The BA property is centred 3 kilometres west of Mount Strohn at the north end of the Cambria Icefield, about 30 kilometres northeast of Stewart.
By 2017, the BA property was described as having zones of enriched VMS mineralization of several per cent combined zinc and lead plus silver that had been intersected across more than 700 metres of strike through drilling and trenching, and which remained open to extension into recently deglaciated areas. It was reported that drilling had intersected the broader VMS system across more than 1.5 kilometres of strike.
Most of the BA property is underlain by mostly pyroclastic fragmental volcanic rocks of mafic to intermediate composition corresponding to the lower units of the Jurassic Hazelton Group. These are overlain by a horizon of pale grey to white felsic pyroclastic rocks which vary in thickness from a few dozen metres to over a kilometre and is referred to as the Mount Dilworth Formation. Above this horizon at the higher elevations near Mount Strohn are thin bedded to laminated mudstone, siltstone, tuffaceous chert and chert of the Salmon River Formation.
The major structural features of the property are broad, parallel, northwest-trending synclines and anticlines. A syncline runs through the Barbara zone. Typically, the more competent volcanic stratigraphy is broadly folded, whereas the sedimentary strata often contains evidence of isoclinal folding. Sediments of the Salmon River Formation unconformably overlie volcanics of the older Hazelton rocks in the property area. Steep angle fractures and faults striking northwest and parallel to the overall tectonic trend of the region are common.
The Barbara zone consists of a mixture of grey felsic volcaniclastics, mudstones and jasperoidal magnetite-bearing siltstones and cherts (exhalite?) up to 100 metres thick. This mixed unit overlies medium to dark green and maroon andesitic flows and volcaniclastics of the Lower Jurassic Unuk River Formation. This volcanic sequence has been disrupted and intruded by a subvolcanic andesitic intrusion that is believed to be of similar age to the surrounding volcanic pile. Overlying this package is a conglomerate that contains mixed rounded clasts of the underlying volcanics. This conglomerate is believed to represent an unconformity. Capping the Barbara zone and surroundings are mudstones and siltstones believed to be part of the Salmon River Formation.
The Barbara zone has been described as part of an exhalative system with associated zinc-lead-silver mineralization. The main exhalite horizon is up to 50 metres wide and can be traced for at least one kilometre. It is composed of intercalated centimetre-scale laminae of red, grey, black and green chert and red jasper. Part of the exhalite horizon exhibits an amygdaloidal texture with quartz + lesser carbonate-filled vesicles comprising up to 60 per cent of the rock. Proximal to the main exhalite horizon are a few thinner (1 to 3 metre) exhalite horizons.
Two types of mineralization have been recognized. Volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS)-style mineralization is confined to sedimentary horizons immediately below the exhalite. The bulk of the VMS mineralization is contained within a felsic volcanic/sedimentary breccia dominated by strongly silicified semi-angular to angular felsic clasts ranging widely in size from 0.1 to over 20 centimetres. Clasts of chert, andesite, mudstone, volcanic tuff, exhalite and rarely of sulphides were also noted in these rocks. Petrographic examination of felsic fragments indicate that they are dacitic in composition. Sulphides include fine-grained pyrite, sphalerite and galena. Trace to minor chalcopyrite, trace tetrahedrite and silver sulphosalt are also present. One to three-millimetre-thick laminae of pyrite and sphalerite intercalated with mudstone laminae and fine felsic tuff are also common. The highly brecciated nature of the sediments suggests an active environment proximal to a volcanic vent. Epigenetic mineralization hosted within highly fractured and brecciated dacite with quartz + sulphide veining is also common and may represent either a feeder for the VMS mineralization or post-remobilization. Sulphides include up to 5 per cent pyrite, trace to 3 per cent sphalerite, trace to 3 per cent galena, and locally trace chalcopyrite. In 2007, the best single interval assay was 3.05 metres of 1215 grams per tonne silver, 1.01 per cent lead and 2.26 per cent zinc in drillhole BA-2007-01. Drilling (hole BA-2010-147) on the Barbara zone in 2010 intersected 15.24 metres grading 117.5 grams per tonne silver, 0.02 per cent copper, 1.18 per cent lead and 2.81 per cent zinc; this includes 9.15 metres of 150.0 grams per tonne silver, 0.03 per cent copper, 1.75 per cent lead and 3.0 per cent zinc (Assessment Report 32877).
In 2010, drilling 300 metres to the north of the Barbara zone on what has been referred to as the BA North zone or North Extension zone, has intersected stockwork mineralization within a subvolcanic andesitic intrusion. Drillhole BA-2010-136 intersected 136 grams per tonne silver, 0.63 per cent lead and 0.53 per cent zinc over 3.05 metres; 82 grams per tonne silver, 1.06 per cent lead and 1.20 per cent zinc over 12.19 metres; and 62 grams per tonne silver, 0.54 per cent lead and 1.72 per cent zinc over 3.05 metres (Assessment Report 32877). If it is inferred that the BA North zone as being part of the Barbara zone, drilling to date has traced the zone for over 1000 metres along strike. The zone is open in most directions and drilling has not yet determined the boundaries of the system. There is no data between the Barbara and North BA zones as this is covered by glacial ice.
In 2010, a mapping program led to the discovery of the Bod and Wet Willie zones to the north of the Barbara and BA North zones. The Bod zone is about 500 metres north-northeast of the BA North zone and on surface consists of brecciated volcaniclastics with quartz + carbonate + sulphide flooding and veining. A 1.2 metre channel sample (61265) from the Bod zone assayed 105 grams per tonne silver, 0.04 per cent lead and 0.55 per cent zinc (Assessment Report 32877). The Wet Willie zone consists of steeply dipping quartz + carbonate + sulphide stockwork veining within the interpreted subvolcanic andesitic intrusion.
In 2016, Channel sampling results (Trench A) assayed 7.50 metres of 5.31 per cent zinc, 1.97 per cent lead and 132 grams per tonne silver within 15.0 metres of 3.84 per cent zinc, 1.25 per cent lead and 108 grams per tonne silver (News Release, Great Bear Resources, December 8, 2016). Trench C2 yielded 12.0 metres of 5.09 per cent zinc, 1.81 per cent lead and 20 grams per tonne silver within 39.0 metres of 3.76 per cent zinc, 2.26 per cent lead and 30 grams per tonne silver (News Release, Great Bear Resources, November 2, 2016).
WORK HISTORY
In 2002, the Stro 1-3 and the BA 1-4 claims were acquired by E.R. Kruchkowski. In 2005, the claims were jointly owned by Pinnacle Mines Corp. (50 per cent) and Mountain Boy Minerals Ltd. (50 per cent). In August and September of 2006, follow-up prospecting and sampling led to the discovery of the Barbara zone. The summer program consisted of geochemical sampling that included chip sampling across mineralized structures and horizons and grab sampling of outcrop and float; a total of 32 grab, 110 float and 4 chip samples were collected. Mountain Boy Minerals optioned the property in the fall of 2006 and from the fall of 2006 to the fall of 2008, the Barbara zone was drilled. Over the next three years, a total of 13,550 metres of BTW size core was drilled in 93 holes from 55 different drill pads. Some limited trenching and surface sampling were also conducted during this time (internal company data, 2009). Significant silver, lead and zinc mineralization was encountered both in drilling and on surface. In 2010, Great Bear Resources Ltd. conducted an exploration program on the BA property which included a VTEM (helicopter-borne time-domain electromagnetic) survey and a diamond drill program comprising 85 drillholes totalling 14,791 metres.
In 2016, work by Great Bear Resources included over 150 metres of channel sampling, targeting both recently deglaciated and previously mapped VMS-mineralized, stratigraphy. In 2016, BA project operator Great Bear Minerals owned 50 per cent of the BA property and Mountain Boy Minerals owned 50 per cent. A similar relationship existed for the Surprise property except that Mountain Boy was the operator (see Ataman 104A 179) located 15 kilometres to the northeast.
On June 2, 2017 Great Bear Resources announced that it had granted an option to its joint venture partner, Mountain Boy Minerals Ltd to acquire Great Bear's 50 percent interest in and to each of the “BA” and “Surprise Creek” joint ventures and associated properties. In 2017, Mountain Boy sampled an area just north of 2016 channel sampling.
In June 2018 Mountain Boy Minerals Ltd announced that they had received a completed interpretation for an airborne survey over the 7,412 ha of the 100 per cent owned BA mineral tenures (Press Release, Mountain Boy Minerals, June 14, 2018). This is presumably an interpretation of the 2010 VTEM survey. The airborne survey was reported to indicate an arcuate anomalous trend that is up to 9 kilometres long. Mineralized areas detected in previous work along the interpreted trend include the Nelson (104A 151,152,167), main BA and BOD (104A 197) zones. The Nelson zone is along the SE part of the indicated arcuate structure, the main BA is in the western most part and the BOD is along the northern part of trend.
