Ontario Mineral Inventory

Ontario Geological Survey
Permanent Link to this Record: MDI52N07SW00003

Record: MDI52N07SW00003

General

Commodities

Primary Commodities: Gold

Secondary Commodities: Silver

Location

Township or Area: Skinner

Latitude: 51° 15' 33.39"    Longitude: -92° 53' 49.52"

UTM Zone: 15    Easting: 507181   Northing: 5678663    UTM Datum: NAD83

Resident Geologist District: Red Lake

NTS Grid: 52N07SW

Point Location Description: Precise

Location Method: Conversion from MDI

Access Description: Bathurst Lake Mine is 98 km NE of Ear Falls via truck and ATV road. From Hwy 105 at Ear Falls, turn east onto Gold Pines Road and travel 3 km. Turn north on Wenesaga Road and travel north for 1 km. Turn north onto South Bay Road and travel north and east for 47 km. Turn north onto Joyce Road and travel north for 36 km. Property is accessible by ATV trail.

Exploration History

1926: Gold was discovered in wide quartz veins at Car and Bathurst lakes. 1927: Bathurst Mines Ltd. - Staking, trenching, stripping and sampling delineated 7 gold-bearing zones. 1928: Bathurst Mines sunk a two-compartment shaft to a depth of 91 m (223 ft), with a level developed at 61 m (200 ft). 1929: Bathurst Mines deepened the shaft to 200 ft with levels at 200 ft and 91 m (300 ft) depths. 1109 ft of crosscutting and 2046 ft of drifting was completed; a 10 T mill was installed. Production was reported as 149.06 oz Au and 50 oz Ag. The mine was closed at the end of 1929. Further production was carried out by Bathurst Mines in 1932 ($1500 worth of gold) and in 1934 (74.51 oz Au and 6 oz Ag). The shaft was deepened in 1934 to a total depth of 128 m (420 ft). 1935: Erie Canadian Gold Mines Ltd. optioned the property and carried out extensive surface work. 1936: Car Lake Syndicate reopened the mine and produced between 76.92 and 120 oz Au and up to 36 oz Ag. 1937: Gleemar Gold Mines re-opened the mine and completed the final documented UG development with 200 ft of drifting and 100 ft of crosscutting on the 300 ft level. 1958: Bathurst Selective Mines Securities Ltd. completed prospecting, stripping, trenching and sampling. 1963-64: Bathurst Selective Mines drilled 6 DDH totalling 727 ft as well as conducting trenching.1966-67: Gordon Jones completed ground magnetometer and VLF surveys and one 275 m DDH. 1969: Kendon Copper Ltd. 10 DDH totalling 764 m (2508 ft). 1972-73: The property was staked by a group of prospectors from Ear Falls and optioned to All Canadian Mining and Exploration co. who conducted geological mapping and drilled 7 DDH totalling 587 ft as well as trenching. 1973: Selco Exploration Company Limited completed 7 DDH totalling 179 m (587 ft) immediately west of the shaft. 1975-77: Stripping and trenching was conducted by A. Bertram and G. Alcock. 1979-87: St. Mary's Exploration Ltd. acquired a 70% interest in the property and completed surface geology, an evaluation of the tailings dump (2000 tons of 0.30 opt Au) and 2 DDH totalling 92.6 m. 1983: Twelve mining claims were brought to lease. 1986-87: Eastmont Gold Mines Ltd. carried out an extensive exploration program consisting of linecutting, magnetometer and VLF-EM, stripping, cleaning, mapping and sampling of old trenches, as well as a 24 DDH program totalling 1586 m. 1987: New Sabina Resources Ltd. contracted G. Hinse to prepare a summary report covering work previously done on the property. 1992-93: G. Strilchuck carried out prospecting and sampling programs. 2003: Goldcorp Inc. carried out a mobile-metal ion survey for G. Strilchuk on a claim (1184148) just to the west of the historic mine. A gold anomaly was identified lying along a creek toward the south end of the claim. It was concluded that the anomaly might be associated with underlying mafic intrusions. 2004: Sabina Resources Ltd. optioned the property from Wolfden Resources Ltd. in June 2004 and completed prospecting, stripping, channel and sampling, line cutting, and magnetometer and VLF surveys. 2005: Sabina Resources changes its name to Sabina Silver Corp. and carried out a 22 DDH program totalling 4140 m. 2007-08: Sabina drilled 23 DDH totalling 7863 m and discovered a new zone called the Blind Zone. 2009: Sabina completed a 10 DDH program totalling 2045 m. 2009: Sabina Silver changes its name to Sabina Gold & Silver Corp. 2014: property is still owned by Sabina, but no work has been done since 2010.

Assessment Work on File

Geology

Province: Superior

Subprovince: Uchi

Terrane: North Caribou

Domain: Uchi

Belt: Birch-Uchi

Geological Age: Archean  

Geology Comments

Feb 26, 2015 (Therese Pettigrew) - Regionally, the Golden Sidewalk property sits within the western portion of the Birch-Uchi Belt of the East Uchi Subprovince and is underlain by north-striking Mesoarchean mafic volcanics of the Narrow Lake Assemblage in contact with Neoarchean granites and granodiorites and associated pegmatitic rocks of the Trout Lake Batholith immediately to the west (AFRI 20000002414).

Lithology

Lithology Comments

Feb 26, 2015 (Therese Pettigrew) - Most of the property is underlain by pillowed, spherulitic, and massive flows together with irregular and ill-defined areas of phanerite which is of gabbroic composition. These latter areas may represent coarser grained core regions of massive flows, or alternatively truly intrusive material. The metavolcanics are flanked on the west by trondhjemite of the Trout Lake Batholith, and locally by talc- and serpentine-rich rocks which may be of ultramafic protolith. Where the contact between trondhjemite and adjacent units is exposed, relationships are intrusive rather than tectonic. The contact dips sub-vertically or steeply to the west. The metavolcanics and gabbroic rocks of the central and eastern parts of the property are cut by numerous felsite bodies, most of which clearly transect stratigraphy. These trend at about 090-120 degrees. A second set exhibits an approximately north-south strike, roughly conformable to stratigraphy. Both sets are thought tentatively to have been emplaced within early shears and/or fracture sets. Significant vertical displacement may have occurred along these early shears (AFRI 20000002414).

Mineralization

Mineralization Comments

Feb 26, 2015 (D Saunders) - grade 1978 no.3 vein - tailings: avg. 0.86 opt/2' for 165'- tailings 2,000 tons @ 0.3 opt au. Production 1927-37: 307 oz au and 92 oz ag, occurrence includes: all veins in property area.

Feb 26, 2015 (Therese Pettigrew) - In general gold on the Golden Sidewalk property is almost exclusively hosted by white to smoky quartz veins, is commonly irregularly distributed, nuggety and appears to have been remobilized. Spectacular high grade samples have been reported from the Joe and Discovery Veins, as well as from other locations on the property. Auriferous veins appear to occupy east-northeast to east-southeast fracture zones in basaltic flows and gabbroic sills, and are often intimately associated with parallel quartz-feldspar (felsite) dykes or lenses. Gold is occasionally hosted by biotite-altered, quartz flooded portions of felsite dykes. Some veins, like the Joe Vein, are flat-lying, quite irregular in shape, and appear to occupy minor late fold intersections. Veins consist of quartz, quartz-chlorite, quartz-calcite or quartz-carbonate, with occasional biotitic wallrock alteration. Boudinaging of veins is noted especially in the northern part of the property (e.g. the K T Vein), indicating east-west tensional movement. Similar movement is illustrated by offset geological boundaries along easterly-striking magnetic lineaments. Associated sulphide mineralization includes trace to 10% pyrite, trace to 15% pyrrhotite, trace to 10% arsenopyrite and trace to 2% chalcopyrite (AFRI 20000002414). From November 2007 through March 2008, 23 holes totalling 7,863 m were drilled on the property. The holes tested the depth and strike extension of the historic Bathurst Mine Horizon. The program was intersected gold mineralization in the primary target Bathurst Mine Horizon and also discovered a second gold-bearing mineralized horizon, including 45.96 g/t Au over 1.70 m (http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/Article18830.html). Grab samples from the various quartz veins on the Bathurst property have assayed greater than 4.0 ounces Au per ton. Diamond drilling on the No. 2 Vein by All Canadian Mining and Exploration Co. intersected 0.87 ounce Au per ton across 5 feet. An underground chip sample from the No. 2 Vein taken by Erie Canadian Mining Ltd. assayed 0.54 ounce Au per ton across 4.72 feet. Chip samples taken by Erie Canadian Mines Ltd. during surface sampling of the No. 3 Vein gave an average assay of 1.5 ounces Au per ton across 2 feet for a length of 165 feet. Assays of samples taken from the No. 3 Vein on the 200-foot level of the mine averaged 0.52 ounce Au per ton across 3.5 feet for a length of 180 feet. Grab samples taken by B.T. Atkinson from the No. 4 Vein analyzed 1720 and 7230 ppb Au; while samples from the No. 5 and No. 7 veins analyzed 3920 ppb Au and 735 ppb Au, respectively. Visible gold was noted in a number of veins. A quartz vein known as the "Golden Sidewalk" has produced some spectacular specimens of native gold (OFR5835).

Alteration Comments

Feb 26, 2015 (Therese Pettigrew) - Alteration, consisting of carbonatization and biotization, is generally restricted to vein margins and shear/fracture zones. The degree of alteration appears to increase slightly northward. Although biotite alteration increases slightly toward the margin of the Trout Lake Batholith, significant pervasive alteration is not present on the property, suggesting that gold mineralization may be distal and remobilized from its original source (AFRI 20000002414).

Mineral Record Details

References

Mono - Report of Activities 2005, Resident Geologist Program, Red Lake Regional Resident Geologist Report: Red Lake and Kenora Districts

Publication Number: OFR6180 Page: 3  Date: 2006

Author: Lichtblau A.F., Ravnaas C., Storey C.C., Raoul A., Gula R., Saunders D.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Part - Gold deposits of Woman, Narrow and Confederation lakes, District of Kenora (Patricia Portion)

Publication Number: ARV37-04.001 Page: 40-43  Date: 1998

Author: Bruce E.L.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

Article - Narrow Lake-Shabumeni River area (Skinner and Goodall townships), District of Kenora (Patricia Portion)

Publication Number: MP049.005 Page: 24-27  Date: 1997

Author: Pryslak A.P.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines and Northern Affairs

Location:

Article - Narrow Lake-Shabumeni River area, District of Kenora (Patricia Portion)

Publication Number: MP053.003 Page: 17-18  Date: 1997

Author: Pryslak A.P.

Publisher Name: Ontario Division of Mines

Location:

Mono - Gold occurrences, prospects and past-producing mines of the Birch-Confederation lakes area

Publication Number: OFR5835 Page: 9-10, 318-321  Date: 1992

Author: Parker J.R., Atkinson B.T.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Map - Geological series, Precambrian geology, Skinner Township, District of Kenora (Patricia Portion)

Publication Number: P2953 Scale: 1:15,840    Date: 1986

Author: Pryslak A.P.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Map - Geology and Tectonostratigraphic Assemblages, East Uchi Subprovince, Red Lake and Birch-Uchi Belts, Ontario

Publication Number: P3460 Scale: 1:250,000    Date: 2004

Author: Sanborn-Barrie M., Rogers N., Skulski T., Parker J.R., McNicoll V.J., Devaney J.R.

Publisher Name: Geological Survey of Canada, Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Map - Precambrian Geology, Trout Lake Area

Publication Number: P3383 Scale: 1:250,000    Date: 1998

Author: Stone D.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Report an Error

We are continuously updating our assessment file / technical report information. If you notice errors in the data, please contact us.

Terms of Use

Please review our Terms of Use agreement for this data product.

Ministry Contact Information

For detailed information regarding this mineral record please contact the Red Lake Resident Geologist District Office