MINFILE Mineral Inventory

MINFILE Record Summary

MINFILE No 092L 320

File Created:	31-Mar-1989	by	Wim S. Vanderpoll (WV)
Last Edit:	09-Jun-2022	by	Karl A. Flower (KAF)

SUMMARY

Summary Help


		NMI
Name	IDAHO FR (L.1481), OLD SPORT, COAST COPPER	Mining Division	Alberni, Nanaimo
		BCGS Map	092L034
Status	Developed Prospect	NTS Map	092L06E
Latitude	050º 22' 59''	UTM	09 (NAD 83)
Longitude	127º 14' 16''	Northing	5582706
		Easting	625283
Commodities	Copper, Magnetite, Iron	Deposit Types
Tectonic Belt	Insular	Terrane	Wrangell

Capsule Geology

The Idaho occurrence is located on the west side of the Benson River, near its mouth on Benson Lake.

Regionally, the area is underlain by basaltic volcanic rocks of the Upper Triassic Karmutsen Formation (Vancouver Group) which are overlain by limestone of the Upper Triassic Quatsino Formation (Vancouver Group), limestone, mudstone and siltstone of the Upper Triassic Parson Bay Formation (Bonanza Group) and mixed volcanic and sedimentary rocks of the Lower Jurassic LeMare Lake volcanic unit (Bonanza Group), respectively. The volcanic and sedimentary rocks have been intruded by gabbro to quartz diorite of the Lower to Middle Jurassic Island Plutonic Suite.

The occurrence is reported to occur 400 metres northeast of the Old Sport mine (MINFILE 092L 035) in a parallel structure within Upper Triassic Vancouver Group, Karmutsen andesites.

Locally, massive sulphides comprised of magnetite, chalcopyrite, pyrite and pyrrhotite occur in a skarned zone. The massive sulphides average 0.9 metres in width. The pyrrhotite content is higher than at the Old Sport mine and skarn mineralogy is poorly developed. Epidote is present as well as minor quartz veining.

Work History

The area has been historically explored in conjunction with the nearby Old Sport (MINFILE 092L 035) mine. In 1952, Quatsino Copper-Gold completed a program of geological mapping on the area. In 1968, Quatsino Copper Gold completed a program of airborne magnetic and radiometric geophysical surveys on the area. In 1970, Alice Lake Minerals completed an aeromagnetic survey. In 1988 and 1989, Taywin Resources completed programs of prospecting, geological mapping and soil sampling on the area. In 1990, Noranda completed a program of soil sampling on the area. In 2007, Grande Portage Resources Ltd. completed a program of geochemical (rock, silt and soil) sampling and a 1748.1 line-kilometre airborne magnetic survey on the area as the Merry Widow and Merry Widow Extension properties. In 2016 and 2017, Bridgeland Minerals completed a radar satellite and LIDIR orthophoto geological interpretation program on the area as the Blue Gold/Merry Widow property. In 2019, Mirva Properties Ltd. completed a rock sampling program on the Merry Widow property. In 2020, Roughrider Exploration Ltd. completed a program of rock, silt and soil sampling on the area as the Empire Mine property.

Bibliography

EMPR ASS RPT 80, 1760, 2306, 18619, 19536, 21074, 29307, 30002, 36359, 37471, 38855, 39420

EMPR MAP Preliminary Geological Map, Alice Lake-Benson Lake Area, Jeffery, W.G., (1962)

EMPR PF (Lund, J.C., (1962): Geology and Mineralogy of the 5500 Level Ore Zones of Coast Copper Mine in Old Sport - 092L 035)

GSC OF 9; 170; 463

GSC SUM RPT 1918B; *1929A-120

GSC P 69-1A; 70-1A; 71-36; 72-44; 74-8

GSC MAP 4-1974; 255A

Sangster, D.F., (1964): The Contact Metasomatic Magnetite Deposits of Southwestern British Columbia, Ph.D. Thesis, University of British Columbia

Carson, D.J.T., (1968): Metallogenic Study of Vancouver Island with emphasis on the Relationship of Plutonic Rocks to Mineral Deposits, Ph.D. Thesis, Carleton University, Ottawa

Giroux, G.H. (2007-09-04): Technical Report on the Copper-Gold Resource for the Merry Widow Property

Giroux, G.H. (2008-11-30): Technical Report on the Copper-Gold Resource for the Merry Widow Property

EMPR PFD 12936, 12937, 12938, 12939, 750489, 896726