Big hole near Eskay for Silver Butte, American Fibre

Overshadowed by activities on the neighboring Eskay Creek property, joint venture partners Silver Butte Resources (VSE) and American Fibre (VSE) have quietly drilled some 20 holes totalling 10,135 ft. on their SIB claims without much fuss or fanfare (T.N.M., Sept. 24/90). That all changed when assay results were released from a recent hole drilled to test coincident IP, VLF and soil geochemical anomalies in a previously untested area. The hole returned a total of 46.9 ft. grading an impressive 0.42 oz. gold and 30.91 oz. silver (from 171.3- 246.1 ft.), which includes 16.7 ft. of 0.86 oz. gold and 50.24 oz. silver per ton.

Although the attitude and true thickness of the mineralized structure has not been determined, the new target area is already being described as a “potentially major” discovery because the geological setting is believed to be similar to that of the Eskay Creek deposit.

“What is significant about this hole is that the mineralization is contained in graphitic mudstone interbedded within felsic volcanic units,” said John Kaiser, an analyst with Pacific International Securities. “This is the type of target sought after in the Eskay Creek camp, unlike the quartz vein-shear type zones common in the Iskut River camp.”

Kaiser also predicts that the discovery could attract the interest of major players — particularly if more positive results are released — as no group holds majority control of either company.

The SIB claim group owned equally by Silver Butte and American Fibre is immediately south of the Eskay Creek property owned by Prime Resources Group (VSE) and Stikine Resources (VSE). Both claim groups were staked by Tom MacKay, who was first attracted to this remote, gossanous area north of Stewart, B.C., in the 1930s. (He also launched both Stikine and Silver Butte as public companies.)

The 1990 work program on the SIB claims is being managed by Mark Rebagliati, a consulting geologist best known for his important role in the advancement of the Mt. Milligan gold-copper deposit north of Prince George, B.C. Because visible gold was noted in the field on the SIB claims, Rebagliati had the core rush assayed so that results could be released as quickly as possible.

“We are enthusiastic because we are seeing similar geology, and the same stratigraphy and structure as Eskay Creek,” he told The Northern Miner. “But we are taking a cautious, technical approach. The kind of deposit we are looking for is challenging to find and challenging to define.”

The bulk of recent drilling on the SIB claims has been focused along the Central Anomalous zone which extends southward from the MacKay zone. Drilling here returned numerous intersections of 0.01- 0.09 oz. gold which, the partners said, demonstrated the association of precious metal mineralization along a 2.6-mile structure, but which did little to spark interest in the property.

Of the 20 holes drilled so far (90-16 to 90-35), only one, hole 90-30, has been drilled in the new target area. Results from several other holes are still awaited, but Rebagliati stressed these were drilled to test other widely spaced targets on the property as part of the 1990 “first pass” drill program.

Core from hole 90-30 will be assayed for base metals, but based on visual observation their presence is expected to be low. This has given rise to some speculation that the discovery could be more similar to the 21A deposit at Eskay Creek (which contains refractory mineralization), rather than the 21B zone which contains the bulk of precious metal and base metal reserves.

Because of the onset of winter, it is not known if the company will be able to complete further drilling in the discovery area. The SIB claims are some 700 ft. higher than Eskay Creek, so low clouds and winter conditions could prohibit further work until next year’s season.

Although the SIB claims contain a number of staking gaps, some of which are quite sizable, the partners stress that the discovery zones lie comfortably within the boundaries of the surveyed SIB claims.