The Surprise occurrence is located 3.5 kilometres southeast of Tuff Peak and 3.8 kilometres northeast of the Mets prospect (094E 093), approximately 280 kilometres north of Smithers. It lies within the Omineca-Cassiar Mountains in the west-central portion of the Toodoggone Gold Camp.

The prospect 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 Takla Group andesite flows and pyroclastic rocks. These Takla rocks have been intruded by plutons and other bodies of the mainly granodiorite to quartz monzonite Early Jurassic Black Lake Suite 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 Surprise prospect is underlain by volcanics of the Attycelley Member of the Toodoggone Formation. At this location they consist of purple and brown feldspar, biotite, and hornblende porphyry flows, which are generally massive and appear fresh. Lesser grey to grey-brown crystal tuffs, lapilli tuffs, tuff breccias and rare welded tuffs are also present. They are andesitic to dacitic in composition, generally contain feldspar, biotite and hornblende phenocrysts and appear to be comagmatic with flows (Assessment Report 15779).

A large, roughly circular alteration zone envelopes the Surprise prospect and extends eastward. A concentric alteration pattern has been mapped over an area of about 2100 metres in diameter and comprises three alteration types. Propylitic alteration consists of up to 10 per cent epidote in the matrix, with minor chlorite and rare specularite evident in most of the area. Chloritic alteration of the matrix material is also present with minor magnetite and is confined to an area 600 by 400 metres near the southern boundary of the alteration zone. Potassic alteration consists of pink potassium feldspar and quartz replacement of matrix material with 1 per cent fine-grained, disseminated pyrite and cut by numerous vuggy quartz veinlets. Potassic alteration is accompanied by intense fracturing which influences the orientation and extent of potassic alteration zones (Assessment Report 15779).

One of these potassic alteration zones with quartz stringers and minor pyrite comprises the Surprise prospect. It is exposed for a strike length of 300 metres and over widths of up to 25 metres, at a trend of 110 degrees. Alteration intensity increases with fracturing, which is oriented predominantly 110 degrees dipping 80 degrees north, and 010 degrees dipping 70 degrees west.

Four of 14 rock samples taken from this zone yielded more than 0.2 gram per tonne gold and more than 12 grams per tonne silver (Assessment Report 15779). Sample 86-HA-161, a chip sample over 5 metres, analyzed 2.1 grams per tonne gold and 25.2 grams per tonne silver (Assessment Report 15779).

Work done in 1986 consisted of reconnaissance geological mapping, prospecting, and sampling. This was followed by mapping and chip sampling of the two newly discovered potassic alteration zones. A total of 33 rock samples were collected.

In 2006-08, Paget Resources held this area as part of its large Met property and called the Surprise showing area the Cirque zone. In 2006, a quick traverse of the Surprise area located a minor zone of quartz veining striking north-northwest; however, no samples were collected. West of the stockwork zone, a small zone of strong silica specularite was reported by Paget. A sample from this zone yielded no significant values (Assessment Report 28650). In 2008, Paget reported that in this area coarse-grained quartz-pyrite veins with minor iron-carbonate oxide was observed in peripheral talus. A sample yielded gold values of 0.34 gram per tonne gold (Assessment Report 30431).