Juniors eye Mexican gold prospects (November 20, 2003)

Vancouver Looking to capitalize on the rising gold price, a number of junior explorers are moving south for the winter and targeting Mexico.Grayd Resource (GYD-V) is the latest company to set its sights on the country by picking up the La India property in the prolific Sierra Madre gold belt of northern Mexico.

The 476.6 ha project lies 15 km northwest of the 3 million ounce Mulatos deposit being worked by Alamos Gold (AGI-V) and comprises two separate claims blocks (La India and La India 1) that are separated by 1050 metres.

Easily accessible by an all weather road, the Sonora state property covers the western end of a large hydrothermal system that is characterized by intense argillic alteration and silicification. Three zones of gold mineralization with artisanal workings have been identified on the La India portion of the project.

The La India zone is marked by classic high-sulphidation style gold mineralization over a 1000-by-600-metre area. Argillically altered intrusive rock is exposed at lower elevations, while vuggy silica was observed above the argillic alteration and pervasive silicification on the ridge tops. A total of 9 grab samples collected from the face and walls of 3 short adits driven into the altered intrusive returned up to 6.87 grams gold and 39.2 grams silver per tonne.

In the upper portions of the ridge, quartz-barite veinlets are observed in 1-to-5 metre wide structures that commonly cut the silicified rocks. Quartz-barite and kaolin veins are also seen cutting the pervasively silicified rhyodacite volcanics throughout the area.

The La Espanola zone lies 500 metres to the northwest of the La India zone, and is marked by intense silicification with anomalous gold values over a 500-by-700 metre area. Within the zone, a 20 metre wide structure can be traced for 200 metres before being lost due to a lack of outcrop exposure. Five grab samples collected from an old cut on the north end of the structure returned from 0.12 grams gold up to 32.5 grams gold.

Moving 300 metres to the west, two additional structures yielded values of 3.5 and 6.1 grams gold over 1 metre, respectively.

The La Cieneguita zone lies 125 meters to the west of La Espanola and is marked by an 800-by-300 metre area of alteration with anomalous gold values. In the center of this zone is a 10-to-20 metre wide mineralized hydrothermal breccia that can be traced for 450 metres along strike. In total, 12 samples were collected returning values ranging up to 6.21 grams gold.

Grayd can earn a 100% interest in the property by paying US$555,000 over 4 years, including US$15,000 upon regulatory acceptance and US $20,000 in 6 months. The vendor retains a 1% net smelter royalty, half of which Grayd can purchase at any time by paying US$750,000.

On a production decision, the company has nine months to pay the vendors a one-time payment of US$0.50 per recoverable ounce based on the reserves outlined in a bankable feasibility study.

In Sinaloa state, Ross River Minerals (RRM-V) is busy working the 200 sq. km. El Pulpo property. The junior can earn a 50.1% stake in the copper-gold project from Almaden Minerals (AMM-T) by spending US$2 million and issuing 425,000 shares by April 30, 2008. Ross River can pick up another 9.9% interest by spending an additional US$1 million by April 30, 2010.

The project lies north-east of Mazatlan and hosts porphyry style gold-copper-silver mineralization over a 12 sq km area.

The El Bagre target is marked by calc-alkaline intrusive quartz stockwork mineralization where four grab samples collected over a 1 sq km area averaged 1.43 % copper, 0.13 grams gold and 52.4 grams silver.

Moving 3 km to the east, the La Cetolla prospect hosts classic copper-gold porphyry mineralization. Work in the early 1970’s outlined an 1,100-by-230 metre surface area that averaged 0.94% copper. In 2002, Almaden sampled an area immediately to the south, yielding values ranging from 0.29% to 0.79% copper and up to 0.8 gram gold.

Some 1 km north of the El Bagre prospect is the Papaya target. Ross River collected nine samples from a vein with 7 of them returning more than 1 gram gold. The highest value obtained came in at 30.7 grams gold. Subsequently, the junior collected twenty random samples over a 2-km strike length, which averaged 12.3 grams gold, 267.8 grams silver and 0.46% copper.

The La Trucha target lies 2 km north of the Papaya target and is marked by two float samples collected separately by Almaden and Ross River, 50 metres apart, that assayed 18.0 grams gold and 410 grams silver, and 24.4 grams gold and 792.2 grams silver, respectively. In total, 21 samples taken from the target averaged 8.64 grams gold, 357.6 grams silver and 1.12% copper. A further five samples collected 1 km along strike to the southwest averaged 3.42 grams gold, 222.3 grams silver and 1.11% copper.

Ross River is currently in the midst of trenching and mapping of the La Trucha and Papaya targets. An induced polarization geophysical survey is planned followed by drill testing.

In San Luis Potosi state, Newport Exploration (NWX-V) has teamed up with Cardero Resources (CDU-V) on the Franco gold project.

Located 70 km southwest of the city of San Luis Potosi, the 983 ha concession hosts a series of antimony-arsenic geochemical anomalies coincidental with hydrothermally altered rocks covering a 2 sq km area.

Newport can earn a 50% stake in the property by paying $70,000 by March 3, 2004 and spending $250,000 by Aug. 3, 2004. Newport must also pay $60,000 to the underlying optionor of the property on or before September 3, 2004.