The Foo occurrence is located on a plateau, approximately 3.5 kilometres north-northeast of the southeast end of Redfern Lake.
The central portion of the Redfern Lake area is underlain by Middle Devonian Dunedin Formation carbonates, which conformably overlie Lower to Middle Devonian Stone Formation dolomites. To the east, this package is thrust over Devonian and Carboniferous Besa River Formation shales. To the west, a package of Cambrian to Ordovician Kechika Group and Ordovician Skoki Formation strata are thrust over the Dunedin and Stone formations. Between these two thrust faults, flat-lying Dunedin Formation limestone forms a plateau of greater than 14 square kilometres.
Massive barite, barite-calcite and calcite zones, hosted within the Dunedin Formation limestone, occur over the whole expanse of the plateau. The massive barite and calcite zones commonly grade outwards to brecciated and silicified limestone. Disseminated sphalerite, galena, and minor chalcopyrite are found in the silicified haloes of some of these zones. Sulphide mineralization is also found within calcite and/or barite veins, with up to 15 centimetres of massive brick red sphalerite, coarse galena and minor chalcopyrite (Assessment Report 5179). The largest exposed massive calcite body has a dimension of 300 metres by 60 metres by 60 metres.
In 1972, a sample (Qtz-2) of dolomite, replaced with quartz and containing very small light rusty patches, assayed 3.51 per cent zinc, whereas a sample of barite yielded 57.42 per cent barium, 0.18 per cent calcium and 13.38 per cent sulphur (Assessment Report 4530).
In 1973, a rock sample (C-25773) from a 7.5-centimetre wide horizon hosting small cavities filled with patchy galena assayed 1.80 per cent lead (Assessment Report 4532).
Work History
In 1972, Vestor Explorations Ltd. completed a program of geological mapping and soil sampling on the Redfern Lake area as the Chilly, Damn, Egg and Foo claims. Also at this time, Noranda Mining and Exploration Inc. completed a program of silt and soil sampling on the area as the BE claims of the Valley property.
In 1973, Rio Tinto Exploration Canada Inc. completed a program of geological mapping, minor rock sampling, a 36.2 line-kilometre induced polarization survey, a 30.5 line-kilometre ground magnetic survey and a photogeological study on the Foo, Egg, Chilly, Vista and Damn claim groups. In 1974, Rio Tinto Canadian Exploration Ltd. completed nine diamond drill holes, totalling 608.0 metres, on the Vestor property. The following year, a further program of geological mapping and soil sampling was completed on the property. In 1979, Teck Explorations Ltd. completed a program of geological mapping and geochemical (rock and soil) sampling on the Vestor property.
