This occurrence deals with a fairly extensive mineralized zone that straddled the boundary between two adjacent properties explored by different companies in 1970. It is primarily referred to here as the Book 9-10 (also known as the South zone), covering these claims in the property to the north (Assessment Report 2638, Geology, Exploration and Mining in British Columbia 1971), and as the PJ Pelletier zone, referring to that part lying in the PJ group of claims to the south (Assessment Reports 2837, 5777). This copper prospect is situated 3 kilometres north of the Gataga River and 11 kilometres south-southwest of Churchill Peak in the mountainous Muskwa Ranges of the Northern Rocky Mountains.
The occurrence is in a region known as the Muskwa Anticlinorium, a major north-northwest–trending structure characterized by thrust faults and moderate folding. Rocks as old as Middle Proterozoic (Helikian) outcrop in the structure, along with Paleozoic rocks (Geological Survey of Canada Map 1343A; Geological Society of America, Geology of North America, Volume G-2, page 639). All belong to Ancestral North America (Geological Survey of Canada Map 1713A). The Middle Proterozoic rocks are pre-Windermere Supergroup and are known as the Muskwa Assemblage (Geological Society of America, Geology of North America, Volume G-2, page 111).
Northeast– to (more commonly) north-northwest–trending, steeply dipping diabase or gabbroic dikes are common in the region. These Proterozoic intrusions were structurally controlled; their presence and orientation are closely related to regionally important fault and fracture zones in the Proterozoic sedimentary rocks.
The Book and PJ claim groups are underlain mainly by the Aida Formation of the Muskwa Assemblage, comprising dolomitic siltstone, dolostone, argillaceous limestone and slaty argillite (Assessment Reports 2638, 2837, 10960; Geological Survey of Canada Memoir 373, Paper 67-68). Slate, argillite and siltstone of the overlying Gataga Formation also outcrop in the immediate area (Assessment Report 5777). The strata strike north-northwest and dip moderately east or west. Some isoclinal folding is present. Slaty cleavage strikes northwest and dips moderately southwest. A number of diabase dikes, between 3 and 60 metres thick, in the north and centre of the area strike northeast to northwest and dip moderately to steeply west. Fault and fracture zones in the sedimentary rocks also strike northeast to northwest.
An east-verging reverse fault zone up to 180 metres wide can be traced in the general area from north to south. Some margins of dikes which lie in this zone are sheared. The zone is important because it hosts many mineralized quartz-carbonate veins. The Book 9-10 occurrence is towards the south of this fault zone (the Book 6 occurrence [MINFILE 094K 019], is approximately 1.5 kilometres away in the north) and comprises a system of north-striking quartz-carbonate (primarily ankerite) veins and quartz stockworks with a total length of approximately 850 metres and maximum width of approximately 60 metres (Assessment Reports 2837, 5777). Individual vein widths are typically 1.5 to 2.5 metres, and they dip moderately to steeply west. Mineralization is variable and erratic and consists of disseminations or lenses of chalcopyrite, the volume of which in some of the veins was visually estimated at 2 to 5 per cent or greater, and bornite and minor galena (Assessment Reports 2638, 2837). One band of massive chalcopyrite between 8 and 45 centimetres thick has been traced for greater than 30 metres.
In 2005, five outcrop samples (B374253 through B374258 and B374308) of mineralized quartz-carbonate veins from the South zone area yielded from 1.13 to 21.1 per cent copper and 0.2 to 24.7 grams per tonne silver (Assessment Report 38212).
In 2021, a chip sample (D723170) assayed 0.26 per cent copper over 1 metre, whereas five mineralized float samples (D723458, D723161, D723167, D723171, D723172) from the occurrence area yielded from 1.13 to 22.4 per cent copper with up to 15.7 grams per tonne silver (Assessment Report 39912).
Another zone of mineralization, referred to as the RJ 12-14 zone, is located approximately 1.2 kilometres south-southwest of the Pelletier (Book 9-10) zone and comprises quartz with chalcopyrite associated with a northeast-trending dike. This zone is thought to possibly represent an extension of the Book 9-10 (Pelletier) zone.
Work History
In 1970, Windermere Exploration Ltd. completed a program of geological mapping, hand trenching and rock sampling on the area as the Bronson, PJ and Book groups of claims. Also at this time, Acroll Oil and Gas Ltd. completed a program of geological mapping on the area immediately south of the occurrence as the Andrew claims. The following year, Bralorne Can-Fer Resources completed a program of soil sampling and ground electromagnetic and induced polarization surveys on the PJ claims. In 1975, Bralorne Resources completed a program of geological mapping and geochemical (silt and soil) sampling on the Andrew, PJ and Sybil claims.
In 1981 and 1982, Coppex Syndicate completed a program of geological mapping and geochemical (rock and soil) sampling on the area as the BE and MO claim groups.
In 2005, Twenty-Seven Capital Corp. completed a regionally extensive program of prospecting, geological mapping, geochemical (rock, silt and soil) sampling and a 9002.0 line-kilometre airborne magnetic survey on the area as the Muskwa property.
In 2012, a remote sensing and geophysical data interpretation program was completed on the area as part of the regionally extensive Northern IOCG property. In 2019, High Range Exploration Ltd. completed a minor program of rock sampling, GIS compilation and application of remote sensing on the area as the Bronson property.
In 2020, Fabled Copper Corp. completed a minor program of rock sampling and historical data review on the area as the Bronson property. The following year, a program of photogeological interpretation, rock sampling and 1.6 line-kilometres of combined airborne magnetic and ground electromagnetic (VLF) surveys were completed on the property.
