The Willoughby prospect is located on a steep nunatak south of Meziadin Lake and 26 kilometres east of Stewart between the north and central forks of the Willoughby Glacier. A mineralized zone carrying low grade gold and silver values was investigated in this area in 1941 and the Wilby group of claims was explored in 1945.
Mapping has shown the eastern-half of the property to be underlain by Triassic volcaniclastics while the western-half is dominated by Lower Jurassic Hazelton Group rocks. Triassic volcaniclastics are primarily composed of silty mudstone, sandstone and local conglomerate and debris flow conglomerate. At Pius Ridge, located on the south side of Willoughby Creek, Triassic basaltic flows and fine bedded epiclastic rocks host units of rhyolite tuff and heterolithic volcaniclastic rocks containing massive pyrite clasts. Hazelton Group rocks locally consist of andesitic volcaniclastics and conglomerate. At the northwest end of the Willoughby nunatak an Eocene Goldslide intrusions porphyry stock has intruded andesitic tuffs. The tuffs vary from ash to lapilli with bedding being randomly developed. Thin section work indicates that the porphyry contains minor quartz, primary biotite, apatite and rutile. Across the valley from the Willoughby nunatak, in the vicinity of the Willow zone, andesitic conglomerate is interbedded with fossiliferous limestone. A thin section study indicates that a microsyenite has intruded the area.
Variable carbonate +/-sericite +/-chlorite +/-pyrite hydrothermal alteration overprints both the stock and country rocks. Petrographic studies indicate that the altered rocks contain 20-40 per cent carbonate (dolomite and ankerite), 20-40 per cent sericite and up to 10 per cent chlorite. Silica content is low. In general, hornblende is altered to biotite and to sericite.
Structurally the area is complex with intense, closely-spaced faulting occurring throughout. Two dominant shear trends are indicated: 330 degrees that has right-lateral movement as indicated by calcite-filled tension gashes and a 040-060 degree trend.
In the vicinity of the mineralized zones bedding attitudes are highly variable. Distal to the mineralization, within crystal and ash tuffs, a north-northwesterly trending foliation with a west dip is developed that appears to be subparallel to primary bedding.
To date, 11 mineralized occurrences have been located on the Willoughby property. Eight of the showings: North, Wilby (also referred to as Main), Upper Icefall, Lower Icefall, CCR, Kiwi, Edge and Ledge occur on the Willoughby nunatak, at the head of Willoughby Creek; two showings, Willow (previously referred to as Willoughby) and Back are situated across the valley to the northeast near Buffalo Ridge; and one showing, Pius, is located to the southeast at Pius Ridge. All of the zones are hosted by variable, pervasively sericite +/-carbonate +/-chlorite +/-pyrite altered rocks. Mineralization consisting of pyrite, pyrrhotite along with lesser sphalerite, galena and rare visible gold occurs in veins, stockwork and fracture fillings. In addition, pyrite and pyrrhotite occur as semimassive to massive occurrences in lenses and pods. Several of the zones appear to be intrusion related.
At the Willoughby nunatak all of the zones excluding the North zone occur within andesitic tuffs peripheral to the hornblende feldspar porphyry stock. The North zone occurs within the stock. With the exception of the North zone, the style of mineralization is similar consisting of replacement style pods and lenses of semimassive to massive pyrite and pyrrhotite and disseminated, stockwork and fracture-controlled pyrite and pyrrhotite along with minor sphalerite, galena and arsenopyrite. In general, the lenses are small, less than 5 metres in size, however, at the Wilby zone a sulphide lens has been traced for 65 metres with widths variable to 5 metres. At the North zone, pyrite along with lesser sphalerite and minor galena occur in stockwork, as disseminations and as fracture fillings. Visible gold occurs within shear controlled veins by itself or in association with pyrite, galena or sphalerite.
At the Willow zone, drilling indicates that disseminated auriferous pyrite occurs peripheral to a well mineralized, pyrite-sphalerite bearing breccia body. The Back prospect, consisting of small, up to 1 by 5 metre pods of semimassive pyrite along with minor sphalerite and galena, occurs in andesitic tuffs near the contact with limestone.
The Pius showing consists of volcaniclastic hosted, subangular blocks of massive pyrite. Individual blocks are up to 10 centimetres in size.
Mapping and drilling at the Wilby zone has shown a 20 by 60 metre northwest-trending zone to contain semimassive to massive pyrrhotite and pyrite pods within altered andesitic tuffs. Gold values occur within and immediately peripheral to the sulphides. The zone appears to be flat lying and is open along strike to the northwest. The best drill intercept averages 15.6 grams per tonne gold and 12.3 grams per tonne silver over 4.2 metres (Assessment Report 23674).
Drilling at the Upper Icefall zone located an extensive zone of variably altered andesitic tuffs. Mineralization consists of up to 20 per cent pyrite along with lesser sphalerite, galena and arsenopyrite. One hole tested the zone with the best intercept being a one metre sample assaying 17.8 grams per tonne gold and 44.2 grams per tonne silver (Assessment Report 23674).
Drilling at the Willow zone failed to intersect any significant intersections of interest. The zone either dies out or is at a different orientation than projected.
Work History
The area has been explored since the early 1900s when placer gold was recovered from Willoughby and Del Norte creeks.
In 1941, Premier Gold Mining Co. completed limited program of chip and grab sampling of the Willoughby nunatak and identified the Wilby zone. Sampling is reported to have yielded from 1.4 to 89 grams per tonne gold (LaPeare, B. (2008-04-16): Independent Technical Report - Amended - Willoughby Property).
In 1945, Wilby Creek Mining Syndicated undertook a surface sampling program on the Willoughby nunatak. Rock and chip samples yielded up to 32.9 grams per tonne gold over 1.5 metres (LaPeare, B. (2008-04-16): Independent Technical Report - Amended - Willoughby Property).
During 1978 through 1980, Falconbridge Nickel Mines Ltd. conducted regional reconnaissance programs of the Stewart area and identified the Willoughby zone.
In 1982, Viscount Resources Ltd. examined the area as the Del and Majorettes 1-4 claims and the following year completed an airborne geophysical survey on the area.
In 1987 and 1988, the area was prospected as the Gold Mountain 1-3 claims.
Later in 1988, Bond Gold Canada Inc. examined and optioned the property and staked the Willoughby 1-7 claims. In 1989, a program of geological mapping, lithogeochemical sampling and 14 diamond drill holes, totalling 1708.6 metres, was completed. Chip sampling of the zones yielded up to 39.1 grams per tonne gold and 324.9 grams per tonne silver over 1.65 metres from the North zone, 9.73 grams per tonne gold and 26.68 grams per tonne silver over 8.0 metres from the Wilby zone, 10.55 grams per tonne gold and 15.9 grams per tonne silver over 1.5 metres from the Willow zone, 12.25 grams per tonne gold and 17.4 grams per tonne silver over 2.6 metres from the Edge (Northern) zone, 24.51 grams per tonne gold and 72.8 grams per tonne silver over 1.5 metres from the Upper Ice Fall zone, 120.38 grams per tonne gold over 1.2 metres on the Lower Ice Fall zone, 16.76 grams per tonne gold over 4.0 metres from the Kiwi zone and 10.17 grams per tonne gold and 212.8 grams per tonne silver over 1.0 metre from the Back zone (Willoughby) zone (LaPeare, B. (2008-04-16): Independent Technical Report - Amended - Willoughby Property).
Drilling at this time yielded intercepts of up to 24.98 grams per tonne gold and 184.21 grams per tonne silver over 20.5 metres in hole NZ89-06 on the North zone, 29.75 grams per tonne gold with 27.80 grams per tonne silver over 1.5 metres in hole MX89-04 on the Wilby zone and 2.46 grams per tonne gold and 10.39 grams per tonne silver over 25.5 metres in hole WZ89-11 on the Willow zone (Willoughby) zone (LaPeare, B. (2008-04-16): Independent Technical Report - Amended - Willoughby Property).
In 1994, Camnor Resources as part of a larger exploration program, completed a 17-hole, 1753 metre drill program testing the North, Wilby, Upper Icefall and Willow zones. The North zone is a 30 by 250 metre zone of elevated geochemistry hosted by altered hornblende feldspar porphyry. Mineralization within the zone appears to be shear related. Drilling has tested a gold +/-silver-bearing shoot for 40 metres along strike and for up to 50 metres downdip. The shoot strikes northwesterly, appears to plunge steeply to the southeast, with the dip being moderate to the southwest. It is open along strike, down plunge and downdip. Drilling yielded intercepts of up to 40.1 grams per tonne gold and 109.6 grams per tonne silver over 11.7 metres in hole 94-15 on the North zone, 15.8 grams per tonne gold and 12.4 grams per tonne silver over 4.2 metres in hole 94-22 on the Wilby zone and 17.97 grams per tonne gold and 44.48 grams per tonne silver over 1.0 metre in hole 94-28 on the Upper Ice Fall zone (LaPeare, B. (2008-04-16): Independent Technical Report - Amended - Willoughby Property).
Work in 1995 by Camnor Resources included 3013.5 metres of surface diamond drilling in 27 holes and 1151 core assays. Drilling yielded intercepts of up to 386.3 grams per tonne gold and 213.5 grams per tonne silver over 2.9 metres in hole 95-36 on the North zone, 21.8 grams per tonne gold and 15.9 grams per tonne silver over 3.8 metres in hole 95-57 on the North-North zone, 16.0 grams per tonne gold and 63.8 grams per tonne silver over 13 metres in hole 95-53 on the Wilby zone, 5.24 grams per tonne gold over 2.2 metres in hole 95-40 on the Willow (Buffalo) zone, 9.72 grams per tonne gold and 21.03 grams per tonne silver over 1.0 metre on the Upper Ice Fall zone and 4.69 grams per tonne gold over 6.1 metres in hole 95-45 on the Lower Ice Fall zone (LaPeare, B. (2008-04-16): Independent Technical Report - Amended - Willoughby Property).
In 1996, Camnor completed approximately 1750 metres of surface drilling on the Kiwi, Lower Icefall, Wilby, Wilkie and Edge zones, as well as underground drilling (20 holes totalling 1697 metres) on the North and North-North zones. The underground adit on the North zone was advanced 40 metres for a total length of 90 metres. The drilling tested the zone along a strike length of 100 metres and a minimum dip length of 75 metres; widths are variable to 8 metres. Drilling on the Wilkie zone tested a 60 metre segment at downdip depths of up to 70 metres; widths are variable to 3 metres. In drill testing for the extension of the Wilby zone, a new sulphide lens consisting of pyrite and pyrrhotite was discovered and named the Northern Deep. Both the Wilby and Northern deep lenses have been traced for 150 metres along strike, with widths variable to 25 metres.
In 2007, a helicopter-borne AeroTEM system electromagnetic and magnetic survey was flown over the Willoughby property on behalf of Bonterra Resources Inc.
In 2016, Millrock Resources Inc. purchased a 100 per cent interest in the Willoughby project from John Bernard Kreft of Whitehorse, Yukon. The initial 2016 work program comprised data integrations/compilations of the available historic data base on the property; and, some British Columbia Geological Survey data bases. A Phase 2, helicopter-supported field review was carried out in July to confirm and document the zones of favourable alteration and mineralization discovered historically on the Willoughby tenures.
In 2017, Sojourn Exploration Inc. has an option to earn 100 per cent of the property from Millrock Resources Inc. Prospecting located new zones of bedrock mineralization; one metre chip samples yielded values of: 3.88 grams per tonne gold and 2.42 grams per tonne silver, 1.93 grams per tonne gold and 4.81 grams per tonne silver, 2.76 grams per tonne gold and 92.1 grams per tonne silver, 1.87 grams per tonne gold and 2.13 grams per tonne silver, and 0.56 gram per tonne gold and 1.24 grams per tonne silver (Information Circular 2018-1, page 134).
