The Kinbasket Lake (Ruby) kyanite occurrence is located near the northeast shore of Kinbasket Lake, approximately 1.2 kilometres southwest of the Kinbasket River mouth on the lake.

Regionally, the area is underlain by quartz arenite sedimentary rocks of the lower Cambrian Mahto Formation (Gog Group); limestone, slate, siltstone and argillite of the middle to upper Cambrian Chancellor Formation and calcareous sedimentary rocks (limestone, marble) of the middle to upper Cambrian Kinbasket unit.

In the Kinbasket Mountain–Sullivan River area schists, probably lower Cambrian, contain up to 50 per cent garnet and local abundant kyanite associated with large quartz veins and pegmatites (Eichelberger, 1953). Mica is also present.

Locally, a dike hosting kyanite, garnet and pyrophyllite strikes north 10 degrees west and dips sharply to the west conformably to the apparent bedding. The average dip is 60 degrees or greater.

Work History

In 1953, Yellow Creek Mica Ltd. completed a program of prospecting and 300 metres of drilling on the area as the Ruby claims.