The Virginia K No. 5 occurrence is located about 500 metres east of the south end of Kimball Lake, a small lake that is part of American Creek and which lies about 19 kilometres north of the confluence of the creek with the Bear River.
The Virginia K claims are on the eastern limb of the open, north plunging American Creek anticline. The American Creek fault trends along the valley. The claims are underlain by rocks of the Lower Jurassic Unuk River Formation (Hazelton Group) (Bulletin 58; 63). The rocks comprise lowermost black argillites, capped by a thin limestone, overlain by tuff and minor rhyolite. The predominantly argillic sequence is overlain by a thick sequence of purple, green and red fragmental rocks that include tuff, breccia, agglomerate and conglomerate with subordinate limestone and chert interlayers (Assessment Reports 8982, 15365).
Three types of mineralization occur on the Virginia K claims (Minister of Mines Annual Report 1932, page 59):
1. Replacement shear zone in argillite.
2. Veins between interbedded sandstone, sandy argillite and tuffs near the top of the predominantly sedimentary sequence.
3. Fracture zones consisting of quartz veins and veinlets in reticulated structures.
The Virginia K No. 5 showing is located at the southwest part of the Virginia K No. 5 claim (Lot 5821). Mineralization was discovered by Excelsior Prospecting in 1931. A 12 metre(?) long adit (No. 2 adit) and nearby opencuts (Nos. 7 and 8) were probably emplaced soon after the discovery. The mineralization was examined in 1980, 1986 and 1987.
The adit exposes a 1 to 2 metre wide manganese and limonite stained concordant fracture zone that strikes 320 degrees and dips 16 degrees northeast. Mineralization comprises stringers of quartz with galena, sphalerite, chalcopyrite and pyrite in carbonate-altered argillite and greywacke hostrocks.
Grab samples of siliceous vein material from the No. 2 adit assayed up to 1177.7 grams per tonne silver; a grab sample from the immediately adjacent No. 7 cut assayed 433.4 grams per tonne silver (Assessment Report 16842). A chip sample across the face of the adit assayed 607.6 grams per tonne silver, 0.14 gram per tonne gold, 0.83 per cent lead, 0.68 per cent zinc and 0.13 per cent copper across 0.80 metre (Assessment Report 15145).
The Virginia K No. 5 showing may correspond to the No. 2 vein mentioned in the 1931 Minister of Mines Annual Report (page 44). The location of this vein is not clear. The No. 2 vein is described as being southeast striking and about 3.7 metres wide. A chip(?) sample assayed 9.6 grams per tonne gold, 1522.3 grams per tonne silver and 8.01 per cent lead across 3.7 metres (Minister of Mines Annual Report 1931, page 44).
On the Virginia K Extension No. 2 claim (Lot 5823), near the southeastern corner, and about 400 metres north of the No. 2 adit, the No. 6 cut exposes andesitic and porphyritic dikes in a fault. The fault strikes at 300 degrees and dips steeply north (Assessment Report 8982, page 11). Galena and sphalerite occur in a 30 centimetre wide zone between the dikes. A composite chip (grab) sample assayed 783.1 grams per tonne silver, 0.04 gram per tonne gold, 1.76 per cent lead and 2.61 per cent zinc (Assessment Report 8982). This showing may correspond to an occurrence described in Minister of Mines Annual Report, 1932, page 60.
In 1929, D. Kimball discovered mineralization in the area. That year the Virginia K (104A 006, 118), BLK, Bryant and Dundee (104A 074) claim groups were staked and the Excelsior Prospecting Syndicate was formed. The Virginia K group was staked on the east side of the valley. The exact location of the other claim groups is not known, but they were apparently staked on the west side of the valley and may have extended to the south. Excelsior discovered several silver-lead-zinc occurrences on the Virginia K claims in 1931 and continued intermittent exploration until 1938. In 1935, 15 tonnes of ore were shipped from the property; 48,956 grams of silver, 57 kilograms of copper and 1765 kilograms of lead were recovered. The source(s) of the ore is uncertain, but is assumed to be No. 2 adit. In 1960, Newconex performed geological mapping and sampling on the claims (referred to in Assessment Reports 16842 and 18430); the results of this work are not known. In 1980, Komody Resources Ltd. (later renamed Fest Resources Corp.) conducted further geological work, resulting in the discovery of the Dino vein (104A 119) on the Virginia K No. 3 claim (Lot 5816). In 1986, Square Gold Explorations Inc. (later renamed Glacier Resources Inc. and then Golden Glacier Resources Inc.) carried out geological mapping and sampling on part of the Virginia K group (mainly the Virginia K No. 3 claim (104A 119) and Virginia K Fraction No. 3 claim (104A 118). The following year, Carmac Resources performed geological mapping and sampling on part of the claim group (mainly the Virginia K No. 5 and Virginia K Extension No. 2 claims). In 1990, Northair Mines carried out talus sampling on the claims. In 2006, Mountain Boy Minerals Ltd. and Pinnacle Mines Ltd. conducted an exploration program on the FR 1 and 4 claims consisting of geochemical sampling along the Lilianne vein (104A 112) and diamond drilling to test the silver tenor of the Moonlight (104A 005) and Coates showing (104A 114). A total of 1307.61 metres of BTW drill core was completed in 15 separate drillholes fiom two different pads.
