PROFILE (February 17, 1992)

Late last year, Fort Knox Gold Resources emerged from a dormant penny stock to become one of the most active issues in The Toronto Stock Exchange. Much of the credit goes to Exploration Vice-President Wayne Whymark, 42, and his partner Doug Hunter, who discovered nickel-copper mineralization in Fawcett Twp. in the Shining Tree area in Ontario.

Immediately after the discovery, the company’s share price took a roller coaster ride. It soared above the $3 level in December from 11 cents, then dropped to 65 cents and recently resurged over the $1 level when 41% owner Inco Ltd. moved a second rig on to the Fawcett property.

Inco, now contractual manager, has upgraded its involvement since late December as the project’s scale has increased. The new arrangement with Inco, says Whymark, is not an abrupt break. “Fort Knox was working closely with an Inco geophysicist and Inco geologists even before the change of management,” he adds. “Although our opinions may differ from time to time — and that is natural — our common goal is to bring the project to a successful conclusion.”

As Whymark looks for other properties in Ontario for Fort Knox, he is assisting in grassroots exploration at Fawcett, where he believes more deposits are awaiting discovery.

Two years ago, Terry MacGibbon, now Inco’s director of exploration, western North America, invited Whymark to reactivate Fort Knox, which had been idle for two years. His mandate was to look for gold properties. He picked the Shining Tree gold camp because of its shallow overburden and easy access to infrastructure.

“At first Inco was exploring for gold,” says Whymark. “But in late 1990, Inco Gold was merged with TVX, so Inco wants me to look for base metals instead in Shining Tree.”

Toronto-born Whymark spent a decade in Europe till 1978, taking history and literature courses at the University of Copenhagen while travelling to Asia, the Middle East and Africa.

Since 1978 he had done odd jobs for Newmont Mining, Falconbridge Copper, Big Stone Minerals and Canadaka Mining.

“I learned geology in the bush,” he says. “I created my own university by working with some of the industry’s brightest models, by reading and by on-the-job training.”

Whymark identifies himself as a prospector who raises money by forming a company and selling services. Although he works largely for Fort Knox at present, he is a director of VSE-listed Mountain Lake Resources which recently signed an agreement with Minnova Inc. for further exploration on a 175-claim property in Ben Nevis Twp., north of Larder Lake, Ont. A year ago, Queenston Mining and Strike Minerals made a base metal discovery in Robertson, Twp., Ont. As a director of Strike, Whymark was instrumental in initiating the project.

Whymark and his wife, Sandra, have two boys. She does volunteer work for the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada.

“Exploration is an art,” says Whymark. “Geology is a science.” Geology is a branch of earth science, an academic discipline, he explains. “Exploration is a hands-on business that involves intuition, technical know-how, innate curiosity and an aptitude for prospecting.”