The Switchback occurrence is located at an elevation of approximately 1050 metres on a gentle north– to north-northwest–facing slope, east of Callison Lake and approximately 1.4 kilometres southeast of the west end of McDame Lake.
The area is underlain by basaltic volcanic rocks of the Mississippian Slide Mountain Complex.
Locally, carbonate-altered volcanics contain a flat-lying listwanite horizon, varying from quartz-carbonate-fuchsite to ankeritic carbonate-quartz to talc-carbonate-quartz±pyrite and/or arsenopyrite, which hosts narrow quartz veins, 0.05 to 0.10 metre in width, with traces of pyrite and tetrahedrite. The quartz veins trend approximately 070 degrees. Also in this area, a shear or breccia zone hosting stockworks of quartz stringers is reported.
In 1980, surface samples are reported to have yielded up to 1.8 grams per tonne gold (Assessment Report 9116).
In 1982, sampling of trenches TS-11 and TS-18 yielded 1.2 and 1.1 grams per tonne gold over 0.05 and 0.10 metre, respectively (Assessment Report 11074).
In 2008, a rock sample (5000515) from the occurrence area assayed 4.54 grams per tonne gold (Assessment Report 30623).
In 2019, two rock samples (19190 and 667552), taken approximately 300 metres north-northwest of the occurrence assayed 1.18 and 2.31 grams per tonne gold, respectively (Assessment Report 38989).
Work History
In 1939, Cominco Ltd. is reported to have examined the area, with surface trenches and five diamond drill holes being completed.
In 1977, Nu-Energy Development Corp. completed five diamond drill holes, totalling 324.0 metres, and a 29.0 line-kilometre ground electromagnetic (VLF) survey was completed on the BB, Up, Nora, FG 1, Mill, Val, Ned and Jennie Ext. claims.
During 1979 through 1982, Esso Resources Canada Ltd. completed programs of geological mapping, geochemical (rock, silt and soil) sampling, 1261.3 metres of diamond drilling, trenching and ground electromagnetic (VLF) surveys on the area as the McDame property.
In 1995, the area was held and examined by Cusac Gold Mines Ltd. as the Table Mountain Gold property.
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 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.
