The Nell 3 occurrence is located at an elevation of approximately 1730 metres on a south-southwest–facing slope at the south end of the informally named Goat Ridge, approximately 15 kilometres southeast of Old Hogem.
The occurrence occurs at the contact between volcanic rocks of the Lower Jurassic Twin Creek Formation of the Middle Triassic-Lower Jurassic Takla Group, and probably Lower Jurassic dioritic and monzodioritic phases of the Upper Triassic to Lower Cretaceous Hogem Intrusive Complex. The contact is a complex hybrid zone of intrusive, subvolcanic, and volcanic rocks. Volcanic textures are difficult to discern due to contact metamorphism; many volcanic fragments occur as ghost outlines and clots of epidote suggesting resorption and metasomatic alteration with intrusive phases.
Locally, a 1.0-metre-wide north-trending fault occurs in a silicified and fractured volcanic (andesite?) breccia with malachite staining and occasional vuggy quartz veins with disseminate pyrite and chalcopyrite(?). The fault zone has been traced for approximately 400 metres to the north.
In 1991, two chip samples (P91NL013 and P91NL012), taken approximately 8 metres apart, yielded 6.20 and 0.11 grams per tonne gold, 92.4 and 45.9 grams per tonne silver with 0.582 and 1.273 per cent copper over 0.3 and 1.0 metres, respectively, whereas two other chip samples (P91NL041 and 030), taken up slope of the previous samples at elevations of approximately 1775 and 1925 metres, yielded 0.26 and 0.12 gram per tonne gold, 27.9 and 10.0 grams per tonne silver with 0.922 and 0.372 per cent copper over 0.5 and 2.0 metres, respectively (Assessment Report 22192).
Work History
The area has been explored in conjunction with the nearby Takla (MINFILE 093N 067) occurrence and a complete exploration history can be found there.
In 1990 and 1991, Placer Development Ltd., on the behalf of Eastfield Resources Ltd., completed a program of prospecting, rock and soil sampling, geological mapping, a 21.6 line-kilometre induced polarization survey and a 200 line-kilometre airborne geophysical survey on the area as the Nell claims.
Also in 1990 and 1991, Golden Rule Resources Ltd. completed programs of rock, silt, and soil sampling, geological mapping and a 1500 line-kilometre airborne geophysical survey on the area as the Sho 4-5 claims of the Takla property.
