Ontario Mineral Inventory

Ontario Geological Survey
Permanent Link to this Record: MDI42F04SE00012

Record: MDI42F04SE00012

General

Commodities

Primary Commodities: Copper, Nickel, Cobalt

Secondary Commodities: Garnet (Nonmetals)

Location

Township or Area: Cecil

Latitude: 49° 6' 7.71"    Longitude: -85° 37' 57.22"

UTM Zone: 16    Easting: 599812   Northing: 5439711    UTM Datum: NAD83

Resident Geologist District: Thunder Bay South

NTS Grid: 42F04SE

Point Location Description: Pit in Assessment report 20000008182

Location Method: Data Compilation

Access Description: The Cecil Township copper occurrence is located in Cecil Township approximately 15 km east-southeast of Manitouwadge, 2.2 km southwest of Rawluk Lake and 2 km north of the north end of Faries Lake. The occurrence is accessible via motor vehicle followed by travel on foot. From Manitouwadge, proceed east along the Camp 70 logging road for approximately 4.25 km to the Twist Lake road. Proceed south and east along the Twist Lake road for approximately 15 km to an unnamed, secondary logging road located approximately 1 km south of the Ice Cream Lake road intersection and 1.7 km north of the bridge over a tributary of McGraw Creek. Proceed west along this unnamed road for approximately 600 m to a tertiary logging road. Proceed north along this tertiary logging road for approximately 200 m. Foot trails extend from the end of the road to individual showings in the area.

Exploration History

1964-1965: Geological mapping; V.G. Milne (ODM). 1967: Geological maping; J. F. Giguere (ODM). 1978: Regional lake sediment and water geochemical survey; GSC-MNR. 1987: Geological mapping, stripping, lithogeochemical sampling, diamond drilling (16 holes totalling 4212 m); Noranda Minerals Inc. (Geco Division). The drilling was conducted in the vicinity of Faries Lake approximately 1.5 to 3 km south-southeast of the occurrence. 1988: Reconnaissance-scale geological mapping and lithogeochemical sampling; Noranda Minerals Inc. (Geco Division). 1989: Geological mapping; H. Williams and F. Breaks (OGS). Dighem airborne geophysical survey (EM, MAG, VLF-EM); Noranda Exploration Company, Limited and Noranda Minerals Inc. (Geco Division). 1990: Geological mapping; D. Nicol (Lakehead University). This mapping covered the area immediately south and east of the occurrence. 1991: Reconnaissance till sampling program; I.M. Kettles (GSC). Samples collected in the vicinity of the occurrence contained anomalous amounts (up to 352 ppm) of Cu. 1993: The occurrence was discovered by prospector G. Gionet and subsequently examined and sampled by M. Smyk (OGS). 1994: G. Gionet carried out prospecting, trenching and sampling. 2000: G. Gionet and M. Gionet carried out trenching and sampling. 2003: M. Gionet and G. Gionet carried out trenching. 2005: M. Gionet carried out a beep-mat survey. 2013: White Metal Resources optioned the property and carried out prospecting and sampling. 2014: White Metal carried out soil sampling.

Assessment Work on File

Geology

Province: Superior

Subprovince: Wawa

Terrane: Wawa-Abitibi

Belt: Manitouwadge-Hornepayne

Geological Age: Archean  

Metamorphism Type: Regional

Metamorphism Grade: Amphibolite

Geology Comments

Dec 07, 2005 (D McKay) - The occurrence is located within the Wawa subprovince along the western margin of the Faries Lake-Moshkinabi Lake mafic intrusive complex (Williams and Breaks 1989, 1990). This complex is located approximately 15 km east-southeast of Manitouwadge at the juncture of the Manitouwadge and Moshkinabi greenstone belts (Zaleski and Peterson 1993). Aeromagnetic data suggest these two belts may be a single continuous unit. The Faries Lake-Moshkinabi Lake complex consists of a layered suite of gabbro, leucogabbro, anorthosite and peridotite (Williams and Breaks 1989, 1990). Thin screens of amphibolitic, mafic metavolcanic rocks occur throughout the complex (Williams and Breaks 1989). The occurrence appears to be hosted within one of these screens. Rocks in the vicinity of the occurrence are variably deformed and altered and moderately to locally strongly foliated (Williams and Breaks 1990; Nichol 1991). The dominant foliation in the vicinity of the occurrence strikes approximately 355 degrees and dips 30 degrees to the east. Mineral assemblages indicate the supracrustal rocks have experienced upper amphibolite facies-grade regional metamorphism (Breaks and Williams 1990). The occurrence consists of a number of float and bedrock exposures of garnet-biotite-altered mafic metavolcanics. The initial discovery of large, angular, gossanous boulders focused prospecting activity in the area, aided by the fact that the area had been cut over. Several of the boulders appear to have been pushed up in the sandy till during cut road construction. The boulders vary in size up to 1 m and are quite angular. Based on these observations, it appears as though they were derived from a nearby bedrock source.

Lithology

Lithology Comments

Dec 07, 2005 (D McKay) - The boulders are weakly to non-magnetic, rusty and schistose, and crumble fairly easily. They are mineralized locally with <2% pyrite + chalcopyrite as disseminated, fine-grained sulphides or narrow seams. Alteration is manifested in the development of large (<3 cm), subhedral garnet porphyroblasts in a biotite-rich matrix. The majority of locally derived boulders consist of amphibolite or plagioclase-amphibole gneiss, presumably derived from mafic volcanics.Coarser- grained, knobbly-textured rocks have been tentatively identified as gabbroic units within the volcanics. Outcrops are limited to small ridge exposures to the east and northeast. Gabbroic rocks contain chalky plagioclase subhedra and are lineated at 15/25N. Approximately 130 m northeast of the float occurrence, a northwest-trending ridge provides exposures of altered and unaltered volcanics. Smaller (<1 cm) porphyroblasts of garnet (+ quartz) may locally comprise <50% of the rock. The garnets protrude from weathered outcrops to produce a characteristic knobby, 'traction rock' appearance. Garnets appear to be preferentially developed in the more mafic portions of breccia-textured rocks, such as in mafic clasts in a plagioclase-rich matrix. Unaltered rocks in the vicinity are typically amphibolite/amphibole schist. Some rocks are notably more leucocratic and contain abundant muscovite, plagioclase and perhaps sillimanite.

Mineralization

Mineralization Comments

Dec 07, 2005 (D McKay) - Well mineralized grab samples of orthoamphibole (possibly anthophyllite?)-bearing, biotite-rich schist collected from the occurrence by prospector G. Gionet in 1993, and submitted to Noranda Exploration Company Limited for analysis, returned assay values of up to 0.9545% Cu, 134 ppm Zn, 47.78% SiO2, 11.78% Al2O3, 1.39% Na2O, 0.54% K2O, 4.62% MgO and 9.59% CaO. A grab sample of sulphide-bearing, garnetiferous amphibole-biotite-quartz-feldspar schist collected from the occurrence in 1993 by M. Smyk for the OGS returned assay values of <0.01 ounce Au per ton, <0.1 ounce Ag per ton, 530 ppm Cu and 58.39 ppm Zn.

Oct 31, 2019 (Therese Pettigrew) - Samples taken by G. and M. Gionet in 1995 from Pit 1 returned up to 24,600 ppm Cu and 2240 ppm Ni. Samples from Pit 2 returned up to 9100 ppm Cu and 1990 ppm Ni (Assessment report 42F04SE2001). Prospecting samples collected in 2013 by M. Stares returned up to 6820 ppm Cu and 1820 ppm Ni from sheared gabbros containing pyrite, chalcopyrite, and pyrrhotite (Assessment report 20000008182). Sample 95-BGG-03 collected by OGS staff in 1995 from Pit 3 returned >5000 ppm Cu, >2000 ppm Ni, and up to 1008 ppm Co from a quartz-feldspar-hornblende-biotite schist containing up to 10% pyrite and pyrrhotite (Assessment report 42F04SE0001).

Alteration Comments

Dec 07, 2005 (D McKay) - The mineralogy, texture and composition of the altered mafic metavolcanic rocks collected from the Cecil Township copper occurrence are grossly similar to those associated with some of the rocks found in the footwall zones to the Geco and Willroy ore bodies (i.e., copper-bearing sulphides associated with soda-depleted rocks containing coarse-grained porphyroblasts of garnet and orthoamphibole). As a consequence, the area surrounding the occurrence is considered to have high potential for hosting VMS-type base metal mineralization.

Mineral Record Details

References

File - Schreiber-Hemlo Resident Geologist Mineral Deposit Files

Publication Number: Min Dep Date:

Author:

Publisher Name:

Location: Thunder Bay RGP

Map - Geology of the Manitouwadge-Hornepayne area

Publication Number: OFM0142 Scale: 1:50,000    Date: 1990

Author: Williams H.R., Breaks F.W.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Mono - Mineral Occurrences in the Manitouwadge Area, Volumes 1, 2 and 3

Publication Number: OFR5906 Page: 366-371  Date: 1994

Author: McKay D.B.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Thesis - The Deformation of Layered Rocks near the Wawa-Quetico Subprovince Boundary

Publication Number: MSc Thesis Date: 1991

Author: Nicol, D.L.

Publisher Name: Lakehad University

Location: Thunder Bay RGP

Article - Geological studies in the Manitouwadge-Hornpayne area

Publication Number: MP146.014 Page: 79-91  Date: 1997

Author: Williams H.R., Breaks F.W.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Mono - Report of Activities 1993, Resident Geologists

Publication Number: OFR5892 Page: 93-94  Date: 1994

Author: Baker C.L., Dressler B.O., Mason J.K., Newsome J.W.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

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