The Avallin occurrence is located on high slopes to the north of Tenas Creek, approximately 2.8 kilometres southeast of the creek mouth on the Nitinat River.
The area is underlain by extensively faulted rocks of the Upper Triassic Vancouver Group and the Lower Jurassic Bonanza Group. The basal Vancouver Group sequence is comprised of basalt flows, breccias and tuffs of the Karmutsen Formation overlain by Quatsino Formation limestone, which is in turn overlain by black argillites of the Parsons Bay Formation. The overlying Bonanza Group consists of a sequence of argillites, cherts, cherty tuffs, volcanic and/or sedimentary breccias, sandstones and basaltic to rhyolitic flows.
The entire package of rocks has been broadly to tightly folded, with axes generally trending northwest. Isoclinally folded limestone, calcareous tuff and calcareous argillite are the major units on the Avallin property and are overlain by dacitic volcanics of the Bonanza Group. The sequence is subvertical to vertical, with a regional northwest strike. Local contact metamorphism is evident along the margins of granodiorite and feldspar porphyritic dikes that intrude limestone.
Mineralization is primarily associated with irregular bands and lenses of skarn developed in Quatsino Formation limestone near feldspar porphyry dikes. Sulphide mineralization occurs in actinolite-magnetite skarn, which forms smaller zones within a broader chlorite-epidote-diopside zone. Aggregates of chalcopyrite, pyrite and rare bornite are intimately associated with the magnetite. The mineralization has been exposed by trenches over an area of 900 by 300 metres. Fracture-related epidote-chalcopyrite veinlets are developed locally in basalt flows of the Karmutsen Formation. Traces of bornite also occur in the veinlets.
In 1976, four rock chip samples (NR 4 through 7) from former pits and mineralized out crop assayed from 1.1 to 16.0 per cent copper (Assessment Report 05965). In 1983, four grab samples assayed from 1.75 to 7.87 per cent copper and 4.4 to 20.56 grams per tonne silver (Assessment Report 11196).
During 1956 through 1964, Avallin Mines completed a program of soil sampling, geological mapping, geophysical surveys and 314.4 metres of diamond drilling on the area as the O.G.M. claims. In 1969, Quintana Minerals completed a program of regional soil sampling and geological mapping. In 1976, the area was sampled and geologically mapped as the NR claim. In 1983, Alcyone Explorations explored the area as the FD 1-4 claims. The following year, Golden Hind Ventures completed a program of soil sampling. In 1987, Nuspar Resources completed a program of geological mapping and minor drilling on the area as the Wabana 1-2 claims.
