The Ford (Chartrand) occurrence is located north of Meadow Creek and approximately 5 kilometres east-southeast of the community of Logan Lake.
The area is underlain by dark grey to purplish red porphyritic amygdaloidal flows of the Upper Triassic Nicola Group. The lavas are typically amygdaloidal and vary in composition from olivine basalt to augite andesitic basalt. Alteration consists of albitization of plagioclase and propylitization of pyroxene to epidote, zoisite and calcite, with or without chlorite. The rock is locally shot through with sericite and epidote. Flows averaging 1.8 metres thick strike 050 degrees and dip 30 degrees northeast.
The original opencuts (pre-1915) expose copper carbonate ore with occasional flecks of bornite and chalcocite along fracture planes in amygdaloidal flows. The adit follows a mineralized shear zone striking 040 degrees and intersects an east-trending set of faults.
Chalcocite(?), bornite and some malachite occur in amygdules and associated veins in flow tops. Gangue minerals include chlorite, sericite, clinozoisite, zeolite and calcite. Some mineralization also occurs in calcite veins, calcite-epidote-sericite veins, sericite-zoisite veins and chlorite veins. Carbonate-zeolite veins are barren.
Drillcore assays range from 0.22 to 2.8 per cent copper over an interval of less than 1 metre (Minister of Mines Annual Report 1973).
In 1985, three samples (8653 to 8655) from the occurrence area yielded values from 0.3 to 1.7 grams per tonne gold and 3.8 to 48.6 grams per tonne silver (Assessment Report 13792). The following year, a rock sample (3458) from the historical workings yielded 7.6 grams per tonne silver and 2.85 per cent copper, whereas a sample (3460), taken approximately 900 metres west-northwest of the workings, assayed 0.40 gram per tonne gold (Assessment Report 15134).
In 2006, a select sample (262033) of amygdaloidal volcanics with calcite veins and malachite assayed 1.63 per cent copper and 7.4 grams per tonne silver (Assessment Report 28815).
Work History
By 1916, a 12-metre long adit and a series of opencuts are reported to have been developed on the occurrence.
Production in 1929 and 1930 is reported to have totalled 46 tonnes yielding 1230 kilograms of copper and 435 grams per tonne silver.
In 1969, Tower Mines completed a soil sampling program on the area as the BB claims. Also at this time, MacDonald Consultants Ltd. completed a program of soil sampling on the area as the Judy claims.
In 1972, ELC Geophysics Ltd. completed an 8.6 line-kilometre ground magnetic survey on the area as the Col and HW claims. Also at this time, Nicola Copper Mines Ltd. completed a program of soil sampling and a 20.0 line-kilometre ground electromagnetic survey on the area as the JG claims.
In 1985 and 1986, programs of prospecting and geochemical (rock and soil) sampling were completed on the area as the Fir claims.
In 2006, Goldcliff Resources Corp. completed a program of prospecting and geochemical (rock and silt) sampling on the area as the Plug property. Also at this time, Laurence Sookochoff completed a photo-geological (lineament) analysis on the area as the Leslie claim. In 2013, Laurence Sookochoff, on the behalf of Guy and Christopher Delorme, completed a photogeological (lineament) analysis on the area as the Bertha property. In 2015, a further program of photogeological (lineament) analysis and a 2.0 line-kilometre ground magnetic survey were completed on the area immediately north of the occurrence as the Logan claim.
