ATLIN GOLDFIELDS PROJECT

The Atlin Goldfields property is underlain primarily by Mississippian to Triassic-aged volcanic and sedimentary rocks of the Cache Creek Complex, including quartz-carbonate-mariposite-altered ultramafic and mafic rocks (‘listwanite’), which are commonly associated with the gold mineralization in the region. The Cache Creek Complex is intruded by the Middle Jurassic Fourth of July batholith and the Late Cretaceous Surprise Lake batholith.

Placer mining from the Atlin creeks produces mostly sharp-edge, “hackly” gold nuggets, indicating proximity to a mineralized source. Recent studies have shown that mafic and ultramafic rocks are not the only source of Atlin’s placer gold. Sedimentary rocks of the Cache Creek Complex (specifically graphitic and quartz-rich phyllitic bedrock) are now known to host gold-bearing quartz veins in the region (Mihalynuk et al. 2017). Furthermore, detailed geochemical research on select Atlin gold nuggets has found tin (Sn)- and thorium (Th)-rich mineral intergrowths (cassiterite and thorite), likely derived from the Sn-U-Th-Mo-W-F rich Surprise Lake batholith (Mihalynuk et al. 2017). The implication of this work is that there are both Orogenic gold and Intrusion-Related gold systems to be targeted on the Atlin property.Click the link to the full BCGS report: A new lode gold discovery at Otter Creek: Another source for the Atlin placers