Commodity: Gold
Best Grades: 1.08 g/t Au over 14 m (historic)
Area: 1175 Hectares (11.75 sq km)
Road accessible, 4 hours from Vancouver
The area between the two properties is occupied by a series of old mines which exploited auriferous, low-sulphidation quartz veins during the early decades of the 1900s – notably the Vidette mine. Gold was produced at economic grades for several years from these mines, but the structural continuation was not investigated further, likely due to a basalt cap obscuring geology and smothering geochemistry. Work by Hive in the region hypothesized a spatial and metallogenic connection between these low-sulphidation quartz veins and regional scale gravity surveys conducted by GeoscienceBC. Gravity highs are thought to form a ‘backbone’ structure which channels fluids into structural offshoots and splays, potentially allowing gold, silver and copper mineralization.
The gravity surveys let us look through the basalt cap to 1) suggest a possible west-northwest trending structural connection between the X and Yard properties, and 2) show that the historical Vidette veins are aligned along this hypothesized west-northwest strike in between the two claim blocks.
Use the interactive property map to view the geology, historical mineral occurrences and SGDS Hive's samples and photos of the X and Yard claims.
Both the X and the Yard claims were staked to cover the currently exposed ‘windows’ of the Nicola group volcanics. This rock package consists of volcanic sandstones, conglomeratic sandstones, siltstones, basalts and basaltic breccias, with local limestones, slates, felsic tuffs, conglomerates and cherts. The Nicola group volcanics is often described as a roof pendant that has been intruded into during multiple stages of magmatism.
Within the X claim the Nicola Group volcanics outcrop alongside igneous plutons that have intruded into the roof pendant. These include the regionally mapped Early Jurassic Rayfield River pluton, a hornblende syenite, as well as the Thuya Group batholith which is made up of syenites, diorites and feldspar porhpyries. To the south, east and west of the property are the Miocene to Pleistocene-aged Chicotin Group of mafic extrusives, intrusives and sedimentary rocks.
The Yard Claim is predominantly composed of the Nicola Group volcanics. Drilling and petrographic work completed on the Nicola Group volcanics within the current Hive Yard claim shows the mafic to intermediate volcanics of the Nicola Group exhibit a strong foliation showing the rocks have experienced ductile strain during middle Greenschist facies metamorphism. This is atypical for the Nicola group of volcanics, where most studies have shown the volcanics have undergone a low-temperature regional metamorphism, more akin to sub-Greenschist facies instead. Epidote and garnet skarns have been historically recorded to outcrop in association with buried intrusive rocks that have intruded into the Nicola Group roof pendant system.
Structural studies have shown this fabric to be aligned west-northwest, with a steep alternating north-south dip. This alignment and orientation of foliation with the newly hypothesized regional structural trend supports the idea of continuity between the X and Yard claims.
The Vidette Lake project is accessible from the Trans-Canada Highway or Highway 97. From Vancouver, the site can be accessed in under 5 hours. On-site access is good, with the majority of both claims accessible by vehicle. Local communities include 70 Mile House, located 40 km to the east and Cache Creek located 50 km to the southeast.
The Vidette Lake area has been recognised as a prospective area since the early 1900s with the current Yard claim being explored to a limited extent alongside the discovery and working of the Vidette mine (MinFile #: 092P086), located approximately 350 m southwest of the southwest corner of the Yard claim. During the period 1933 to 1940, the Vidette Mine produced approximately 40,000 oz of gold, 30,000 oz of silver and 100,000 lbs of copper from 55,000 tons of ore (Gruenwald, 1980). Mineralization consists of northwest trending quartz veins with pyrite, chalcopyrite and tellurides and the veins are localized along fault fractures in the Nicola group volcanics.
The VID claims were staked by Keda Resources Limited in 1972 (Dawson, 1973), a portion of these claims covered the current Yard claim. In 1981, the claim changed name to Gala, when Cominco Limited staked the property in search of a molybdenum prospect and completed a low-resolution magnetic and induced polarization (IP) survey (Scott, 1981). Chevron Canada Resources Limited later claimed the property under the name Gnome and completed magnetometer and soil/silt geochemical surveys (Bruaset, 1984). In 1986, prospector M. Dickens discovered several outcrops of silicified and clay altered rock cut by veins of chalcedony matrix breccia with variable amounts of fluorite (Wilson, 1986). This later became recognised as the Yard 2 mineral occurrence (MinFile #: 092P 225). This occurrence was followed up the same year by Noranda Exploration Company with a NQ diamond drill hole (Wilson, 1986). The claims were subsequently optioned to Canadian Nickel Company from Chevron Canada Resource Limited in 1988 to complete geological mapping, lithogeochemistry, soil geochemistry, and diamond drilling (Morin, 1989a; 1989b). During this program, several soil anomalies were defined: 1) an elongate NNE trending, 200 m wide, 400 m long coincident Au+Ag+As+Mo anomaly on the previously named YARD #2 claim (southern Yard claim); 2) across the Yard claim, a partial coincidence and overlap between an elongate molybdenum zone and spot highs of gold, arsenic and silver along a NE-trending linear drainage; 3) the third anomaly consists of a few erratic gold highs along line 400 N (Morin, 1989a; 1989b). The current Yard claim has not since been followed up, with focus in the area following up on the historic Vidette mine area.
The X claim is by far under explored. The first recognised work was in 1991 involving basic geochemical sampling, trenching, line chaining and prospecting (Thomlinson, 1991). The results of the 1991 program were promising with copper and gold anomalies within newly recognised outcrops of the Nicola volcanics (Thomlinson, 1991). This mineral occurrence is recorded as the X Claim Group mineral occurrence (MinFile #: 029P 031). Follow-up work was not conducted until 2006, where the property was incorporated into Candorado Operating Company Limited’s Rayfield River property (Koffyberg, 2007a). An airborne geophysical survey consisting of 409-line kilometres conducting gamma-ray spectrometry and magnetometry identified 4 primary targets and 2 secondary targets that warranted follow-up work (Koffyberg, 2007a). During the same year, a follow up soil sampling and rock sampling program was conducted (Koffyberg, 2007b). The most southern grid falls on the current X claim and the R-7 target is described as a large outcrop of gabbro with veins of potassium feldspar, quartz and disseminated hornblende and epidote (Koffyberg, 2007b). A second target (06-6) approximately 1.5 km northwest is a large hill composed of potassium feldspar phyric hornblende-biotite syenite with grain sizes that range from coarse to pegmatitic (Koffyberg, 2007b). The outcrop did contain some potassic alteration. The results of the survey identified the geophysical target as outcropping and buried syenites and diorites (Koffyberg, 2007b). Follow-up work on the R-7 target was recommended. However, in the follow-up 2008 drill program, the area was not revisited (Koffyberg, 2008). There is no record of subsequent exploration on the X claim.
The X claim has a recognized mineral occurrence known as the “X Claim Group” (MinFile#: 092P 031). In 1991, a prospector by the name of Mr. Joel Thomlinson completed a soil and rock sampling program that yielded values of 2.81 g/t gold and 2.01 % copper. These samples were of the Nicola Group volcanics and were described as ‘greenstones’ with notable pyrite and chlorite and calcite veining. The X claim has previously been described as a porphyry copper prospect, however, the potential for Low-Sulphidation Ephithermal gold is high due to the presence of calcite and quartz veining hosted by the Nicola Group volcanics and associated with the Early Rayfield River pluton and Thuya Group batholith.
The Yard claim contains the “Yard 2” mineral occurrence (MinFile#: 092P 225) a zone of chalcedony (quartz-calcite-fluorite) veins, veinlets, stockworks and matrix breccia which cuts a hanging-wall of Eocene volcanics and a foot-wall composed of the Nicola Group volcanics. Diamond drilling in the late 1980s intersected an area of epidote-chlorite-pyrite-calcite-hematite–altered diorite and granodiorite cut by quartz-calcite stockworks.
In the adjacent area to the Yard claim, numerous mineral occurrences have been recorded along the same regional structural trend, recently recognized by regional geophysical surveys. These include the Vidette Mine mineral occurrence (MinFile#: 092P 086) which recovered between 1933 and 1940 a total of 929,016 grams of gold, 1,448,561 grams of silver and 43,825 kilograms of copper. The geology, structure and mineralization at the Vidette Mine is comparable to that observed within the Yard claim. Other mineral occurrences include the “Gnome” (MinFile#: 092P 024); “Hamilton Creek” (MinFile#: 092P 085); “Savona Gold” (MinFile#: 092P 087); “Clinton” (MinFile#: 092P 146); “Vid 27” (MinFile#: 092P 127); “Epi 2” (MinFile#: 092P 131); and “Bridge” (MinFile#: 092P 211) showings.
Hive’s initial focus for the Vidette Lake property is to test the potential of the Nicola Group volcanics in the area as a host for a low-sulphidation epithermal gold mineralization. To do this, Hive is planning 1:1000 scale geological mapping on both claim blocks. To support the mapping and geological interpretation, Hive will complete gridded soil surveys and rock and grab geochemical sampling.
The next stage will be to test the hypothesized west-northwest regional trend by collecting local structural measurements from both claims, and to determine if there is correlation. Additionally, completing a ground-based magnetometry survey could help to confirm these regional trends.
SGDS Hive recognizes that the Vidette Lake project lies within the Traditional Territories of the Secwepemcúl’ecw (Secwépemc) First Nations. The Vidette Lake project also lies to the north of the Nłeʔkepmx Tmíxʷ (Nlaka’pamux) First Nations.
We are currently working to build relationships with the Secwepemcúl’ecw (Secwépemc) and Nłeʔkepmx Tmíxʷ (Nlaka’pamux) First Nations and to understand and embrace the traditional use of their lands, as well as providing mutual opportunities.
