The Lois Creek Trench occurrence is located in the headwaters of Lois Creek, approximately 1100 metres south of Skwim Lake and north east of Mount Diadem at an elevation of 1433 metres.
The area lies within the Jurassic-Cretaceous Coast Plutonic Complex near its western boundary with the Insular Belt. The complex consists of diorites and granodiorites enclosing a series of northwest trending pendants. In the Mount Diadem area, feldspar-rich diorite and quartz diorite dominate. These pendants, occurring along Howe Sound and Jervis Inlet, are interpreted to be part of the Lower to Middle Jurassic Bowen Island Group, coeval with volcanic rock of the Bonanza Group and the Harrison Lake Formation.
Mount Diadem forms part of a ridge consisting of Bowen Island Group sediments and volcanics that form a 15- kilometre long by 1 to 2 kilometre wide roof pendant. Lithologies along the eastern portion of the pendant consist of dark- green, chlorite-rich, massive volcanic flows and tuffs intercalated with grey to black cherty tuff and foliated, pyritic argillaceous siltstone. The western portion of the pendant contains well- bedded clastic sediments and, minor carbonate with intercalations of intermediate to mafic tuffs, flows and sills. In all, six stratigraphic units have been defined and are, in ascending order: 1) tuffaceous sandstone, minor argillite and lapilli tuff, 2) chlorite-rich tuff with interbedded tuffaceous sandstone, minor argillite, 3) thin-bedded argillite, minor carbonate and lapilli tuff interbeds, 4) banded argillite, sandstone, chert, minor lapilli tuff, 5) siliceous argillite, siltstone, tuff, chert and 6) andesitic breccia.
Volcanics and sediments have a near-vertical bedding and cleavage that form a series of tight upright folds that plunge moderately to the north.
In a zone of strong cross fracturing, mineralization occurs irregularly in seams of 10 to 30 centimetres in width. Drill core from the Lois Creek Upper adit and the Lois Creek Trench upper trenches exhibit stringer sulphides over intervals as great as 30 metres. Mineralization at the Lois Creek Trench showing consists of disseminated pyrite, galena with minor chalcopyrite and sphalerite.
Galena with minor sphalerite and chalcopyrite is also exposed in two small trenches. Three chip samples over 3 metres within the larger of the two trenches assayed an average of 0.863 gram per tonne gold, greater than 134 grams per tonne silver, greater than 1 per cent lead, greater than 1 per cent zinc and minor copper (Assessment Report 11641). Another sample from just south of this trench assayed 2.25 grams per tonne gold, 560 grams per tonne silver, greater than 1 per cent lead, greater than 1 per cent zinc and 0.14 per cent copper over 8 centimetres (Assessment Report 11641).
Three chip samples were taken across the upper two trenches during property exploration of the Rox 1 to 5 claims in 1994. Sample 427-P yielded 1.34 per cent zinc, 0.82 per cent lead, 23.2 grams per tonne silver and 0.31 gram per tonne gold over 1.0 metre (Assessment Report 23319). Sample 427-Q yielded 0.14 per cent zinc, 0.28 per cent lead, 11.2 grams per tonne silver and 0.04 gram per tonne gold over 1.0 metre (Assessment Report 23319). Sample 427-R yielded 3.10 per cent zinc, 1.70 per cent lead, 64.0 grams per tonne silver and 0.44 gram per tonne gold over 4.0 metres (Assessment Report 23319).
The Mount Diadem area has received intermittent exploration since the 1920s. In 1927, Brittan R. Mining Co. drove two small adits 1.5 kilometres northwest and 2.0 kilometres north-northwest of Mount Diadem, respectively. Between 1947 and 1950, Inco Canada Ltd. and Bralorne Mines excavated several open cuts and a short adit in the area of the headwaters of No Man's Creek. In 1954, Copper Ridge Silver Zinc Mines Ltd. held 19 claims in the area. In 1965, Vanco Explorations Ltd. held 17 claims northwest of Mount Diadem, called the Linda group. Citation Explorations Ltd. held 73 claims and optioned the Linda group in 1967. Tiger Silver Mines optioned the Linda group in 1970, and carried out geochemical and geophysical surveys. In 1971, Brittan R. Syndicate optioned the 23 claims and performed geophysical and geochemical surveys. The claims lapsed and were restaked by Fury Explorations Ltd. (Diadem claim) and R. Schmidt (Fox claim). In 1982, Anaconda Canada Explorations Ltd. performed a regional stream sediment survey in the Mount Diadem area. In the following year, an exploration program was carried out on the optioned Diadem and Fury, and other staked claims surrounding Mount Diadem. White Channel Resources Inc. staked the Rox 1 to 5 claims and conducted property exploration in 1991 and 1992. In 1994, Noranda Exploration Company Limited optioned and explored the Rox claims which included the Lois Creek Trench showing for volcanogenic massive sulphide-type mineralization. In 1995 and 1996, Navarre Resources completed programs of rock and soil sampling, geological mapping and eight diamond drill holes, totalling 547.7 metres. Stirrup Creek Gold Ltd. optioned the property in 1998 and completed a program of geological mapping and ground electromagnetic and magnetic surveys on the area. During 2001 through 2005, Fundamental Resources completed programs of rock and soil sampling, geological mapping and 3.0 line-kilometres of ground electromagnetic and magnetic surveys on the area. In 2009, Sunshine Global Mining purchased the Rox claims and completed a minor program of sampling. In 2013, Fundamental Resources completed a program of rock sampling and geological mapping. In 2015, Asia New Energy Corporation completed 112.0 line-kilometres of combined airborne magnetic and radiometric surveys on the area.
