Ontario Mineral Inventory

Ontario Geological Survey
Permanent Link to this Record: MDI52P09NE00001

Record: MDI52P09NE00001

General

Commodities

Primary Commodities: Gold

Location

Township or Area: Rich Lake Area, Opikeigan Lake Area

Latitude: 51° 37' 11.42"    Longitude: -88° 2' 44.86"

UTM Zone: 16    Easting: 427600   Northing: 5719275    UTM Datum: NAD83

Resident Geologist District: Thunder Bay North

NTS Grid: 52P09NE

Point Location Description: Diamond drill hole

Location Method: Data Compilation

Access Description: Located approx. 9 km northwest of Fort Hope and approx. 145 km east of Pickle Lake. Zones OL-12 & OL-29 are accessible by plane or Rond Lake and trail/drill road (approx. 1 km) of helicopter to drill pads on the zones. Winter roads from Pickle Lake to Fort Hope are available during some winters.

Exploration History

Exploration in the Fort Hope Area began in the 1920s with the discovery of the Fort Hope Gold Mine by prospectors in 1927. Shortly after, additional gold showings were uncovered, including at the Rich Lake Patricia showing. 1929: Mapping - Burwash (1930). 1942: Mapping - Prest (1944). 1969: Thurston and Carter completed an ODM helicopter reconnaissance survey of the Fort Hope Area. 1978: Wallace completed a detailed mapping program of the Opikeigen Lake area for the Ontario Geological Survey. 1981: Extensive sampling of existing trenches. 1984: Detailed geological mapping and grid-controlled rock geochemistry. 1985; ground MAG, VLF-EM - Kerr Addison Mines. 1986: 2 DDH, Aerodat Ltd. Flew a combined airborne MAG, EM - VLF-EM - Kerr Addison Mines. Noramco Exploration Ltd. began a 3 year exploration program on behalf of Pure Gold Resources Inc. and Golden Lake Inc. (later Ella Resources). Noramco completed extensive ground and airborne geophysical surveys, geological mapping and a 5 DDH program. 1987: Noramco completed IP and HLEM-surveys as well as a 12 DDH program totalling 2643.9 m which led to the discovery of the Zones 12 and 29 gold occurrences. Prospecting along trend led to the discovery of the Zone 41 occurrence.1988: Noramco did a magnetometer survey, a humus geochemical survey, airborne RM-VLF survey, trenching, channel sampling, prospecting and geological mapping. A 34 DDH program totalling 6259.5 m was completed, 50% of which were on Zones 12, 29 and 41. 1989: A 6 DDH program totalling 908.4 m was completed, targeting Zones 12, 29, and 41. 1997-9: SLAM Exploration (on behalf of Pure Gold and Ella Resources) conducted an exploration program including a VLF-EM survey, mag survey, rock and soil sampling, geological mapping, and prospecting. 2000: SLAM drilled 6 DDH totalling 1242.5 m, 2 of which were on Zone 12 and 1 was on Zone 29. 2003: Airborne survey was released by the province of Ontario under Operation Treasure Hunt. 2008: SLAM drilled 9 DDH totalling 910.7 m; 2 holes were on Zone 12 and 7 were on the Fort Hope Gold Mine. 2010: 4 DDH totalling 1148.92 were drilled on Zone 12. 2011: Slam and Beatrix Ventures contracted Geotech Airborne Solutions to fly a helicopter borne magnetic gradiometer geophysical survey.

Assessment Work on File

Geology

Province: Superior

Subprovince: Uchi

Terrane: North Caribou

Domain: Uchi

Belt: Miminiska-Fort Hope

Geological Age: Neoarchean  

Geology Comments

Sep 27, 2006 (C Salo) - The OL-12 Prospect is hosted within north-easterly striking mafic metavolcanic rocks and gabbro. Three separate lenses of mineralization were intersected at this location during diamond drilling conducted by Noramco Explorations in 1987 (Lemaitre 1997). The mineralized zones strike 050 and dip steeply (70 to 90) to the southeast. They have been traced for a strike length of approximately 50 m, to a depth of 200 m, and remain open along strike and at depth. Gold mineralization at this location has been interpreted to be related to two sets of narrow, brittle, sinistral shear zones that have been observed nearby in outcrop. The dominant set of shears strike 050 and have near-vertical dips. The shears are typically less than 20 cm wide and commonly contain quartz veins and boudins that parallel the shear fabric. A second set of similar shears having an average orientation of 063 is also present. These shears may be related to an east-northeasterly striking fault that was mapped by Hall (2005) approximately 100 m northwest of the showing. The gold mineralized veins encountered during diamond drilling consist of massive white to sugary blue-grey quartz containing minor disseminated pyrrhotite, pyrite and sericite. Visible gold, silver and molybdenite were reported in several drill holes at the contact between quartz veins and wall rocks. The host rocks adjacent to the veins are sheared with significant silicification, carbonatization and biotite alteration. Gold assays of >1 g/t were reported in eight of nine diamond drill holes advanced at this location by Noramco in 1987. The most favourable results included 3.85 g/t over 14.8 m in OL-87-42, 6.22 g/t over 7.00 m in OL-87-46, and 4.53 g/t over 10.5 m in OL-87-12. Two additional holes were drilled at this location in 2000 by Slam Exploration (Eastwood 2001). The most favourable reported assay was 2.61 g/t over 0.9 m. These drill holes were reported to have encountered diabase dikes that appear to cross-cut the deposit.

Lithology

Mineralization

Mineralization Comments

Sep 27, 2006 (C Salo) - Gold is associated with quartz veining and shearing in a sulfide horizon near the contact between mafic tuffs and mafic pillow lavas. Gold assays of >1 g/t were reported in eight of nine diamond drill holes advanced at this location by Noramco in 1987. The best gold intersection include 12.83 /g/t gold over 1.5 m in hole 12, 7.57 g/t gold over 5.2 m in hole 42. 3.42 g/t gold over 1.8 m in hole 44 and 6.12 g/t over 7.0 m in hole 46. Gold also occurs with disseminated py in a sericite-carbonate alteration zone near the sheared contact between intermediate tuffs and felsic crystal tuffs. Two additional holes were drilled at this location in 2000 by Slam Exploration (Eastwood 2001). The most favourable reported assay was 2.61 g/t over 0.9 m. These drill holes were reported to have encountered diabase dikes that appear to cross-cut the deposit.

Alteration Comments

Dec 07, 2005 (C Salo) - Gold also occurs with disseminated py in a sericite-carbonate alteration zone near the sheared contact between intermediate tuffs and felsic crystal tuffs.

Mineral Record Details

Mineral Zones - Size and Shape

References

Map - FORT HOPE AREA, District of Kenora (Patricia Portion), Ontario

Publication Number: ARM38B-01 Scale: 1:190,080    Date: 1929

Author: Burwash, E.M.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

Mono - Mineral Occurrences and Prospects in the Fort Hope-Winisk Area

Publication Number: OFR5926 Scale:     Date: 1995

Author: Mason J.K., White G.D.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Map - Fort Hope area, District of Kenora (Patricia Portion), Ontario

Publication Number: ARM51B Scale: 1:63,360    Date: 1997

Author: Prest V.K.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

Part - Geology of the Fort Hope gold area, District of Kenora (Patricia Portion)

Publication Number: ARV38-02.001 Scale:     Date: 1998

Author: Burwash E.M.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

Map - Fort Hope-Lansdowne House sheet, geological compilation series, Cochrane, Kenora, and Thunder Bay districts

Publication Number: M2237 Scale: 1:253,440    Date: 1972

Author: Thurston P.C., Carter M.W., Riley R.A.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines and Northern Affairs

Location:

Part - Geology of the Fort Hope area

Publication Number: ARV51-03.001 Scale:     Date: 1997

Author: Prest V.K.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

Map - Opikeigan Lake, Kenora District

Publication Number: M2379 Scale: 1:31,680    Date: 1977

Author: Wallace H.

Publisher Name: Ontario Division of Mines

Location:

Book - OPERATION FORT HOPE

Publication Number: MP042 Scale:     Date: 1970

Author: Thurston, P.C. and Carter, M.W.

Publisher Name: Ontario Ministry of Northern Development and Mines

Location:

Map - Precambrian Geology, Opikeigen Lake Area

Publication Number: P3269 Scale: 1:20,000    Date: 2005

Author: Hall L.A.F.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

MonoMap - Geology of the Opikeigan Lake area, District of Kenora (Patricia Portion)

Publication Number: R185 Scale:     Date: 1978

Author: Wallace H.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Map - Geological Compilation of the Miminiska-Fort Hope Area, Eastern Uchi Domain

Publication Number: P3611 Scale: 1:250,000    Date: 2009

Author: Madon Z.B., McIlraith S.J., Stott G.M.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

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For detailed information regarding this mineral record please contact the Thunder Bay North Resident Geologist District Office