AGC zeroes in on Finn zone at JD play

Exploration drilling is in full swing on the JD gold-silver property in the Toodoggone River area of north-central British Columbia.

AGC Americas Gold (VSE), which has budgeted a $3-million program, is initially attempting to outline a drill-indicated reserve on the Finn zone. To date in 1995, more than 60 holes, totalling 20,000 ft., have been drilled. Company geologist Robert Krause says drilling will continue until the weather forces them out, which he predicts will be the first or second week of October.

Situated 300 km northeast of Smithers, the JD property contains several mineralized zones centred along a structural break associated with a belt of volcanic rocks. The property was previously held by Energex Minerals, which optioned it to Kidd Creek Mines in the early 1980s. The latter carried out trenching and limited drilling on the Gumbo zone, returning a 15.5-ft. intersection grading 1.33 oz. gold and 0.04 oz. silver per ton. Energex then re-acquired the property and carried out trenching and sampling in the late 1980s.

AGC acquired a full interest in the project in 1994 and proceeded to evaluate the Gumbo and Finn zones by means of a summer drill program. While only marginal results were returned from the Gumbo zone, 17 holes drill-tested the Finn. A preliminary possible resource of 163,000 tonnes grading 0.13 oz. gold was outlined over a 375-ft. strike length of the east-west-trending structure.

This year’s program is systematically stepping out on 100-ft. sections and fan-drilling a series of holes on a 180! north-south azimuth. More than 900 ft. of strike length have been tested, and the zone of mineralization remains open to the west and to the east, as well as to depth. A reserve upgrade is expected to be made public in a matter of weeks. Along with a substantial increase in grade, Krause says, the reserves have been shifted into the drill-indicated category and have more than doubled.

Mineralization along the Finn structure occurs in an altered, fragmental, lappilli tuff. Several phases of silicification and brecciation are present. AGC believes the structure is younger than the low-angle fault that hosts the Gumbo zone, and that the high-grade intersection that Kidd Creek encountered while drilling Gumbo may, in fact, be from the Finn zone.

Four exploratory holes were recently drilled on the Schmitt zone in an area where rock-sampling returned peak values of 0.53 and 1.85 oz. The data provided by these holes will be used to assess the area for follow-up work next field season.

Drilling will continue to step out on the Finn zone, both to the east and west, and several holes will test a second zone of mineralization, 250 ft. stratigraphically below Finn.

The latest drill assay results are as follows:

HoleIntervalWidthGoldSilver

(ft)(ft)(oz/t)(oz/t)

95-63124.7-158.333.6 0.211.23

incl148.8-158.39.50.53–

95-6490.2-108.218.00.321.92

118.1-13112.90.41–

95-6575.5-78.83.30.12–

95-66no significant values

95-67113.2-155.942.70.11–

95-68109.7-154.444.70.220.6

incl.126.9-137.710.80.24–

143.1-154.411.30.44–

95-6977.0-101.624.60.27–

95-7075.6-82.16.50.23–

95-71150.8-156.65.81.811.82

95-72no significant values

95-73298.4-304.96.50.1817.3