The Lost Swede buried placer occurrence is located along the east side of the Swift River valley, north of the confluence of Victoria Creek, approximately 30 kilometres east of Quesnel.

The area is underlain by a thick sequence of postglacial alluvium and glacial sediments blanket the central portion of the Swift River Valley where bedrock exposures are rare.

Locally, two older gravel layers or paleo-channel targets have been identified along the east side of the Swift River. The first and most extensive deposit is made up of a valley-bottom terrace that is deeply incised by the Swift River along its western margin. Neighbouring to the east and elevated 54 metres higher is a second deposit setting consisting of a valley-side terrace. The older gravel layers are buried beneath late Wisconsin sediments that make up a glacial unit that extends from 8.5 to 22 metres in thickness.

In 2007, both terraces were tested by 20 hollow stem open-flight auger drill holes ranging from 2.7 to 36 metres deep. Older gravel layers ranging from 1.8 to 15.8 metres were identified in six holes drilled along the valley-bottom terrace and in one hole along the valley-side terrace. In 2009, eight auger drill holes were completed, totalling 162 metres. Drilling intersected a 7 metre section of gold bearing interglacial gravels along the valley-side terrace. Gold grade measurements across this gravel section returned values ranging from 0.41 to 1.77 grams per cubic metre. The gravel is overlain by 5.5 to 7.6 metres of overburden consisting of late Wisconsin glacial till and underlain by an older highly dense glaciolacustrine mud layer measuring 1.8 metres thick. A 3.4 metre thick sample of fractured bedrock retrieved from the same hole at a depth of 17.9 to 21.3 metre returned a gold grade equivalent to 0.64 gram per cubic metre (Assessment Report 31575).