The Blue Bird property is situated at 2088 metres elevation across the summit of the ridge between Carpenter and Stenson (Jackson) creeks, 3.2 kilometres northeast of Sandon. The principal underground workings extend from the Stranger (Lot 512) through the Blue Bird (Lot 540) and on to the Idaho No. 2 (Lot 1013). The Blue Bird No. 4 adit was driven in a northwesterly direction from the Rawdon (Lot 855) to cut the Blue Bird vein system.

The Blue Bird and Stranger claims were staked in 1892. Considerable development work, including over 182 metres of adit, was carried out during the year. The Blue Bird and Stranger claims were Crown-granted in 1893 and 1895, respectively, to J.A. Whittier. The Idaho No. 2 was Crown-granted to J.B. McArthur in 1897 and the Rawdon to J.L. Montgomery in 1898.

The Blue Bird Mining Company, of Spokane, Washington, held the Blue Bird claim from about 1893 to 1898. By the close of 1894 about 548 metres of adit and 61 metres of shaft had been developed. Ore shipments were made each year up to and including 1898. The property then lay idle until 1903. During the period 1903-1910 several small ore shipments were made.

Bluebird Mines, Limited, was incorporated in 1928 to acquire the four Crown-granted claims. Work during 1928 and 1929 included extending an old adit on the Stranger claim for several hundred feet and driving a new adit on the Idaho No. 2 claim for 360 metres, with 3 crosscuts in the footwall totalling 18 metres. Work was discontinued early in 1930. The workings at that time comprised 8 main adits and a number of short adits and open cuts. An electrical survey of the property was carried out by the Radiore Company in 1929.

Work resumed on the property in 1950 and Bluebird Slocan Mines Limited was incorporated in November 1951. Diamond drilling to the west of the main Idaho No. 2 adit intersected a parallel lode. A branch drift, at 122 metres from the portal, was driven northwest for about 24 metres, 15 metres of which followed a lode 0.6 to 0.9 metres wide mineralized with sphalerite. At 183 metres from the portal a crosscut was driven 6 metres northwest to intersect a lode also containing sphalerite.

The Blue Bird and adjacent claims, owned by Mrs. J.M. Harris, of Sandon, were optioned to Reco Silver Mines Limited in about 1965. Geochemical surveys were carried out in 1965, 1968, and 1969. Rayrock Mines Limited obtained a working agreement with Reco Silver in 1973.

In 1975, George Sipos acquired control of the Goodenough (082FNW035), Grey Copper (082FNW033), Purcell, Idaho No. 2, Rawdon, Bluebird and Stranger claims as the Bluebird Group.

Regionally, the area lies on the western margin of the Kootenay Arc, in allochthonous rocks of the Quesnel Terrane. In the vicinity of the occurrence, the Quesnel Terrane is dominated by the Upper Triassic Slocan Group, a thick sequence of deformed and metamorphosed shale, argillite, siltstone, quartzite and minor limestone. Rocks of the Slocan Group are tightly and disharmonically folded. Early minor folds are tight to isoclinal with moderate east plunging, southeast inclined axial planes and younger folds are open, southwest plunging with subhorizontal axial planes. The sedimentary sequence has been regionally metamorphosed to lower greenschist facies.

South of the occurrence, the Slocan Group has been intruded by the Middle Jurassic Nelson intrusions which comprise at least six texturally and compositionally distinct phases ranging from diorite to lamprophyre. The most dominant phase is a medium to coarse grained potassium feldspar porphyritic granite. Several feldspar porphyritic granodiorite dikes, apparently related to the Nelson intrusions, also cut the sedimentary sequence near the occurrence (Paper 1989-5).

Rocks on the Blue Bird property include a band of slate and thinly banded argillite of the Slocan Group which are surrounded on either side by quartzite and more massive argillaceous beds. Several narrow limestone beds are also present throughout the section. The strata generally strike between 125 and 155 degrees and dip 40 to 45 degrees southwest.

Three northeast striking fissure veins have been exploited on the Blue Bird claim. These are from north to south, the West vein, the Big or Idaho vein and the Little vein. All veins strike between 055 and 070 degrees and dip 60 to 65 degrees southeast.

The West vein is 45 to 60 centimetres wide and has been traced for about 60 metres along strike by a series of short adits and trenches. It consists of sphalerite with some galena and pyrite in a gangue of quartz and siderite. The Big or Idaho vein is 30 metres southeast of the West vein. It is a brecciated zone cemented by quartz in which little mineralization is present. The Little vein strikes 070 degrees and dips 60 to 65 degrees southeast and appears to join the Big vein near the portal of the No. 2 adit. Most of the production from the Blue Bird property probably came from this vein. It varies from 0.3 to 1.5 metres in width and contains bands of massive argentiferous galena with sphalerite up to 30 centimetres wide. Siderite, quartz and calcite cement blocks of crushed wallrock. The vein is intersected by two faults, one striking 147 degrees and the other due north; both faults dip 60 degrees east. The more westerly fault has offset the vein 6 metres to the north. Displacement of the other fault is unknown.

The Blue Bird veins may correlate with the veins on the Grey Copper (Lot 580) occurrence (082FNW033), 600 metres southeast.

Production from the Blue Bird vein system between 1892 and 1982 yielded 3,728,341 grams of silver, 574,181 kilograms of lead and 898 kilograms of zinc from 898 tonnes mined. This included 54 tonnes mined in 1898 but recoveries are unknown (Geological Survey of Canada Memoir 173).