The Big Range (Rice Creek) occurrence is located on a small ridge between Angus and Rice creeks, approximately 1 kilometres east of Sowaqua Creek.
The Hozameen fault traverses south-southeast across the area, separating the greenschist facies rocks of the Permian-Jurassic Hozameen Complex from unmetamorphosed Mesozoic rocks of the Ladner and Dewdney Creek groups. Ultramafic rocks occur along the Hozameen fault and these are part of the Coquihalla Serpentine Belt.
Locally, Lower-Middle Jurassic Ladner Group sediments composed of interbedded argillite, siltstone, wackes and conglomerate host quartz fissures containing pyrite, chalcopyrite, arsenopyrite and molybdenite. In the Rice Creek zone, the Ladner Group rocks appear to be intruded by a porphyritic, slightly kaolinized quartz monzonite with an oval form, approximately 1500 metres (north-south) and 500 metres (east-west) cuts shale and siltstone. Xenoliths of chert and argillite occur in the area. Related aplite sills crosscut cherty argillite in the vicinity of Angus Creek. The argillite is heavily iron- stained and hosts disseminated pyrite.
Similar mineralization, consisting of disseminated molybdenite and arsenopyrite, is reported on the ridge to the south of Rice Creek.
In 1984, a sample from old trenches assayed 0.917 per cent molybdenum disulphide, 0.02 per cent arsenic, 0.04 per cent copper, 0.309 gram per tonne gold and 3.09 grams per tonne silver (Assessment Report 14751). In 1985, a rock sample (058292) assayed 0.304 per cent molybdenum, 1.6 grams per tonne silver and 0.10 gram per tonne gold (Assessment Report 14570).
In 2010, a sample (BR 2A) assayed 60.3 grams per tonne silver and 0.156 per cent lead (Price, B.J. (2012-07-31): Technical Report – Big Range Property).
The area was reported first explored in the early 1930’s and some minor trenching was performed during this time. During 1984 through 1986, Caara Ventures completed programs of prospecting, geochemical sampling and 15.4 line-kilometres of combined ground electromagnetic and magnetic surveys on the area as the Big Range claims. In 2008 and 2009, the area was prospected as the Master 1 property. In 2012, Savoy Ventures completed a 412.0 line-kilometre airborne electromagnetic survey on the area.