Idaho Champion Gold Mines Canada Inc. has released the results from its 2020 diamond core drilling campaign at its 100-per-cent-controlled Champagne gold project near the city of Arco, Butte county, Idaho.
2020 Champagne drilling highlights:
- Drill hole DDH-CC-20-02 intersected 1.04 grams per tonne gold equivalent (AuEq) for the interval 123.14 to 166.12 metres (42.98 m core length), including 1.22 g/t AuEq for the interval 123.14 to 157.06 m (31.93 m core length).
- Drill hole DDH-CC-20-02 was collared at Mine hill in the approximate centre of the unmined 300 m interval between the North and South pits (Bema Gold, about 1989 to 1990).
- This mineralized interval is associated with shallow induced polarization anomalies in chargeability and resistivity as reported in the Idaho Champion press release dated Feb. 2, 2021.
“Core drilling and results of our IP survey have provided data to better formulate a conceptual geologic model for the Champagne district,” stated president and chief executive officer Jonathan Buick. “The promising mineralization from the program demonstrates there is gold in the system below the historic mined pits where we are confident that we can identify additional resources. Our evolving geologic model indicates that the base, or roots, of a larger system that may have been the feeder for all mining in this district, lies off to the west. This large body of anomalous chargeability will be drill tested in 2021.”
Champagne drilling technical summary
The 2020 core drilling program consisted of seven diamond drill holes totalling 2,818 metres. Five core holes (DDH-CC-20-01 through DDH-CC-20-05) were positioned on Mine Hill in the vicinity of the North and South pits and two core holes (DDH-CC-20-06 and DDH-CC-20-07) were located farther north near the Ella Mine breccia vein.
Three holes (DDH-CC-20-01, -02 and -07) intersected promising precious metals mineralization, with the strongest presence of gold and silver intersected in DDH-CC-20-02. The spatial relationships of these three holes to results of the recently completed induced polarization (IP) survey are represented in images on the company’s website (see also Idaho Champion press release of Feb. 2, 2021). An inferred low-angle detachment fault represented in an image on the company’s website is interpreted to have displaced the shallow IP anomaly at Mine Hill from a larger and deeper anomaly 800 m west of Mine Hill.
2020 CHAMPAGNE CORE DRILL PROGRAM — SIGNIFICANT AU AND AG
INTERCEPTS FOR ALL HOLES (DDH-CC-20-01 TO DDH-CC-20-07)
Drill hole From To Length (1) Au Ag AuEq (2)
(m) (m) (m) (g/t) (g/t) (g/t)
DDH-CC-20-01 379.97 381.00 1.03 1.03 30.79 1.44
395.94 398.98 3.04 0.78 – 1.01
DDH-CC-20-02 123.14 166.12 42.98 0.67 27.87 1.04
including
123.14 157.06 31.93 0.75 34.73 1.22
and
157.58 166.12 8.54 0.52 10.07 0.65
DDH-CC-20-03 no significant Au or Ag intercepts
DDH-CC-20-04 no significant Au or Ag intercepts
DDH-CC-20-05 no significant Au or Ag intercepts
DDH-CC-20-06 no significant Au or Ag intercepts
DDH-CC-20-07 440.44 452.63 12.19 0.03 9.98 0.17
including
440.44 447.79 7.35 0.04 8.88 0.16
(1) Reported intervals are downhole lengths and not true thickness.
(2) AuEq calculated using a gold/silver ratio of 75:1. AuEq (g/t) equals Au (g/t) plus (Ag (g/t) divided
by 75) (based on $1,200 Au and $15 Ag pricing). Length-weighted average grades are calculated with uncapped gold assays.
DDH-CC-20-01 was inclined westward beneath the central part of the North pit across a series of mineralized and altered breccia and fractured intervals. The intervals represent a sheeted pyritiferous breccia zone, the upper oxidized portion of which was mined for gold and silver in the North pit. Below the pit floor, the breccia intervals in the intercept were found to be separated by intervals of less-altered andesite. DDH-CC-20-01 is interpreted to have progressed from the very top of the hydrothermal mineralizing system down into increasingly gold-bearing parts of the system. This gradient of increasing gold with depth also correlates to intervals of increased levels of anomalous pathfinder metals (principally arsenic, mercury, antimony and bismuth).
DDH-CC-20-02 was sited to test the projected trace of the Last Chance zone, which had historically been exploited for oxide-silver (Horn silver mine) and deeper lead-zinc-silver sulphide mineralization. The reported common occurrence of accessory famatinite (copper-antimony sulphosalt) and aikinite (copper-bismuth sulphosalt) with the sulphide ore is also of exploration interest. The Last Chance zone was intersected between drilling depths of 123.14 and 166.12 metres and comprises strongly pyritized breccia and brecciated andesite with sulphide intervals approaching semi-massive character.
The results show that the zinc and lead values appear to be tapering off downhole, but anomalous gold content continues to depth, as does silver and copper. The pathfinder metal mercury reaches very high levels with scattered intervals of strong arsenic and scattered intervals of anomalous antimony and bismuth. A fault that is interpreted as a low-angle detachment structure was encountered below the intersection of the Last Chance zone.
DH-CC-20-07 was designed to test the Ella mine breccia vein but is interpreted to have instead pierced the detachment fault at shallow depth. The hole was advanced through propylitically altered footwall ash fall and crystal tuff units in an effort to penetrate the eastern edge of the IP anomaly on lines 4 and 5. Strong sericite-silica alteration and well-developed mosaic brecciation was intersected beginning at a depth of 340 m. The pyrite content increased to 3 to 8 per cent with the sericite and silica alteration and is accompanied by anomalous silver, zinc, lead and arsenic (as well as weakly anomalous gold values). At depths of 441.96 to 452.63 metres, anomalous silver (up to 42.3 g/t), copper (up to 0.22 per cent), and anomalous gold (up to 0.107 g/t) occur within a brecciated interval. Zinc, lead and arsenic are also anomalous within this interval. At a depth of 475 m, the hole returned to dominantly propylitic alteration with diminished pyrite content. The direction and angle of the hole suggests that only the outermost edge of the IP anomaly was intersected.
Quality assurance/quality control procedure
Idaho Champion Gold adheres strictly to a regimented drill core handling and processing procedure. Core from the drill rig(s) is logged for lithology, mineralization, structure, alteration and veining. During the logging process one- to tow-metre samples are delineated by company geologists. Core is then photographed and sawn in half. Following sawing, individual samples are extracted from core boxes and inserted into individual sacks with a unique waterproof sample number tag and sealed. The remaining half core is left in core boxes for postcut photographing and storage. Sacks containing samples are kept indoors on site until they are transported to the assay lab.
Quality control (QC) samples are inserted into the sample stream such that there is one QC sample for every 10 drill core samples. These QC samples consist of certified standards (known metallic content) and blanks (known barren of metals). Two styles of blank material were used: a coarse blank and a pulverized blank. QC sample insertions alternate between standard and blank.
The first sample shipment was delivered to ALS Geochemistry’s facility in Elko, Nev. All subsequent sample shipments were delivered to American Assay Labs (AAL) in Sparks, Nev. ALS and AAL conform to ISO (International Organization for Standardization) 17025 requirements. All drill samples and coarse blanks are crushed to 70 per cent passing two millimmetres at the assay lab, and one kg material is split and pulverized to 85 per cent passing 75 microns. All samples are processed by 30-gram fire assay — inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). Samples are additionally analyzed for 35-, 36- or 61-multielement analysis by ICP-OES and/or inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Samples containing Au or Ag above detection limits by ICP-OES analysis are automatically reanalyzed by fire assay with a gravimetric finish.
All drill intervals reported in this release are calculated using a 0.10 g/t gold cut-off grade and a maximum of three metres of consecutive waste.
About the Champagne project
The Champagne mine* was operated by Bema Gold as a heap leach operation on a high sulphidation gold system that occurs in volcanic rocks. Bema Gold drilled 72 shallow reverse circulation holes on the project, which complement drilling and trenching from other previous operators. The property has had no deep drilling or significant modern exploration since the mine closure in early 1992.
The Champagne deposit contains epigenetic-style gold and silver mineralization that occurs in strongly altered Tertiary volcanic tuffs and flows of acid to intermediate composition. Champagne has a near-surface cap of gold-silver mineralization emplaced by deep-seated structures that acted as conduits for precious metal-rich hydrothermal fluids. Higher grade zones in the Champagne deposit appear to be related to such feeder zones.
* The company cautions that the information about the past-producing mine may not be indicative of mineralization on Champion’s property, and if mineralization does occur, that it will occur in sufficient quantity or grade that would result in an economic extraction scenario. The historic data were simply used to evaluate the prospective nature of the property. The company has not yet conducted sufficient exploration to ascertain if a mineral resource is present on the property.
Qualified person
The technical information in this press release has been reviewed and approved by Peter Karelse, PGeo, a consultant to the company, who is a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Karelse has more than 30 years of experience in exploration and development.
About Idaho Champion Gold Mines Inc.
Idaho Champion is a discovery-focused gold exploration company that is committed to advancing its 100-per-cent-owned highly prospective mineral properties located in Idaho, United States. Idaho Champion is vested in Idaho with the Baner project in Idaho county, the Champagne project located in Butte county near Arco, and four cobalt properties in Lemhi county in the Idaho cobalt belt. Idaho Champion strives to be a responsible environmental steward, stakeholder and a contributing citizen to the local communities where it operates. Idaho Champion takes its social licence seriously, employing local community members and service providers at its operations whenever possible.
