The Highlander (L.557) occurrence is located on a high bluff, north of Loon Lake and approximately 1.6 kilometres south-southwest of Ainsworth.

Regionally, the area is underlain by hornblende schists, limestone and banded quartzite of the Upper Mississippian to Permian Milford Formation and basaltic volcanic rocks of the Carboniferous to Permian Kaslo Group. Granodioritic intrusive rocks of the Middle Jurassic Nelson Batholith are exposed to the west.

The occurrence is hosted by micaceous and chlorite schists, quartzites, and limestones of Mississippian to Permian Milford Formation intruded by sills of granite and quartz monzonite and lamprophyre dikes. The vein is parallel to bedding and schistosity and varies considerable in width and grade. The average mining width is 2.3 metres made of about 0.6 metres of nearly barren hangingwall gouge, up to 1 metre of galena and sphalerite in a gangue of quartz and carbonates and up to 1 metre of footwall zone consisting of irregularly spaced veinlets of sphalerite in quartz. The ore is restricted to the vicinity of a shear and a lamprophyre in the vein.

Production from the occurrence occurred in three phases dating from 1889 to 1896, 1906 to 1910 and 1949 to 1961, with the majority of the production occurring during the last phase. A total of 396 878 tonnes of ore was mined with 394 710 tonnes being milled yielding 4696 grams of gold, 26 879 647 grams of silver, 21 023 618 kilograms of lead, 5 198 605 kilograms of zinc and 1971 kilograms of cadmium.

Work History

The claim was staked in 1893 by M. Stephenson. Major development work on the property began in 1901 with the formation of the Highlander Mining and Milling Co. A crosscut was driven from the base of the bluff to intersect the vein at a depth of approximately 60 metres. The crosscut was extended west for approximately 884 metres, intersecting the projected downward extension of the vein at 475 metres from the portal. Drifts were extended north and south on the vein for 107 and 310 metres, respectively.

The property lay idle from 1911 to 1948. Mapping and diamond drilling of the property and the surrounding area was carried out from 1948 through 1950 by Yale Lead & Zinc Mines Ltd., who obtained most of the claims in an area extending from Cedar to Coffee creek. The orebody outlined was found to lie on five claims: the Highlander, Albion (MINFILE 082FNE140), Banker (MINFILE 082FNE029), Krao (MINFILE 082FNE076) and Black Diamond (MINFILE 082FNE149). The north drift on the Highlander vein was extended to 640 metres and raises, following the dip of the Highlander vein, were driven to the Albion and Banker workings. Stoping was carried out on three levels. In 1955 a new adit was driven 60 metres below the old adit. The end of the orebody was reached in 1959 and the mine closed. Leasers worked the Highland vein in 1959 and 1960.

In 1979, David Minerals Ltd. conducted a program of geochemical (stream and silt) sampling on the area as the Peanut Butter claims of the Ainsworth property. In 1980, Dragoon Resources Ltd. conducted a program of geological mapping and a 3.5 line-kilometre ground electromagnetic survey on the area immediately to the west as the Peanut Butter 1 claim.

In 2012, David Wallach prospected and rock sampled the area as the Ainsworth property. In 2021, a 24.0 line-kilometre airborne (drone) magnetic survey was conducted on the area by Taylor Lorenzen. In 2023, Turnagain Resources Inc. conducted a program of prospecting, rock sampling and aerial photo structural interpretation on the Ainsworth property.