The BL occurrence is located near the top of a moderate hill situated between Butterfield Lake to the east and Babine Lake to the west, approximately 10.5 kilometres northeast of Donald Landing.

The area lies in a region underlain dominantly by metasedimentary and metavolcanic rocks of the Upper Triassic Takla Group, ultramafic bodies of ophiolitic character and gabbroic to dioritic intrusives of the Upper Triassic Butterfield Lake Intrusive Complex and lower amphibolite/kyanite-grade metamorphic rocks of the Upper Devonian to Upper Triassic Taltapin Metamorphic Complex. The ultramafic bodies are composed dominantly of dunite and peridotite, but pyroxenite and gabbro are also present in some areas. The Takla Group rocks have been intruded by dioritic rocks of the Upper Triassic to Lower Jurassic Topley Intrusive Suite.

Locally, disseminated chalcopyrite has been identified in a porphyritic pyroxenite and coarse-grained gabbroic pyroxenite on the BL-49 and BL-18 claims. On the BL-26 claim chalcopyrite and malachite occur in andesite adjacent to a pyritic tuff unit. Very fine, short, cross-fibre asbestos is also reported to occur locally in fractures in serpentinized peridotites.

In 1987, a grab sample (S-9853) from an outcrop of pyroxenite containing chalcopyrite and malachite assayed 0.053 per cent copper (Assessment Report 17294).

Work History

In 1969, Royal Canadian Ventures Ltd. staked the area as the BL 1-59 claims and the following year completed a program of soil sampling, geological mapping and 59.2 line-kilometres of ground electromagnetic and magnetic surveys. This work identified a moderately strong very low frequency conductor in the area of previously identified disseminated mineralization. In 1971, Royal Canadian Ventures Ltd. is reported to have completed two drillholes, totalling 49.5 metres, which intercepted disseminated chalcopyrite in pyroxene porphyry and gabbroic pyroxenite. No drill records are known.

In 1983, Riocanex completed a program of soil sampling and geological mapping on the area immediately east as the SMJ 1-4 claims. This work identified anomalous zones of copper-in-soil on the east side of Butterfield Lake and to a lesser extent on the west side of the lake.

In 1987, E.A. Shaede completed a program of geochemical (rock, silt, and soil) sampling on the area as the Butter claim.