The Coccola occurrence, on the Peteka 1 claim, is located approximately 2 kilometres south-southeast of Mount Coccola and about 2 kilometres east of the unnamed lake at the headwaters of Driftwood River (Assessment Report 14424). The geological setting is similar to that of the Bearnx occurrence (094D 003).
The entire Peteka claim group is underlain by Lower Jurassic Telkwa Formation (Hazelton Group) volcanics. The volcanics predominantly consist of tuffs, agglomerates and andesitic grey to green rocks. Minor porphyritic (plagioclase and/or hornblende) flows and interflow sedimentary rocks are also present on the claims (Assessment Report 14424). Intruding the volcanic rocks are narrow quartz feldspar porphyry dykes. The dikes, 1 to 3 metres wide, strike northeast and are fine to medium grained. They are possibly related to the Eocene Kastberg Intrusions (Assessment Report 14424).
Chalcopyrite, galena and pyrite are associated with quartz-carbonate veins. Malachite staining on the veins is common. The veins are hosted in felsic to intermediate volcanics and fine to medium-grained andesites. The veins contain up to 10 per cent disseminated sulphides. A sample, of quartz-carbonate vein material, assayed 2.6 grams per tonne gold and 460.8 grams per tonne silver (Assessment Report 14424). A float sample, found approximately 500 metres to the northwest, assayed 6.17 grams per tonne gold and 19.2 grams per tonne silver (Assessment Report 14424).
The prospect was briefly examined in 1996 then went under an expanded program in 1997. The zone is comprised of quartz-carbonate chalcopyrite-enriched veining with malachite staining over a width of approximately 1 metre in a 10-metre-wide felsic dike. It parallels a small creek, informally named “Coccola Creek”, and is coincident with an air-photo lineament trending 1200. Remnants of unknown old workings are thought to be from the 1950s or 1960s.
A chip sample line over the area of best exposure collected samples from the vein and wall-rock at ~ 5-metre intervals over a strike length of 30 metres. A total of 17 chip samples were collected over widths ranging from 20 cm to one metre. Anomalous gold, silver, and copper values were reported. Nine of the samples returned gold assays in excess of 1 gram per tonne gold (1.35 to 6.18 grams per tonne gold) (Assessment Report 25270). Silver values were also anomalous ranging from 0.5 to 235.8 grams per tonne silver, although most values were in the 3 to 15 grams per tonne silver range (Assessment Report 25270).. The highest copper assay was 0.2 metres at about 1 per cent copper with other anomalous results which include 0.37 per cent and 0.45 per cent copper (Assessment Report 25270).
In addition to this chip line, several samples were collected from the mineralized outcrop throughout “Coccola Creek”. The best results were obtained from outcrops approximately 510 metres west-northwest, near the headwaters of the creek, with two samples returning highly anomalous results of 1.1 gram per tonne gold and 416.4 grams per tonne silver and 13.58 per cent copper, and 6.8 grams per tonne gold and 365.7 grams per tonne silver and 12.8 per cent copper (Assessment Report 25270). In both cases the mineralization was comprised of massive chalcopyrite in quartz veins, but they were only narrow widths that had limited strike potential.
Three holes, CB-97-11, CB-97-12 and CB-97-13, were drilled from the same site, as shown on Figure 27 (Assessment Report 25270). They were drilled to intercept surface precious and base metal mineralization in veining hosted by a rhyolite sill within a parallel structure. All holes drilled on the Coccola Zone encountered similar lithologies consisting of andesite plagioclase phyric flows, flow breccias and lesser amygdaloidal flows. These are interrupted by a rhyolite sill. Flow-banding occurs throughout the rhyolite unit parallel to wall-rock contacts and is centrally contorted. Symmetrically bordering, within the rhyolite, are abundant incorporated wallrock fragments. Both the andesite flows and flow-banded rhyolite are cut by fine-grained, magnetic, amygdaloidal andesite dikes.
Two main zones of mineralization were encountered. The lower zone, confined to the rhyolite, is present in all three holes. In CB-97-11, the rhyolite is sericitized and rafted andesite fragments are chlorite altered. Centrally, the rock is brecciated with abundant quartz after carbonate veining and breccia fill. Veining is accompanied by chalcopyrite, pyrite, galena, and white to amber-brown sphalerite. Late carbonate veining cuts quartz veining and sulphide mineralization. An upper zone intersected in CB-97-11 and CB-97-12 is hosted by andesite directly above a mafic dike. The andesite is strongly chloritized with 35 per cent fine euhedral disseminated pyrite. Mineralization occurs as chalcopyrite, pyrite, and galena within quartz-chlorite veining. Mineralized intercepts for the Coccola Zone are presented in Table 4 - Coccola Zone Drill Intercepts (Assessment Report 25270) and Table 5 (Assessment Report 38636). Values returned for both zones and other singular intercepts although anomalous were considered to not be of viable width and the step out hole CB-97-13 was not of economic significance.
WORK HISTORY
In 1948, the area is mapped as part of a regional survey of the McConnell Creek Area by C. S. Lord, Geological Survey of Canada Memoir 251.
In 1968, Cominco stakes the Dave claims over a portion of the present-day claims and completed electromagnetic (horizontal loop) geophysical surveys totalling 7.8 line-miles (Assessment Report 1616). The survey was unsuccessful in locating any conductive zones. It was concluded that the highly oxidized nature of the sulphides in the limited area of the survey insulated the sulphide grains from their contiguous neighbours and accordingly would not respond well to EM induction effects. Cominco abandoned the claims thereafter.
In 1984, Suncor Inc. Resources Group of Calgary, Alberta, stakes the Peteka 1-4 claims and completes preliminary stream sediment sampling and prospecting. The surveys outline anomalous gold and copper values in the stream sediments collected from the Driftwood River valley as well as from the rock samples.
In 1985, Suncor Inc. Resources Group completes further detailed exploration surveys consisting of prospecting, geological mapping, soil geochemical surveys, rock sampling, and magnetic and VLFEM geophysical surveys (Assessment Report 14424, 14678). Most of the work was completed over a 15.25-line kilometre grid along the Driftwood River valley over the central portion of the Chaco Bear 3 claim. The surveys were successful in locating several areas of anomalous soil and rock geochemistry as well as zones of anomalous magnetics and several VLF-EM conductors. Suncor Inc. abandoned the property after ceasing operation on their mineral exploration division.
In 1992, J. M. Ashton acquired the property by staking; and completed a shallow-probe reconnaissance, induced-polarization survey over the northeastern part of the alteration zone (Assessment Report 22958). A high-chargeability, low-resistivity anomaly striking north-northwest was found which coincided with a strong linear VLF-EM anomaly, and the strongest copper-zinc-lead-gold geochemical anomaly known on the property. The target structure identified by the three coincidental anomalies has a strike length of about 1,200 metres. A geological examination of the property by a specialist geologist working with Ashton confirmed the extensive zone of alteration and identified classic alteration facies and zonation symmetry of a transitional geological environment with the potential for discovery of mineralization from epithermal to a highlevel porphyry system. Potential economic minerals include gold-rich porphyry copper, high sulphidation copper-gold lodes, and low sulphidation gold lodes.
In 1996 Imperials Metals Corporation optioned the property and completed prospecting and sampling, geochemical soils surveying, a small horizontal loop EM survey. Their results confirmed the anomalous character of the property identified by previous operators and outlined several additional areas of interest. In the fall of 1996 Imperial completed a weather-limited diamond drilling program on the Bearnx shear zone in the north part of the claims. The drilling successfully intersected the target with encouraging results. Phase I work consisted of general prospecting, geological mapping and rock sampling throughout the property with a total of 193 rock samples collected for assay. Phase II work consisted of claim staking, grid based geophysical surveys (Max-Min totalling 3.85 line-kilometres and 455.8 metres of BQ-size diamond drill core in five holes.
In 1997, Imperial Metals completed extensive geological mapping of the property and confirmed a large zone of quartz-sericite-pyrite alteration within the central southern section of the property. The bulk of the work focused on the Bearnx, Coccola, Dave/Ron, and Ferruginate and Gossan Zones with all but the Fermginate Zone being drill tested. Two small VLF-EM surveys totalling about 6.5 line-km were conducted. Four target areas were tested by diamond drilling with eleven holes drilled from seven sites for a total length of 1,382.2 metres. Imperial Metals drilling located heavily altered rhyolite dikes and andesitic wall rocks in the north part of the property. The material intersected in these lithological intersections were fractured and brecciated, containing geochemically anomalous gold values throughout.
Geological mapping of the Chaco Bear Mineral Claims by Dr. Peter Read showed that the lower section of volcanics is made up of an incomplete sequence of the Hazelton Series consisting of a restricted Telkwa Formation which is unconformably overlain by a sequence of felsic extrusives consisting of andesites, dacites, and rhyolites up to 600 metres thick named the "Unnamed Formation" by Dr. Read. Geological mapping showed altered dacitic and rhyolitic flows were extruded at the top of an andesitic succession. This volcanic succession is interpreted to be the Hazelton Series lithology. Rock geochemistry shows shoshonitic or potassic composition. In addition to geological mapping, extensive prospecting and rock sampling was undertaken over several prospective areas across the property.
In 1997, Imperial Metals Corporation relinquished their option on the property.
In 2007, Geotronics Consulting Inc. on behalf of Houston Minerals Inc. completed two Mobile Metal Ion (MMI) Geochemical surveys on the claims, one a gridded survey at the north end of the claims over the Bearnx Zone, and a reconnaissance survey over the hydrothermally altered “Main Zone”. The reconnaissance survey showed several strong MMI gold, and coincidental lead anomalies over the Main Zone that coincided with Very Low Frequency (VLF) electromagnetic (EM) anomalies identified by Suncor in 1985. At the west end of the MMI survey, beyond the VLF-EM area surveyed by Suncor, a large MMI gold anomaly with a width of about 400 metres was identified. This MMI gold anomaly is at the western edge of the altered “Main Zone”. The “Main zone” is (roughly) over Rusty Lake and south through the Ferruginate zone (Figure 5, Assessment Report 38636)
In 2012, IP and resistivity surveys were carried out over the “Main Zone” within the Chaco Bear Property. The IP survey revealed 9 anomalies along two survey lines perpendicular to each other and these have been labeled by the upper case letters, A to I, for ease of discussion. These anomalies occur in an area of known mineralization and soil geochemistry anomalies (Assessment Report 33850).
In 2015, Geotronics Consulting (on behalf of owner Sitka Holdings Ltd.) carried out a Mobile Metal Ion (MMI) soil geochemical survey on the Rusty Lake grid, collecting 280 samples along 10 survey lines. The sampling results revealed a number of anomalies throughout the Rusty Lake Grid area. The main ones of exploration interest are copper, gold, and lead. The copper and gold anomalous results occur mainly within three anomalous zones labeled Rusty Lake, West Ridge, and Drift. The Rusty Lake Anomaly occurs on and around Rusty lake within the north central part of the grid. The West Ridge Anomaly occurs along the western part of the Rusty Lake Grid. The Drift Anomaly occurs just to the south of the Rusty Lake Anomaly.
In 2019, Houston Minerals Inc. performed a reevaluation of all the programs and data towards generating three new drill targets for testing (Assessment Report 38636). These include Area 1, an area of intense silicification that occurs in the form of ribboned quartz veins and is located between ‘Coccola’ and ‘Round’ lake; Area 2, in the Ferruginate-Gossan zones area that could be tested for concealed porphyry copper mineralization at depth; and Area 3, an interpreted maar-diatreme feature in the central zone at Chaco Bear where a strong chargeable anomaly with a coincident moderate resistivity occurs.
