The Bill copper occurrence is located in the Bill 12 claim at a fork in a tributary known as Canyon Creek, approximately 2.5 kilometres north of Delano Creek and 5.5 kilometres south of Yedhe Mountain in the Muskwa Ranges of the Northern Rocky Mountains (Geology, Exploration and Mining in British Columbia 1971, Figure 11; Vail, J.R. (1957) - thesis; 1967 claim map).
The occurrence is in a region known as the Muskwa Anticlinorium, a major north-northwest–trending structure characterized by moderate folding and thrust faulting. The structure consists of Middle Proterozoic (Helikian) rocks of the Muskwa Assemblage, as well as Paleozoic rocks (Geological Survey of Canada Map 1343A; Geological Society of America, Geology of North America, Volume G-2, pages 111, 639). All belong to Ancestral North America (Geological Survey of Canada Map 1713A). Northeast- to northwest-trending Proterozoic diabase dikes are common in the region.
The Bill occurrence lies close to a thrust fault within the Aida Formation of the Muskwa Assemblage, a unit comprising mainly dolomitic mudstone and siltstone, and dolostone (Geological Survey of Canada Memoir 373). The showing consists of four copper-bearing quartz-carbonate veins, striking 020 degrees, in dolostone and carbonaceous shale (Geology, Exploration and Mining in British Columbia 1971, Figure 11 and page 87). The veins, each approximately 1 metre thick, are adjacent to a small shear in the footwall of the thrust and are generally poorly and sporadically mineralized with chalcopyrite. The occurrence is also shown on the geological maps of Vail (1957 - thesis) as one of many vein-hosted copper showings in the region.
Immediately east of the Bill showing are the Nanny claims where two electromagnetic anomalies are present over a diabase dike with gossanous alteration (Assessment Report 1042).
More recent work, in 2007, describes three distinct 0.5- to 1.5-metre-wide mineralized quartz-carbonate vein structures, bearing chalcopyrite and malachite with minor pyrite and bornite being exposed on the northeastern steep slope of a creek over a 30-metre strike length within an argillite and associated with the northwest contact of a mafic dike along a 035-degree strike. The two main semi parallel veins, referred to as the no.1 (southeast) and no.3 (northwest), are situated approximately 20 metres apart, and a horse-tail vein (no.2) originates from the no.1 vein and is approximately 7 metres northwest of the no.1 vein. The three veins dip vertically or steeply to the southeast.
In 1966, a float sample from the Nanny claims, located approximately 1.5 kilometres northeast of the Bill occurrence, assayed 5 per cent copper (Assessment Report 1042).
In 2005, four chip samples (335791 through 335794) of quartz-carbonate veining with massive and disseminated chalcopyrite and malachite staining associated with mafic dikes yielded from 1.54 to 0.48 per cent copper over 0.5 to 2 metre widths, respectively (Assessment Report 28243).
In 2007, chip sampling of the veins yielded grades of 4.6 per cent copper over a strike length of 30 metres and an average width of 1.0 metre on the no.1 vein, 1.97 per cent copper over a strike length of 25 metres and an average width of 0.5 metre on the no.2 vein and 1.14 per cent copper over a strike length of 30 metres and average width of 1.0 metre on the no.3 vein (Assessment Report 29756). Also at this time, diamond drilling yielded intercepts of up to 2.88 per cent copper over 0.20 metre (0.09 metre true width) in hole MY07-05 on the no.1 vein (Assessment Report 29756).
Work History
In 1966, Racing River Mines Ltd. completed a program of geological mapping and a ground electromagnetic survey on the area immediately east as the Billy, Kid, Nanny and Sam claims.
During 1969 through 1972, Great Northern Petroleums and Mines Ltd., Mundee Mines and Vallex Mines completed programs of geological mapping, soil sampling, a 20 line-kilometre ground magnetic survey and an airborne magnetic survey on the area immediately south as the Lee, Ole, Shaw and Marg claims. Also, during 1970 through 1973, Tanjo Mines Ltd. completed programs of soil sampling, ground geophysical (magnetic and electromagnetic) surveys and a 110.0 line-kilometre airborne magnetic survey on the area immediately north as the By claims.
In 1979 and 1980, Halferdahl & Associates Ltd. completed a regional program of soil sampling on the area as the Tuchodi property.
In 1994, a minor program of prospecting and geochemical (rock and silt) sampling was completed on the area as the Tuchodi Basin property.
In 2005, Twenty-Seven Capital Corp. completed a regionally extensive program of geochemical (rock, silt and soil) sampling and a 9002.0 line-kilometre airborne magnetic survey on the area as the Muskwa property. Also at this time, Aries Resource Corp. and Action Minerals Inc. completed a program of prospecting and sampling on the area as the Missy claims of the Trident Copper project.
In 2006, Bradford Mineral Explorations Ltd. conducted 4467.0 line-kilometres airborne magnetic and electromagnetic surveys on the area as the Trident property.
In 2007, Action Minerals Inc. and Aries Resource Corp. completed a program of prospecting, geological mapping, 7 diamond drill holes, totalling 274.0 metres, and a ground electromagnetic (VLF) survey on the Missy and Angel claim groups of the Trident Copper property.
