The Tut occurrence is located approximately 5.5 kilometres northwest of the Kemess South mine (094E 094), east of Thutade Lake and immediately east of the northern tip of Bicknell Lake, about 280 kilometres north of the community of Smithers. The showing lies within the Omineca-Cassiar mountains at the southern end of the Toodoggone Gold Camp.
The showing is situated within a Mesozoic volcanic arc assemblage which lies along the eastern margin of the Intermontane Belt, a northwest-trending belt of Paleozoic to Tertiary sediments, volcanics and intrusions bounded to the east by the Omineca Belt and to the west and southwest by the Sustut and Bowser basins.
Permian Asitka Group crystalline limestones are the oldest rocks exposed in the region. They are commonly in thrust contact with Upper Triassic Stuhini Group andesite flows and pyroclastic rocks. Stuhini volcanics have been intruded by the granodiorite to quartz monzonite Black Lake Suite of Early Jurassic age and are in turn unconformably overlain by or faulted against Lower Jurassic calcalkaline volcanics of the Toodoggone Formation (Hazelton Group).
The dominant structures in the area are steeply dipping faults which define a prominent regional northwest structural fabric trending 140 to 170 degrees. In turn, high angle northeast-striking faults (approximately 060 degrees) appear to truncate and displace northwest-striking faults. Collectively these faults form a boundary for variably rotated and tilted blocks underlain by monoclinal strata.
The Tut showing is underlain by Asitka Group limestone and Stuhini Group and Toodoggone Formation volcanic rocks that are intruded by monzonite of the Early Jurassic Kemess pluton. Mineralization consists of rusty weathering andesites which are locally sheared and altered with vuggy quartz breccia veins up to 15 centimetres wide. These veins contain small epidote knots, 5 per cent pyrite, up to 2 per cent chalcopyrite, limonite and traces of malachite. The veins strike 060 to 100 degrees and dip 60 to 80 degrees east.
In 1986, several rock samples, both grab and chip, were taken within a 35 metre radius from vuggy quartz breccia veins and results indicate anomalous silver, copper and zinc. The most representative assay from this group of veins was from sample 86TS-3 consisting of quartz breccia with andesite fragments and mineralization consisting of chalcopyrite, limonite and malachite. Assay results for this sample were 45.5 grams per tonne silver, 1.47 per cent copper, 1.70 per cent zinc, 0.069 per cent lead and 0.08 gram per tonne gold (Assessment Report 15361).
The Nor 1 claim covered an old copper occurrence previously covered by the Tut 1 claim. Previous exploration work on the Nor property consisted of preliminary geological mapping, soil sampling and induced polarization survey along east-west lines spaced 300 metres apart. A moderately strong chargeability anomaly was defined along a southeast trend south of the Tut 1 copper occurrence. Anomalous copper and gold anomalies in soils were also indicated to the east of this showing (Assessment Report 22886).
In 1982, Pacific Ridge Resources acquired ground north and south of the Tut claims, including the skarn showing. Univex Mining Corp. Ltd. staked the Tut 1 and Tut 2 claims in October, 1983, to cover possible extensions of porphyry and skarn mineralization on the neighbouring claims of Pacific Ridge Resource Corp. In 1983-84, exploration by Pacific Ridge Resources south of the Tut claims included soil geochemistry, trenching, and eight diamond-drill holes. In 1984-85, soil sampling programs and reconnaissance geological mapping were completed over selected areas by Hi-Tec Resource Management Ltd. In 1986, at the request of Univex Mining Corp. Ltd., Hi-Tec Resource Management Ltd. carried out a program of geological mapping, geochemical sampling and limited rock chip sampling on the Tut 1 claim.
In 2002, a soil survey was completed on the Nor 1 claim in the Tut area by Solomon Resources Ltd. Forty-two samples were collected every 50 metres along the 1280 metre elevation contour, starting at the northwest corner of the Nor 1 claim and ending at the southern boundary, and extended for a length of 2100 metres.
