The Canty mine is hosted in the lower portion of the Upper Triassic Whistle Creek Formation (Nicola Group), locally comprising massive lapilli tuff, ash tuff and interbedded siliceous siltstone. See Nickel Plate (092HSE038) for detailed regional geology.

Skarn-altered tuff, siltstone and diorite dykes (Hedley Intrusions) are cut by an east-northeast striking, 120 to 180-metre wide granitic dyke. The skarn alteration is similar to that seen at the Nickle Plate mine to the southwest, but with much less garnet. The alteration assemblage includes calcite, garnet, clinopyroxene, quartz, scapolite and epidote. Augite, albite, feldspar and nontronite (chloropal) are also reported. Mineralization consists of arsenopyrite, pyrite, chalcopyrite, pyrrhotite and native bismuth. Gold is apparently associated with arsenopyrite.

Mineralized grab samples from the Canty mine dump assayed up to 35 grams per tonne gold, 0.6 per cent cobalt and 29 per cent arsenic (Paper 1989-3, page 29). The mine lies adjacent to the Cahill Creek fracture zone, which may have played some role in controlling the mineralization.

Underground work (in 1939) exposed several ore shoots, 6 to 21 metres long and 1.5 to 6 metres wide, developed in local fracture zones along a fold. The mineralized zone is outlined by drilling down to the 200 level. Continuation to depth (400 level) would increase tonnage. A review of previous exploration data suggests that total reserves may be as high as 1 million tonnes (P. Thomas, International Corona Corporation, personal communication, 1991). Initial open pit reserves of 435,000 tonnes grading 3.4 grams per tonne gold are now exhausted (Mineral Exploration Review 1990, page 62). An unpublished amount of similar grade material remains in the pit.

The Canty mine was first explored in 1905. Canty Gold Mines (Hedley) Ltd. produced a total of 1483 tonnes grading 11.11 grams per tonne gold from underground workings between 1939 and 1941. The deposit was extensively explored by various companies, including Golden North Resource Corporation, during the 1980s. International Corona Corporation, operator of the nearby Nickel Plate mine, began open pit mining in August, 1990. Production ceased in April 1992. The company produced a total of 847,828 tonnes grading 2.73 grams per tonne gold during this time (Property File - D. Parsons, 1992).