The property is predominantly underlain by Lower Jurassic Hazelton Group rocks (Telkwa Formation). These rocks are comprised mainly of maroon and lesser green andesitic tuffs with minor associated dacite and rhyolitic volcanics. The felsic volcanics are fine-grained to aphanitic and are buff to pale green in colour. Locally, glassy maroon and grey crystal tuffs are present. Bedding strikes south and dips 25 to 45 degrees southwest.
A quartz feldspar porphyry intrusive, probably related to the Late Cretaceous Bulkley Intrusions, was mapped in the southeast part of the property. The contact strikes 088 degrees and dips about 74 degrees north.
Alteration consists of patchy epidote in andesite, with or without irregular quartz and carbonate veinlets.
In the area of the old trenches, dug between 1965 and 1969 on the 'B' group claims (B - 093L 048), rhodochrosite is widespread and may be related to the copper mineralization. The rhodochrosite occurs as small patches (less than 1.0 centimetre wide) and as disseminations in the andesite.
Mineralization occurs in the central property area exposed in bulldozer trenches. Bornite, chalcopyrite, tetrahedrite, chalcocite, malachite and azurite occur as massive to locally disseminated patches in andesite and locally in quartz veins and stringers (refer to B-093L 048). Assays from trenches with mineralization reported high copper and silver with local gold values.
A sample (JR88-33) taken from a trench containing about 20 per cent rhodochrosite assayed 1.36 per cent manganese, 0.002 per cent antimony and 0.009 per cent arsenic. A sample of gossanous rock taken just north of a trench which cuts the contact between andesite tuff and quartz feldspar porphyry, assayed 0.287 per cent zinc, 0.008 per cent lead, 0.521 per cent manganese, 7.89 per cent iron and 18.07 per cent calcite (Assessment Report 17994).
Work History
The area of the present ERIN claims were staked by Phelps Dodge Corporation of Canada Ltd. as the "B" group of claims in 1965. This group of 80 mineral claims was geologically, geochemically and geophysically surveyed and trenched from 1965 to 1969. The prime target of the exploration was copper. A camp was constructed on the north side of Haven Lake, and at least 75 shallow trenches were dug using bulldozers, blasting and hand trenching, totalling 6.4 kilometres of excavation. The "B" group claims expired in 1970 and no detailed report of the exploration programs have been available.
The LUNLIK 3 to 36 claims were staked in 1973 in the same area, referred to as Flat Top Mountain. The claims were owned by C. Szydlik and E. Lund, and were optioned to Granges Exploration Ltd. Granges performed 6.6 line kilometres of geophysical surveying, 229 soil geochemical samples on a 30 by 120 metre grid, and six diamond drill holes totalling 813.5 metres, in an area east of the Erin area. The LUNLIK claims subsequently expired in 1976. Interest was generated again in 1987 when the B.C. Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources released their geochemical survey for NTS sheet 93L. The ERIN property was staked to cover the area drained by anomalous creek.
In August 1988, a three-day reconnaissance program was carried out on the ERIN 2 and 4 claims for Geostar Mining Corporation. This program included geological mapping, prospecting, and silt and soil sampling. Assays from a reconnaissance program in 1988 included a high-grade sample containing 43 per cent copper, 12206 grams per tonne silver and 7.2 grams per tonne gold (as reported in Assessment Report 24121).
In 1989, a follow-up program of geological mapping, prospecting, soil sampling and rock sampling was conducted on the ERIN claims. A total of 28 rock samples and 72 soil samples were collected. Soil sampling was confined to anomalous areas which were identified from the 1988 data, with the exception of Area 5 and an area several hundreds of metres northeast of B (093L 048).
The Erin property, staked in 1994 by Discovery Consultants, covers the mineralized areas of the B and the former Erin claims. A limited rock (42) sampling, soil (57) sampling and mapping program carried out in 1994, was complemented by additional rock and soil sampling in 1999 consisting of 5 rock and 30 soil samples. The owner of the property was reported as W.R. Gilmour. Most of the 1994 and 1999 work was conducted between the plotted locations of Erin (093L 298) and B (093L 048) but also in the area of the plotted locations. It was reported that reconnaissance sampling in 1994 returned lesser values, consistent with other mineralization sampled in the 1988 program and not the high grade reported for that year. Copper values were up to 1.6 per cent, silver was up to about 50 grams per tonne (associated with copper) and gold up to 0.14 gram per tonne was obtained (Assessment Report 24121).
The 2012 exploration program of International Samuel Exploration Corp on the Jewelry Box property consisted of a 548 line kilometre Heliborne High Resolution Aeromagnetic survey that covered a number of showing including the Erin.
In late 2018 and early 2019, Shamrock Enterprises Inc. conducted an aeromagnetic survey on the area as the Stellar property. This work identified four priority areas, referred to as the Big Dipper, Cassiopeia, Orion and Lynx zones, for ground-based exploration.
In 2019, Aurwest Resources Corp. conducted an aeromagnetic survey over the Stellar property. In 2021, Aurwest completed prospecting, geochemical sampling, and an Induced Polarization survey on the Stellar property.
Refer to Jewelry Box (093L 321) for related details of the Jewelry Box property which covered the Erin showing.
