Gold Canyon pulls long gold intercepts from Springpole

Vancouver – The first summer drill results at Gold Canyon Resources‘ (GCU-V) Springpole project have returned long gold intercepts between and to the southeast of existing targets.

The company is working through a drill program to try and confirm its new geological interpretation of the project in northwestern Ontario. The drilling is designed to extend the Portage zone to the southeast and at depth, fill the gaps between the East zone and the Portage zone, and between the Main, Camp and Portage zones.

Hole 10-007, targeting the gap between the Portage and Camp zones, hit 217 metres carrying 1.57 grams gold per tonne from 33 metres depth. The company reports the hole has a true width of at least 153 metres and that mineralization appears consistent with the Portage zone, which is hosted by intensely biotite-altered trachytic porphyry.

Hole 10-008, targeting the south-eastern extension of the Portage zone, cut 59 metres grading 0.98 gram gold from 257 metres depth, then hit a 12-metre gap due to broken ground before returning a further 123 metres averaging 1.45 grams gold. The company reports that mineralization in hole 10-008 is “strikingly similar in appearance and grade to that in 10-007 even though they are 550 metres distant.”

The latest results, coupled with last winter’s drilling, indicated that the Portage zone is a northwest-trending, near-vertical body of mineralization roughly 600 metres long with true widths ranging from about 45 metres to 153 metres. The zone is open to the southeast and at depth.

Gold Canyon has previously concluded that the mineralization at Springpole is associated with an alkaline igneous complex consisting of shallow intrusions and associated diatreme breccias. This differed from the more common metamorphic-based deposits of the Canadian Shield that occur at deeper levels.

The 80-sq.-km Springpole project is located in the Red Lake mining district of Ontario.

The company is roughly half-way through a 6,000-metre summer drill program. The remainder of the program will test the extension of other gold zones on the property including the East extension and Camp. 

Gold Canyon has already established a resource estimate for the East zone of the project. The 2006 resource had both open-pit and underground estimates, which totalled 249,000 measured and indicated tonnes grading 5.66 grams gold and 1.35 million inferred tonnes grading 4.53 grams gold, all using a 1 gram per tonne cutoff.

In June the company raised $2 million through a private placement of 6.25 million units at 32¢ a piece. Each unit had one flow-through common share and one half-warrant, with each full warrant exercisable at 42¢ for 24 months. The company has 72.6 million shares outstanding or 92.1 million fully diluted.

Gold Canyon’s share price was up 6.5¢ or 19.4% on the news to reach 40¢ on 3.2 million shares traded. The share price had climbed a further 8.5¢ in the two days before the news was released following the company’s annual general meeting. The company has a 52-week share price range between 10.5¢ and 60¢.