Terra Gold Project | Detailed Overview of Zones
The Ben intrusion hosts most of the currently identified high-grade lode mineralization, including the Ben, Ben North, Fish and SD zones. The main target of past exploration has been the north-south striking, steeply west-dipping Ben veins zone, which has been traced by diamond drilling along a 350 m strike length and a vertical extent of over 250 m. The Ben vein extends along the eastern margin of the Ben intrusion, with the northern half within it and the southern half within the adjacent slate unit. The Ben veins range in width from 0.1 m to 1.0 m and are exposed on surface for up to 35 m, although the Ben zone is largely scree-covered.
The Au-As-Sb (Cu-Pb-W) geochemical signature suggests that mineralization at Terra was formed from an intrusion-related fluid. An appropriate deposit model may be the “deep” epithermal (distal to an intrusion) model. As the region does contain a significant age equivalent Cu-Au porphyry deposit (Nova Minerals Ltd.’s Mt. Estelle deposit), it is not hard to envision the Terra veins projecting from a large Cu-Au (or similar environment) at depth.
The Ben Zone has produced numerous multi-ounce samples. During a bulk sampling of the Ben Vein the gravity processing of the material recovered multiple ounces to the ton. Previous exploration and drilling have focused on the Ben Zone which has a resource from drilling 47 drill holes for 9,908 meters.
The resource of the Ben Zone was last updated in a 2020 Technical Report. During 2020 a scoping study was conducted that produced a preliminary mine plan based on the current resource for an underground mining operation at the Terra Project.
Ben Zone
In recent years WMTN has also begun to drill out the Fish Zone which as produced a resource from the drilling of 4,890 meters. With additional drilling the company believes that the Ben Zone and Fish Zone will connect into one resource.
There are two prominent outcroppings of quartz veins in the Fish zone. The upper vein is exposed at a higher elevation southeast of the lower vein. Surface exposure is limited to a few meters along strike, and approximately 5 m downslope. The exposed portion, roughly 0.5 m in width, has a measured strike of 350 degrees, dips steeply eastward, has a competent texture and varies from massive to banded. Partial mining at surface of the lower vein has exposed the vein approximately 10 m along strike and 15 m downslope. The vein is also competent, massive to banded, and varies in width from just a few cm to nearly 1.0 m.
Fish Zone
Mag Areas 3 & 4
A geophysical surveys on the project in 2018 located two magnetic anomalies to the east of the Fish Zone. During the 2019, field season soil samples were collected over contour lines space 40 meters apart in elevation over the magnetic anomalies.
A total of 112 soil samples were collected and sent into ALS in Fairbanks, Alaska for analysis. The results of the soil sampling included two samples grading over 100 grams per tonne gold and eleven sample grading between 10 and 100 grams per tonne gold.
Additional exploration is to be conducted to determine if the gold in the soil is from veins in the area or alluvial, placed there by the creek in the distant past.
SD Vein
Located between the Ben Zone and the Fish Zone, the SD Vein are two high grade parallel banded and mottled quartz veins that are up to 30 cm thick. The veins are separated by roughly 25 meters and outcrop for nearly 100 meters of strike.
AngloGold Ashanti drilled two drill holes in 2005 but failed to intercept the quartz veins. There are at least 3 large, high-angle faults next to these veins that possibly truncated or displaced the SD Veins or the veins may have pinched and swelled in a vertical sense.
In 2019, Aurora Geosciences collected 11 surface grab samples along several outcropping quartz veins. One sample from the western SD Vein returned an assay of 603 g/t gold, 316 g/t silver.
The Ice Vein is another bonanza-grade vein that is located about 3 kilometers to the southeast of the Ben Zone. The vein strikes in a west – east versus a north-south direction of the Ben and Fish Zones.
The Ice Vein has grades up to 72 g/t gold and has an exposed strike length of approximately 15 meters, terminating in a series of shears to the west and passing into cover to the east.
Three exploration drill holes, totaling 397 meters, extended the high-grade vein from the surface to 175 meters down dip.
Ice Vein
Porphyry
To the southeast of the Ben Vein, soil samples identified a gold anomaly in the area of Camp Creek. Soil samples were taken in a spacing of 30 meters which returned values averaging 401 ppb gold and a high of 3.19 g/t gold over a 460-meter-long surface exposure. In 2012 rock samples were collected from the area and returned mixed results, with several elevated Pb, Mo, and Bi values which may suggest underlying mineralization reminiscent of a porphyry system.
The Au-As-Sb (Cu-Pb-W) geochemical signature suggests that mineralization at Terra was formed from an intrusion-related fluid. An appropriate deposit model may be the “deep” ephithermal (distal to an intrusion) model. As the region does contain a significant age equivalent Cu-Au porphyry deposit (Nova Minerals Ltd.’s Mt. Estelle deposit), it is not hard to envision the Terra veins projecting from a large Cu-Au (or similar environment) at depth.
Oxidized Zone
Work in the South area of Terra led to the discovery of the Ice Vein. To the south of the Ice Vein is the Oxidized zone. During the 2021 field season a sizable rock was found in the float that had multistage banded quartz like the multistage banding found in the veins at Ben, Fish, SD and Ice.
An XRF analyzer was used to test the rock sample in the field which indicated up to 80 ppm gold. Two samples were taken from the rock and sent into ALS in Fairbanks, Alaska for analysis, which returned assays of 6.5 g/t and 10.5 g/t gold. The suspected source of the multistage banded quartz was spotted from a helicopter but due to the steep terrain samples could not be collected from the outcropping.
North Terra
Located North across the Fish Creek Valley from the Ben and Fish Zones, the area have produced samples of 7-10 g/t gold from quartz veins.
The geochemical signature of the area is different than the geochemical signature of the Ben Zone. This mineralization of North Terra is probably younger than the Ben Zone and linked to the Tired Pup pluton.
Breese's Breccia
Located about 2 miles southeast of Terra Camp, Breese’s Breccia hosts several different styles of mineralization including quartz veins in sediments and granitoids, as well as breccia-matrix materialization. Gold grades of up to 5 g/t gold have been found in the breccia style mineralization and up to 4 g/t gold in veins. There have been at least three different metal associations observed at Breese’s.
Breese’s is a potential breccia pipe style, large tonnage lower grade mineralization.