Haldane Silver Project
Keno Hill District, YukonAVAILABLE FOR JV
Overview
The Haldane property is an under-explored high-grade silver property in a historic silver mining region. The 8,164 ha property hosts structurally-controlled silver veins and is located in the Keno Hill silver district in the central Yukon, within the traditional territory of the First Nation of Na-Cho Nyak Dun (“FNNND’). The Keno Hill silver deposits produced over 200 million ounces of silver in a long history of mining from 1913 to 1989, with production recommencing briefly from 2011-2013. The Haldane property is well situated approximately 25 km west of the main Keno Hill deposits. Mineralization is controlled by northerly trending structures and consists of galena, sphalerite and tetrahedrite-tennantite in quartz-siderite gangue.
The best mineralization found to date occurs where the mineralized structures cut the Keno Hill quartzite unit, below the Robert Service Thrust. This is almost identical to the setting for mineralization at the main Keno Hill deposits.
The Keno Hill District
The Keno Hill District is located in a mining friendly jurisdiction and ranks as one of the highest grade silver districts in the world. The Yukon government Minfile (2003) production statistics for the period of 1913-1989 indicate that 4.87 million tonnes were mined at an average grade of 1,389 grams/tonne (g/t) silver, 5.62% lead and 3.14% zinc. Over 65 deposits and prospects have been identified in the district. Most occur within the Keno Hill quartizite as structurally-controlled veins in proximity to the Robert Service Thrust.
Alexco Resources is the biggest player in the district, having received the final permits for the Bellekeno, Flame and Moth and Lucky Queen deposits and anticipates its final Water Use Licence for the Bermingham deposit Q4 of 2019. This will allow Alexco to commence production again in the Keno District, based on a March 2019 Pre-Feasibility Study. According to the Alexco study, the estimated Mineral Reserves are 1.18 M tonnes grading 805 g/t Ag, 2.98% Pb, 4.13% Zn and 0.34 g/t gold for an overall silver equivalent (“AgEq”) grade of 1,136 g/t AgEq as of March 28, 2019 (source: www.alexcoresource.com). It is important to note that Flame and Moth was a recent blind discovery adjacent to existing infrastructure.
The Haldane Property
The Haldane property is named after Mt. Haldane, on which the property is located. Earliest documented work dates to 1918, focused on the Mt. Haldane Vein System (MHVS) that describes two adits on the Middlecoff Zone on the south side of Bighorn Creek. The mineralized veins were traced over 600 m on surface and the underground development produced 24.7 tonnes of hand-sorted ore that graded at 3,102 g/t Ag and 59% Pb. At the same time, work was taking place on the Johnson Vein on the north side of Bighorn Creek, including a short adit. Eventually, in 1926 and 1927 these workings produced a total of 2.1 tonnes at 4,602 g/t Ag and 57.9% Pb, also of hand-sorted ore. This mineralization is hosted in north-trending veins within the Keno Hill quartzite, in close proximity to the Robert Service Thrust. Glaciation during the last glacial period was confined to the valleys, meaning that much of the Mt Haldane area has not been glaciated at higher elevations and because of this, ground is heavily weathered and broken, with oxidation extending as deep as 150 metres.
Alianza Field Programs
A very successful 2018 program at Haldane identified two large new soil anomalies and doubled the size of the Ross soil anomaly, validating management’s expectation that additional Keno District-style silver-bearing veins may be present on the property. The potential strike extension of the Mt. Haldane Vein System (MHVS) is thought to be reflected at the Ross Anomaly, which was extended to 600 metres in length. It may reflect multiple buried veins, consistent with nature of the MHVS. This brings the strike potential of the MHVS to 3.5 km in length, with much of it untested. Overburden in excess of 4 metres deep hindered the Alianza’s efforts to expose veining in bedrock, but high concentrations of lead, silver and pathfinder elements in soils collected from the trench indicate a mineralized bedrock source may be nearby. In between the Ross and main MHVS area, veins are thought to underlie the less prospective phyllite units which have been faulted over top of the prospective quartzite rocks. Therefore, small or lower grade lead and silver showings in the phyllites may reflect more substantial mineralization at depth.
The Bighorn anomaly is significant in that it lies 2.8 km northwest of the MHVS and may be reflecting a new set of veins in an otherwise untested area of the property. The anomaly is open and like the Ross anomaly, is in an area of tree cover. Further work is required to outline the size of the anomaly and the nature of the mineralization it may be indicating, but it represents an exciting opportunity in an area of the property that has received little prior work.
The North Star anomaly is over 1000 metres in length in the northeast portion of the property, where prior work identified spotty lead-silver-zinc-tin anomalies. It trends towards the Strebchuk lead-silver showing over 700 metres south. Minor alteration and mineralization was found in float in the vicinity of the anomaly, but it is thought that mineralization would be recessive and largely covered by the quartzite boulder float that dominates this area.
2019 Program
The 2019 Program focused on the Ross, Bighorn and Middlecoff targets. The Phase I program expanded the Bighorn soil geochemical anomaly at least 900 m in length and almost 150 m in width. Multiple structures anomalous in lead and silver were identified in mapping and trenching, and high lead and silver values were returned from soil sampling (including a high of 63 g/t silver and >1% lead). This work was confirmed by drilling which consisted of one hole that tested the width of the anomaly, intersecting at least four structures including a 9m-wide (core length) fault that hosted a 2.35 metre section averaging 125.7 g/t Ag and 4.4% Pb. This hole confirms the Bighorn Zone as a second target area 2.8 km from the Mt Haldane Vein System.
Vein-Structure Intersections HLD19-15 (Bighorn Zone)
Drill Hole | From (m) | To (m) | Core Interval (m) | Au (g/t) | Ag (g/t) | Pb (%) | Zn (%) | Core Recovery (%) |
HLD19-15 | 151.70 | 158.30 | 6.60 | 0.004 | 50.1 | 1.85 | 0.14 | 85 |
includes | 154.15 | 156.50 | 2.35 | 0.004 | 125.7 | 4.39 | 0.09 | 84 |
HLD19-15 | 48.00 | 53.65 | 5.65 | 0.003 | 2.1 | 0.15 | 0.01 | 69 |
HLD19-15 | 133.30 | 135.50 | 2.20 | 0.013 | 5.6 | 0.66 | 0.05 | 97 |
HLD19-15 | 196.95 | 198.00 | 1.05 | 0.004 | 48.2 | 2.08 | 2.73 | 45 |
HLD19-15 | 251.00 | 253.60 | 2.60 | 0.007 | 3.2 | 0.07 | 1.01 | 86 |
HLD19-15 | 271.00 | 271.40 | 0.40 | 0.005 | 42.7 | 2.16 | 1.07 | 91 |
HLD19-15 | 328.65 | 329.40 | 0.75 | 0.003 | 2.0 | 0.06 | 1.03 | 100 |
Vein-Structure Intersections – Middlecoff Zone
DrillHole | From (m) | To (m) | Core Interval (m) | Au (g/t) | Ag (g/t) | Pb (%) | Zn (%) | Target | % Core Recovery |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
HLD19-16 | 110.3 | 112.76 | 2.46 | 0.458 | 211.1 | 5.45 | 3.37 | Middlecoff | 77 |
includes | 111.35 | 111.7 | 0.35 | 1.486 | 996 | 28.35 | 0.53 | 67 | |
HLD19-16 | 114.34 | 125 | 10.66 | 0.074 | 125.6 | 1.27 | 0.47 | Middlecoff | 89 |
includes | 114.34 | 117.7 | 3.36 | 0.208 | 155.8 | 3.64 | 0.99 | 96 | |
and | 121.55 | 125 | 3.45 | 0.014 | 205.7 | 0.17 | 0.24 | 91 | |
includes | 121.55 | 122.57 | 1.02 | 0.015 | 455 | 0.39 | 0.51 | 82 | |
HLD19-16 | 133 | 133.35 | 0.35 | 0.008 | 187 | 0.24 | 0.29 | Footwall | 73 |
HLD19-16 | 154.25 | 156.4 | 2.15 | 0.055 | 42.7 | 0.15 | 1.24 | Footwall | 86 |
HLD19-17 | 125 | 129 | 4 | 0.132 | 58.3 | 1.29 | 0.28 | Middlecoff | 98 |
HLD19-17 | 130.9 | 133.15 | 2.25 | 0.015 | 9.4 | 0.06 | 0.72 | Middlecoff | 92 |
HLD19-17 | 155.6 | 160 | 4.4 | 0.148 | 56.2 | 0.38 | 0.36 | Footwall | 84 |
includes | 159 | 160 | 1 | 0.129 | 180 | 0.94 | 0.5 | 89 |
Further mapping and sampling was completed in the vicinity of the Ross Anomaly, which was followed up by one diamond drill hole to test the target. This hole intersected only anomalous lead and silver values, but in rocks overlying the more prospective Lower Keno Hill Quartzite unit. These overlying rocks generally do not form brittle faults necessary to host vein mineralization as seen in the lower quartzite units both at Haldane and other Keno Hill District targets. The lower quartzites were encountered downhole and management expects that the poorly developed structures encountered in the overlying rocks may be better developed and have greater potential to host vein mineralization at depth.
Two diamond drill holes were also completed at the Middlecoff Zone in the MHVS. These holes targeted the strike and plunge extension of mineralization reported in the underground workings. Results are pending.
Previous Operators
Very little work was done in the area until the 1960s when two companies worked what are now the Haldane claims. One held the ground covering the MHVS on the western half of the property, rehabilitating the old workings and discovering additional mineralization through minor soil sampling and extensive bulldozer trench work. An optionor completed 701 m overburden drilling in 44 holes, one surface drill hole for 61.6 m, 487 m of underground drifting, mostly around the Johnson Zone, and 518 m of underground drilling around the Middlecoff Zone.
The eastern half of the property was mapped, prospected and sampled during the same period by another owner, identifying silver-lead-zinc showings (Strebchuk and soil geochemical anomalies). Sporadic work continued on the property in the late 1970s and early 2000s looking for tin-tungsten and intrusion-related gold mineralization, respectively.
Mt. Haldane Property, Significant Historic Results
Location | Type | Width (m) | Ag (g/t) | Pb (%) | Zn (%) |
Middlecoff Zone | |||||
upper adit | chip | 0.61 | 3353 | 15.8 | |
middle adit | chip | 1.62 | 466 | 8.1 | |
middle adit | core | 1.2 | 2791 | 18.7 | |
middle adit | core | 0.9 | 343 | 7.1 | |
lower adit | chip | ave. 0.82 | 939 | 20.0 | 0.75 |
lower adit | chip | ave. 0.98 | 775 | 18.0 | 1.2 |
Johnson Zone | |||||
chip | 1.52 | 473 | 5.5 | 1.5 | |
grab | n.a. | 5375 | 39.7 | ||
Main Zone | |||||
chip | 7.6 | 151 | 0.6 | 1.6 | |
chip | 1.1 | 782 | 5.3 | 1.4 | |
Sundown Showing | |||||
Chip | 1.4 | 402 | 0.12 | 0.14 | |
Mt. Haldane, Peak Vein | |||||
chip | 0.38 | 6206 | 3.5 | ||
chip | 0.51 | 5279 | 13.1 | ||
chip | 0.81 | 1885 | 10.8 | ||
North Star cirque, Strebchuk Showing | |||||
select | n.a. | 1602 | 70.2 |
The most recent work on the property was completed by the Equity Exploration Consultants Inc (the property vendor) in 2010 and 2011 on behalf of an optionor. Work included upgrading the road access to the property, mapping, prospecting, soil geochemical sampling and 1800 metres of diamond drilling in two phases. This drilling extended the mineralization associated with the historic Johnson and Middlecoff zones, intersecting wide, strong structures. However, the extremely broken and strongly oxidized nature of the mineralized zones resulted in poor recoveries and limited remnant sulphide minerals potentially affecting the reliability of the assay results. Management believes that with an appropriate drill budget, larger diameter coring and testing lower parts of the system where the oxidation does not run as deep will lead to better recoveries and silver-lead-zinc concentrations in assays.
Significant Intersections – Haldane Drilling
From (m) | Drill | TRUE | Au (ppm) | Ag (g/t) | Pb ( % ) | Zn ( % ) | % Core Recovery | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Showing | Hole | To (m) | Width (m) | Width (m) | |||||||
Main Zone | |||||||||||
Sec 8275N | HLD11-09 | 207.75 | 213.97 | 6.22 | 4.6 | 0.482 | 139.4 | 0.294 | 0.452 | 78 | |
Including | 209.4 | 211.6 | 2.2 | 1.6 | 1.118 | 320 | 0.666 | 0.856 | 85 | ||
Sec 8000N | HLD11-06 | 52.43 | 55.47 | 3.04 | 2.2 | 0.472 | 190.8 | 4.333 | 2.605 | 19 | |
Sec 8000N | HLD11-04 | 23.47 | 26.52 | 3.05 | 2.2 | 0.033 | 31.5 | 0.085 | 0.528 | 48 | |
Johnson Adit | |||||||||||
Sec 7500N | HLD11-08 | 63.45 | 72.8 | 9.35 | 6.6 | 0.111 | 11.7 | 0.074 | 0.193 | 42 | |
Including | 63.45 | 66.14 | 2.69 | 1.9 | 0.274 | 19.9 | 0.073 | 0.448 | 35 | ||
Middlecoff | |||||||||||
Sec 7200N | HLD11-11 | 126.05 | 130.15 | 4.1 | 2.9 | 0.028 | 36.7 | 0.943 | 6.107 | 92 | |
Including | 129.15 | 130.15 | 1.1 | 0.8 | 0.087 | 123 | 3.07 | 20.3 | ?? | ||
Next Steps
Alianza will be starting Phase Two of the follow up drill program in Spring 2021. Phase One completed in December 2020, results pending.
Maps
- 2020 Proposed Drill Holes
- MiddleCoff_XS_PR_20191101
- Bighorn Zone Plan Map
- Bighorn-HLD19-15 Cross-Section
- Ross-HLD19-14 Cross-Section
- Haldane Plan Map – 2019 Drill Program
- Middlecoff and Johnson workings
- Keno District Claim Position
- Haldane regional map
- Haldane Property Location – Google Earth Image
Photos
2019-08-22_07-33-48
View to north looking at Mt. Haldane from Halfway Lakes, YT on the Silver Trail highway
2019-08-23_06-47-08
Mt Haldane Lions Club. Mt Haldane has been a prominent part of the region’s history
2019-08-25_11-26-53
Hockey jersey on display at the Keno Mining Museum from the heyday of Elsa. Mt Haldane has been a prominent part of the region’s history
2019-08-25_12-52-58
View looking to west with Mt Haldane on the horizon (left side of photo) from Keno Hill. Old Miner’s cabin in view on the right and the No. 9 vein pit in the mid of photo