The Tommy Jack occurrence is located on the south bank of Tommy Jack Creek, approximately 1 kilometre upstream from the confluence of Tommy Jack Creek and the Sicintine River, 100 kilometres north of the community of South Hazelton.
The strata underlying the entire property area is part of a thick assemblage of non-marine sediments composed of shale, siltstone, arkosic sandstone, sandstone, and conglomerate. This assemblage forms the Middle to Upper Jurassic Bowser Lake Group. The sediments were deposited in the Bowser basin, interpreted as a marginal basin open to the west. The basin was filled with sediments shed from the east as a result of tectonic thickening and from the west, sediments came from volcanic chains and older terranes (Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, Volume 14, pages 2414-2421).
Intruding these sediments are small stocks, dikes and sills of granodiorite and dacite. These are possibly contemporaneous with and/or related to the Cretaceous Bulkley Intrusions, which occur further to the south.
Mineralization at the original showing is hosted in the sediments and further up the ridge (approximately 3 kilometres to the southeast) it is contained within both the sediments and intrusive rocks. Mineralization consists of arsenopyrite, galena, sphalerite, pyrite, pyrrhotite, tetrahedrite, chalcopyrite and ruby silver, primarily in quartz veins or quartz-carbonate altered rock. The mineralization is related to dikes and/or faults hosted by veins, veinlets and/or stockworks and carries values in gold and silver. The alteration consists of quartz-carbonate (ankerite, calcite, dolomite) sericite and chlorite (mafic minerals in the granodiorite dikes). The dikes themselves exhibit alteration (clay minerals, carbonate and sericite) and contain stockworks of mineralized quartz veins. The sandstones, being more permeable, show the greatest degree of carbonate alteration. The carbonate alteration zone mapped (to 2004) are approximately 2 by 3.5 kilometres and is open to the southeast. In Allen’s 1989 report for Intertech (Property File), his statistical analysis indicates that there are at least two populations of mineralization, suggesting at least two mineralizing pulses and possible overprinting of alteration/mineralization.
The quartz and quartz-carbonate veining is multi-directional in both the sediments (sandstone and siltstone) and the dacite dikes. Previous drilling indicates that this veining occurs within broad fault zones within all rock types that the structures penetrate.
Historically, there have been many rock sample types found throughout the property. Primarily, these samples are of float blocks but suspected to be of very local origin. They are typically of high precious metal grade. The grades range from 72 grams per tonne gold and 2537 grams per tonne silver (Assessment Report 27566). These rock samples are usually of sulphide-rich quartz but the quartz can be sulphide-poor and still carry excellent gold grades. These float samples are found in an area from immediately west of Beaver Creek to east of Unnamed Creek, a distance of approximately 3 kilometres. This wide area that contains the float samples also crosses the strike of the structures and includes geophysical and geochemical anomalies.
One of the best drillhole intersections assayed 31 grams per tonne gold and 129 grams per tonne silver over 0.6 metre (Property File - Intertech Minerals Corp., Prospectus, 1988).
The showing was first discovered in the early 1900s by Indian trappers such as Tommy Jack from Hazelton (Property File - Intertech Minerals Corp., Prospectus, 1988).
In 1984, Lorne Warren staked the property and it was soon optioned to Noranda who conducted geological and geochemical surveys. The option continued in 1986-87 and additional ground was staked. A program of geological, geochemical, geophysical surveys with drilling was carried out on the “Warren” ground. In 1988-89, the Noranda/Gold Cap/Intertech joint venture conducted geological, geochemical and geophysical surveys on the “Raven” ground. From 1989 to 1995, the property was idle but in good standing. The option with Warren was dropped. In 1995, Raven acquired 19 units to cover some of the ground containing the new targets, as ground lapses; geological, geochemical and prospecting programs were conducted. In 1996, Raven acquired 6 units as additional ground lapses; Warren also acquired adjoining claims. In 1999, Raven acquired 24 units (which include 6 units staked in 1995) to cover target areas and conducted geological, geochemical, geophysical surveys and a prospecting program. In 2001, Raven acquired 6 units on the north boundary and conducted a geological mapping, sampling, prospecting and hand trenching program. In 2002, International Kodiak Resources Ltd. (now Kodiak Exploration Ltd.) optioned the Lorne Warren part of the property from Warren and completed a work program consisting of prospecting, geochemical rock and drill core sampling. In May of 2002, Alan Raven optioned his property to Gold City Industries who, in the same year, carried out a geological, geochemical and prospecting program. Gold City Industries Ltd. completed a 2004 exploration program consisting of a 24 field-day soil sampling, prospecting and trenching program. In 2004, Kodiak Exploration granted Golden Chalice Resources Inc. the option to acquire a 50 per cent interest in the Tommy Jack property. During 2006 through 2009, Roxgold Inc. completed programs of airborne and ground geophysical surveys, trenching and 47 diamond drill holes, totalling 8223.3 metres, on the area as apart of the TJ Ridge property.
