Mineralization occurs within sediments and volcanics of the Upper Triassic Stuhini Group.
The RHG skarn mineralization is developed at the contact between volcanic sediments and diorite plutonic rocks of Jurassic age. A fault (110/90 degrees) cuts the diorite and is mineralized and silicified. The fault zone is in turn truncated by the sheared contact, trending 025 degrees, between volcanic sediments and diorite. The sheared contact zone is reportedly up to five metres wide, is silicified with quartz veinlets, and hosts blebs of chalcopyrite, bornite, and covellite. Within the shear zone quartz veins up to 40 centimetres wide contain up to 20 per cent chalcopyrite and 30 per cent pyrite. The silicification extends for nearly 50 metres beyond the contact zone and is manifest as quartz veins and massive, resistant quartz knobs. The width of the contact/shear zone is reported to exceed 50 metres; strike length was undetermined due to overburden and snow cover.
Disseminated and fracture filled pyrite, pyrrhotite and chalcopyrite occur at the contact of diorite and andesite. A grab sample assayed 0.2 per cent copper (Assessment Report 19912). The area was held by Pathfinder Resources Ltd as the Erts claims, in 1999.
GMV Minerals 2008 drillhole intersected a skarn assemblage from 311.45 to 332.61 metres, comprising garnet skarn grading to epidote skarn, with an interval of semi to massive sulphide mineralization from 318.46 to 319.03 metres. The massive sulphide zone assayed 1.16 grams per tonne gold, 97.4 grams per tonne silver and 12.65 per cent copper over 0.57 metre (Assessment Report 30739).
Work History
Amax Explorations Inc. staked the VB claims in 1973 to cover a copper-iron skarn west of Tahltan Lake. The skarn mineralization consisted of chalcopyrite, pyrite, pyrrhotite, magnetite and specular hematite adjacent to a diorite stock (Geology, Exploration and Mining (GEM) in BC 1974). In 1974, a soil geochemical grid was established and a magnetometer survey was conducted with magnetic highs coinciding with known mineralized skarn areas Assessment Report 5097).
In 1989, a preliminary prospecting program by Kestrel Resources Ltd was completed over the existing mineral claims and located several mineral showings. A 1990 geochemical program was undertaken to further assess the exploration potential of the claims. During the course of that work some 203 rock samples, 192 soil samples and 18 panned concentrate silt samples were collected.
Homestake completed two programs on the property in 1989 that are detailed in two assessment reports 19063 and 20149. The Canyoun 1-20 claims covered much of the same ground as the earlier VB claims of Amax in 1973-74. The first program consisted of mapping and the collection of 5 rock and 4 silt samples over two days of work. The follow-up program included further geological mapping and rock (56 samples) and soil (34 samples) sampling (Assessment Report 20149). Analytical results from the skarn zones indicated that the zones are anomalous in both copper and silver and occasionally gold. In addition a number of samples were taken from several old trenches located on the property. The trenches were cut on skarn altered zones containing chalcopyrite, magnetite and pyrite mineralization. Another program was initiated in 1990 comprising the collection of 366 soil samples from an 11.6 line-kilometre grid (Assessment Report 21320). Results reported values up to 2.64 per cent copper, 58.97 grams per tonne silver and 2.78 grams per tonne gold (Assessment Report 30739).
Work done in 2005 by Red Tusk Resources on the RHG claim group included, grid establishment (39.35 line-kilometres), rock (35 samples), and soil (985 samples) geochemical sampling, 3D modeling of a previously flown airborne magnetic survey, and a 3D induced Polarization geophysical survey (35.75 line-kilometres). The claims covered much of the same area as the previous VB claims of Amex (1974) and the Canyon claims of Homestake as well as the Tahl claims of Kestrel Resources Ltd. The 2005 work outlined areas of anomalous soil and several high chargeability-low resistivity targets from the 3D IP survey. A total of 25 rock grab and 10 rock chip samples were collected during the 2005 program. Two grids totalling 39.35 line-kilometres were established, north and south of the Kestrel showing, which wasn’t covered by the 2005 surveys due to steepness of terrain; none of the sampling covered the original Kestrel showing. No work was done around the VB showings (104G 081,082,083).
Work in 2008 by GMV Minerals Inc consisted of two NQ-size diamond drill holes totalling 828.75 metres drilled from two drill pads in the Kestrel area.
