Wolfden gains Red Lake ground

Wolfden Resources (YWO-V) has added to its land position in the rejuvenated Red Lake mining district of northwestern Ontario by signing an agreement to acquire a 100% interest in the Skinner gold property.

Wolfden can acquire the 20.3-sq.-km property by paying $95,000 in cash and issuing 100,000 shares over a three-year period. The property is subject to a 2% net smelter return royalty.

The 127-claim property covers the Balmer assemblage of volcanic rocks, host to Placer Dome‘s (PDG-T) Campbell mine and the adjacent Red Lake mine owned by Goldcorp (G-T).

Basal till sampling by the Geological Survey of Canada in the early 1990s located a significant gold-in-basal-till anomaly on and down-ice from the Skinner property. Six samples taken about 1 km apart contained 13 to 60 grains of visible gold and graded from 1.2 to 2.7 grams gold per tonne. Individual till samples up-ice of the GSC samples returned up to 81 grains of visible gold from 7 to 10 kg samples. Assay results ran as high as 79.8 grams gold.

Wolfden also notes that sampling up-ice towards magnetic anomalies located at or near the Balmer/Confederation assemblage boundary, turned up gold grains pristine in shape possibly reflecting a local source. The best sample (81 mostly pristine gold grains) was derived from an area just 400 metres south of a 5-km-long magnetic anomaly coincident with a swamp. The area has not seen any geophysical surveying or drilling.

This summer, Wolfden signed a letter of intent to purchase the past-producing Argosy gold property in the Red Lake district. To do so, Wolfden must spend $10,000 in cash and issue 200,000 shares. The property is subject to a 2% net smelter return (NSR) royalty, half of which can be bought back for $500,000.

The mine operated intermittently between 1934 and 1952, during which time it produced 276,573 tons at an average grade of 0.368 oz. gold per ton, to a maximum depth of 900 ft. The three mined zones are open at depth, and the maximum depth is 900 ft. A drill hole 120 ft. below the bottom level of workings on the No.1 vein cut 3.3 ft. grading 0.68 oz. gold.

In early November, optioned out a 51% stake in the property to First Au Strategies (FAV-V), which can earn its interest by paying $40,000 in cash and issuing 200,000 shares. The company is also responsible for $650,000 in exploration on the property over a two-year period. Upon exercising the option, the parties will form a joint venture.

Since 1952, the property has seen little exploration. In addition to the three mined zones, it hosts several significant veins, including No. 8, where a raise assayed 1.25 oz. gold over 2.2 ft. A surface hole was drilled to intersect the vein updip, and returned 8.6 oz. gold over 1 ft. at a depth of 60 metres.