Sugarloaf Peak Gold Project
- Introduction:
- Commodity: Gold
- Size: 24 km²
- Option: Optioned to Choice Gold Corp.
- Status: Drill results from 1B Program released
The Sugarloaf Peak Gold Project covers over 24 km² and has been the object of intermittent drilling and small scale mining during the 1950's through 1990's resulting in a historic, non 43-101 compliant, estimated resource of more than 1.2 million ounces of 0.6 g/t gold average grade with higher grade zones to be delineated. This is an historic resource and the company has not yet completed sufficient work to confirm it and it therefore cannot be relied upon. In 2009 Riverside completed a drill program on the property that successfully substantiated a portion of the historic data, while testing the geologic model at depth. Most recently, Riverside, and Partner Choice Gold Corp., completed the first half of a 5,000 metre diamond drill program which reported a 9.91 metre intercept of 1.76 g/t gold (SLG-11-04) in a newly discovered oxide zone. The discovery hole is located approximately 1 kilometer northeast from the core of the historically known mineralized zone.
Riverside and Choice Gold have received results from the Phase 1B drillprogram. The drill program consisted of 13 reverse circulation holes testing the historically known mineralized central area, as well as new areas to the west, south and southeast presenting gold anomalies at the surface. Highlights from the 1B program include results of: 93.0 metres at 0.44 g/t Au (including 21.3 m at 0.53 g/t Au and 33.5 m at 0.51 g/t Au), 114.0 metres at 0.41 g/t Au (including 59.5 m at 0.54 g/t Au) and 10.7 metres 0.54 g/t Au.
Choice Gold and Riverside have planned a $2,000,000 first year work program that started with an aeromagnetic survey, new geologic and geochemical analysis, and Quantec Geoscience’s cutting edgeTitan 24 Deep Earth Imaging technology for Induced Polarization testing, which imaged Sugarloaf’s surface and deeper physical features. The program also includes recent diamond drill testing on the 1A and 1B programs.
A mapping and sampling campaign was recently completed on the property. A total of 130 grab samples were collected over several parts of the property surrounding the central area of historically known mineralization, including a sample grading 11.9 g/t gold and another three samples grading 1.53%, 4.71%, and 6.72% copper. 29 samples returned values higher than 100 ppb gold including 5 samples exceeding 1 g/t gold.
The data collected during the mapping program has helped to better define the mineralized areas at Sugarloaf Peak and has locally extended the auriferous zones laterally by several hundreds of meters. The main gold surficial anomalous zone now extends over 2 square kilometers.
2011 1B Choice Gold-Riverside Drill Program
The Phase 1B drill program results indicate that the central mineralised zone extends over 1.1 km along a NE-SW strike between SGR-12-09 and SGR-12-11 now has a minimum estimated width of 320 metres and depth up to 120 metres and open on 3 sides. Highlights include hole SGR-12-09, SGR-12-10 and SGR-12-13 that intersected a thick sequence of mineralized felsic tuffs returning respectively 93.0 metres at 0.44 g/t Au (including 21.3 m at 0.53 g/t Au and 33.5 m at 0.51 g/t Au) and 114.0 metres at 0.41 g/t Au (including 59.5 m at 0.54 g/t Au) and 10.7 metres at 0.54 g/t Au.
All intervals were calculated using a 0.15 g/t Au cutoff grade, a minimum thickness of 25 feet or 7.6 metres, and a maximum dilution thickness of 3.0 metres.
RC Hole No
From
m
To
m
Interval
m
Grade
g/t Au
SGR-12-07
33.5
41.2
7.6
0.66
SGR-12-08
None
SGR-12-09
0.0
93.0
93.0
0.44
including
4.6
25.9
21.3
0.53
including
53.4
86.9
33.5
0.51
SGR-12-10
0
114.0
114.0
0.41
including
4.6
64.0
59.5
0.54
SGR-12-11
7.6
44.2
35.1
0.33
including
28.9
39.6
10.7
0.52
83.8
99.1
15.2
0.27
SGR-12-12
6.1
44.2
38.1
0.21
57.9
85.4
27.5
0.22
*Interval lengths are down-hole core lengths; true widths unknown
RC Hole No
From
m
To
m
Interval*
m
Grade
g/t Au
SGR-12-13
10.7
24.4
13.7
0.25
SGR-12-13
32.0
91.5
59.5
0.29
including
51.8
62.5
10.7
0.54
SGR-12-13
96.0
120.4
24.4
0.31
*Intervals represent drilled length; true thickness is unknown
2011 1A Choice Gold- Riverside Drill Program
The drill testing of the Sugarloaf Peak Project recently intersected 9.91 metres of 1.76 g/t gold between a depth of 5.3 and 15.24 metres in drill hole SLG-11-04. The discovery hole is located approximately 1 kilometer northeast from the core of the hisorically known mineralized zone. Choice has completed the first half of their 5,000 metre initial drill program and anticipate more results throughout the fall season. Gold in drill hole SGL-11-04 occurs in a strongly oxidized interval of faulting and tectonic brecciation. Iron oxides are dominated by hematite and jarosite; no sulphides are observed. Some scattered quartz crystals observed along the interval suggest that the host rock could be a strongly altered felsic volcanic rock, the dominant lithology present on the property. Drill holes SGL-11-01 and SGL-11-02 returned anomalous gold values in the top 200 meters with grades averaging 125 ppb hosted by a series of sericitized felsic volcanic units. These values show the strength of the mineralizing system. Sporadic gold values reach 0.78 g/t in hole SGL-11-01 and 0.53 g/t in hole SGL-11-02. The discovery of gold associated with hematite alteration, not previously described on the property, creates a new type of exploration target and will influence the next phase of proposed drilling.
Highlighted Results from 1A drill program in 2011
2009 Riverside Drill Program
Gold mineralization with continuously strong hydrothermal alteration was intersected in all five drill holes, confirming the presence of an extensive mineralized gold system. The mineralization includes shallow oxides transitioning to sulfides at varying depths of 10 to 15 meters from the surface and deeper zones along shear zone structures. All five drill holes confirmed the presence of an extensive mineralized gold system with gold mineralization from the top to bottom of the holes. The intervals below have been determined using a 0.2 g/t gold (Au) cut off with a maximum gap of two meters between intervals below the cut off grade. Historic results prepared by previous companies on the property presented the data using different parameters which identified longer intervals with no cut off grade. Riverside's parameters show numerous shorter intervals from the drilling rather than extended intervals.
Significant Drill Intersections from 2009 Program
Riverside Resources, following its prospect generator business model, signed an option agreement with Choice Gold Corp. whereby Choice Gold can acquire a 100% interest in the Company’s Sugarloaf Peak Project in Arizona (News Release, February 28, 2011). In order to exercise the option Choice Gold must issue Riverside an aggregate 13,600,000 Choice Gold shares (of which Riverside has already received 8.6 million shares, News Release, May 5, 2011), make total cash payments of $1,750,000 to Riverside, and incur $5,500,000 in exploration expenditures on the Property within 36 months of the agreement. The issuance schedule of Choice Gold Corp.’s common shares will be such that Riverside will maintain a significant ownership interest in Choice Gold’s issued and outstanding shares.
Riverside currently holds 8.6M shares of Choice Gold (News Release, May 5, 2011), and stand to receive an additional 5M shares over the course of the option agreement pursuant to the deal terms.
