The Elizabeth occurrence is situated in the Duckling Creek area of the Swannell Ranges (Omineca Mountains), approximately 15 kilometres northeast of Old Hogem and 40 kilometres west-northwest of Germansen Landing. The area first became of interest in the late 1940s when copper-bearing float was discovered on the slopes east of Duckling Creek, near the eventual site of the Dorothy occurrence (093N 007). Both occurrences have been explored intermittently up to the present.
The area is underlain by mesozonal plutonic rocks assigned to the Late Triassic to Early Cretaceous Hogem Intrusive Complex which have been emplaced into volcanic rocks of the Middle Triassic-Lower Jurassic Takla Group, east of the Pinchi fault zone. The plutonic rocks form an elongate batholith, extending from Chuchi Lake, north to the Mesilinka River. The structural setting of the batholith and the intruded Takla Group is one of vertical tectonics associated with graben development (Bulletin 70).
Heterogeneous intrusive rocks varying compositionally from granite to gabbro occur in the area of the Elizabeth occurrence. These rocks are cut by pegmatitic stringers and by two sets of steeply dipping faults, the first striking northerly and the second striking east-northeasterly. Secondary mineralization consisting of malachite, azurite, cuprite and chrysocolla cement breccia fragments of highly altered intrusive rock at the intersection of these two faults. Similar copper mineralization occurs within a network of tiny fractures and seams in potassium feldspar-enriched wallrock adjacent to the faults. Trenches reveal a lack of continuity to mineralization at depth and along strike of the faults (Geology, Exploration and Mining in British Columbia 1971, page 215).
Lysander Minerals Corp. owned the showing in 1999 as part of its Jajay property. They describe the breccia matrix as consisting of bornite, chalcocite, and malachite, making up 40 per cent of the rock. A sample of the rock yielded 22.16 per cent copper and low precious metal content (Page, 1999 (Property File). Less than 1 kilometre to the east of the Elizabeth breccia, road cuts expose a grey syenite that is pervasively altered and contains minor amounts of pyrite and chalcopyrite. One sample yielded 0.6 per cent copper (Page, 1999).
Prospectors for Kennex, Limited, discovered the showing inn 1948 and staked the Elizabeth group of 20 claims; trenching was carried out at that time. The property was transferred to Northwestern Explorations, limited, which was incorporated in 1949; the company name was changed in 1959 to Kennco Egplorations, (Western) Limited. Geological, geochemical, and geophysical surveys were carried out in 1962.
In 1991, Kennecott resumed management of the Lorraine-Jajay property and embarked on a twelve-hole (2,392 metres) diamond-drill program in the Lorraine area, with nine holes drilled in the Lorraine Extension (later called the Bishop) Zone. Two holes were also drilled in the Weber Zone and one hole drilled in the North Cirque Zone. Detailed geological mapping and petrographic studies were begun during this program. The exploration program also extended to the Dorothy / Elizabeth areas. Work consisted of road construction (from the Dorothy Duckling Creek access road to the Elizabeth Breccia area), test pitting, rock sampling, IP surveys and the diamond drilling of 6 NQ holes for a total of 961.6 metres. The first three holes were drilled at the Dorothy showing in the vicinity of Northwestern’s 1949 drill-holes and the remaining three holes were drilled along the Dorothy Duckling Creek road south of Dorel Creek. The most significant intersection was in hole D91-1 which averaged 0.34% copper and 0.12 grams per tonne gold over 121 metres.
The Elizabeth breccia was relocated in 1999 and found to be partly exposed over about a 10-metre width above a 1991 a cat road. There is little evidence of previous work at the showing; a shallow hand trench, now obscured by the cat-road and a few sample ribbons are the only evidence of prior exploration. A total of 10 Rock samples and 26 talus tines and seepage samples were collected in this area.
In 2005, Eastfield Resources relogged the 1991 and 1997 Dorothy area drill holes. At this time it was noted the Elizabeth breccia zone and several other historic mineralized areas such as Ragnar and “B” zone have northeast structural controls to mineralization. It was also documented in the 2005 work report that 1991 trenching of Elizabeth Zone yielded 50 metres at 0.38 per cent copper (Assessment Report 28186, page 43).
Refer to Lorraine (093N 002) and Dorothy (093N 007)for details of property history.
