VLF-EM), trenching and diamond drilling (691 metres in 7 holes) was carried out. In 1992, Placer Dome Limited optioned the property, focusing on the porphyry copper-gold potential of the western portion of the property, and completed 20.0 kilometres of grid preparation, geological mapping and soil geochemical surveying (1083 samples). In 1996, Meteor Minerals Incorporated completed a program of geochemical soil sampling to test the potential of the enzyme leach technique in tracing mineralized zones in areas of extensive overburden. In 1997, Meteor completed a three-hole (393 metres) diamond drill program on the Golden Loon High Grade Zone. In 1999, Tilava Mining Corporation completed a program of lithogeochemical sampling (150 samples) on ultramafic rocks on the property and detected significant platinum values. In 2000, the property was optioned by Case Gold Mines Limited and VLF-EM, magnetometer, induced polarization and soil geochemical (119 samples) surveys were completed.
