The Katherine occurrence is located 1.1 kilometres southwest of the Cusac mine (MINFILE 104P 070) near the former mining town of Cassiar in northern British Columbia. The occurrence was discovered in 1987.

The area is hosted by the Upper Paleozoic Sylvester Allochthon located on the northeastern margin of the Lower Cretaceous Cassiar batholith. The Sylvester Allocthon is a fault-bound imbricate assemblage of Devonian to Triassic regionally metamorphosed (greenschist facies) oceanic rocks thrust over autocthonous North American sediments. In this area, the Mississippian to Upper Triassic Slide Mountain Complex consists of basaltic to andesitic flows, pyroclastics, argillites, chert, listwanite and quartz veins.

The Lower Cretaceous mineralization is associated with the intrusion of the Cassiar Batholith postdating the regional metamorphic event. The mineralization of the Katherine vein consists of gold and silver with associated pyrite and zones of quartz-carbonate alteration (listwanite). The other sulphides present in the drillcore were not identified. The carbonate alteration of a parent ultramafic has produced listwanite which is associated with increased mineralization in the quartz veins.

The Katherine-Bonanza-Bain vein system is located central to the Nu-Tara mineral claim. The system has a known strike length of 1.5 kilometres. Ore-grade shoots within the system have strike lengths on the order of 200 metres and downdip extents on the order of 30 metres. Vein widths are in the 0.5- to 3.0-metre range. Vein segments within the Katherine-Bonanza-Bain system strike approximately 060 degrees and dip at 55 degrees to the north. The East Bain vein is the easternmost-known portion of the Katherine-Bonanza-Bain vein system. The Marion vein is 125 metres east and north of the Katherine vein.

In late 1987, percussion drilling on the Katherine vein yielded up to 7.1 grams per tonne gold over 6.0 metres, including 17.4 grams per tonne gold over 1.4 metres in hole K87-2, whereas drilling on the Marion vein yielded 8.5 grams per tonne gold over 7.5 metres (Assessment Report 17615).

In early 1988, diamond drilling on the Katherine vein yielded up to 42.0, 42.7 and 26.9 grams per tonne gold over 0.9, 0.6 and 0.5 metre in holes K88-11, K88-52 and K88-33, respectively (Assessment Report 17615).

In 1993, drilling on the Bonanza zone, located west of the Bain vein, yielded up to 313.3 and 453.6 grams per tonne gold over 0.4 and 0.3 metre in holes C93-7 and C93-12, respectively (Assessment Report 23047).

In 2008, a rock sample (5006009) of quartz vein material assayed 3.43 grams per tonne gold (Assessment Report 30623).

In 2009, drillholes within the Katherine zone are reported to have hosted large, weakly mineralized veins with clay alteration with values of up to 1.41 and 1.44 grams per tonne gold over unknown lengths in drillholes TM09-002 and TM09-006, respectively (Assessment Report 31396). Also at this time, sampling of trenches TR09-001 and TR09-002, located near the Katherine occurrence and on a northeast-facing hillside approximately 700 metres to the northwest, yielded up to 0.43 and 0.78 gram per tonne gold over 0.81 and 1.35 metres, respectively (Assessment Report 31396).

Work History

The area has been historically explored in conjunction with the nearby Table Mountain (MINFILE 104P 070) and the early exploration history of the area can be found there.

During the 1979 field season, Cusac Industries Ltd. conducted an exploration program on a five-unit area of their Cordoba and Pete claims, located immediately north and south of the occurrence; a VLF-EM survey on both areas was also carried out. A bulldozer road was constructed to the Pete claims to assist in moving a drill to the Presunka's Fault area. The 1979 exploration program included geological mapping, rock sampling, trenching and eight diamond drill holes, totalling approximately 600 metres.

In 1984, Erickson Gold Mining Corp. completed a program of geological mapping, trenching and percussion drilling on the Cordoba and Pete claims. Exploration work in 1985, included 77 diamond drill holes, primarily on the Eileen vein with lesser amounts of drilling on the Prosser, Cominco, Dino and Pete veins.

In late 1987 and early 1988, after the discovery of the Katherine vein, Erickson Gold Mining completed a program of 28 percussion drillholes, totalling 2603.5 metres, and 54 diamond drill holes, totalling 5219.1 metres, on the Nu Tara claim. A test of geophysics, including VLF/ magnetometer and induced polarization/resistivity techniques, was also completed in 1988.

In 1990 and 1991, Erickson Gold Mining completed a program of trenching, 56 diamond drill holes, totalling 9822.0 metres, and a 48.0 line-kilometre induced polarization on the Nu-Tara property. In 1993, a further drilling program of 17 diamond drill holes, totalling 1522.5 metres, was completed on the Bain vein and related zones of mineralization. During 1994 through early 1995, 28 diamond drill holes, totalling 734.4 metres, were completed on the property.

In 1995, surface diamond drilling of the Katherine vein to the west of the Bain vein resulted in the definition of a small open-pit amenable reserve. This block was mined by open pit but no figures are available (A. Boronowski, personal communication, 1988).

In 2002, Cusac Gold Mines Ltd. conducted a surface diamond drill program to expand and further define an ore panel on the East Bain vein, intersected and partially defined by diamond drilling in 1990-91. A total of 11 NQ surface diamond drill holes were completed, totalling 2395.1 metres; 10 of the holes were collared on the Nu-Tara claim and a single hole, 02EB-08, was collared on the Cordoba claim. A drill-indicated resource of 22,164 tonnes grading 30.1 grams per tonne gold has been defined on the East Bain vein. The panel as defined has a strike length of 200 metres, an average downdip extent of 30 metres and an average true width of 1.3 metres (Assessment Report 27079).

During 2008 through 2010, Hawthorne Gold Corp., later China Minerals Mining Corp., completed regional programs of geological mapping, geochemical (rock and soil) sampling and 11,657 line-kilometres of airborne magnetic, radiometric and electromagnetic surveys on the area as the Cassiar Gold property. In 2013, China Minerals Mining Corp. completed a program of rock, silt and soil sampling on the area.

In 2019, Margaux Resources completed a program of prospecting, geological mapping and rock sampling on the area as the Cassiar Gold property. In 2020, Cassiar Gold Corp. completed a program of regional photogeological interpretation, prospecting and rock sampling on the Cassiar Gold property.