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Eagle Plains Resources Gold Project
Review
Cranbrook, B.C.: The Board of Directors
of
Eagle Plains Resources Ltd. (EPL:TSX-V) wishes
to provide an update of the Company’s current
gold exploration projects in British Columbia and Yukon
Territory. During
the recent downturn in exploration activity, EPL has
been actively researching and acquiring properties with
good exploration potential and/or established gold resources,
and has positioned itself to take advantage of improving
gold prices and new governments in both B.C. and Yukon.
British Columbia gold projects include Abo, Copper
Canyon, Kokanee
Creek, Bar, Iron
Range and others. Yukon
gold
projects include McQuesten, Sprogge, Hit, Drag, and
others.
Abo (Harrison Gold): acquired by staking in October,
2000, the Abo project is located 130km west of Vancouver,
near the town of Harrison, BC. The property consists
of 76 units (4600 acres) overlying a number of gold
occurrences associated with a series of intrusive
stocks. The Property is road-accessible year-round,
with hydroelectric
power, natural gas and rail-service located within
3 kilometers of property boundaries. A formal agreement
has been accepted by the TSX Venture Exchange (TSX)
whereby Northern
Continental Resources Inc. (NCR:TSX-V) may acquire the option to earn a 60% interest (less
2% NSR) by completing $3,000,000 in exploration expenditures
and issuing 2,000,000 common shares (including finders’ fee)
over an eight year period (see News Release Oct 24/02).
The Property area has been held or optioned by various
operators since the early 1970’s including Abo
Resources, Kerr Addison Mines Ltd. (Kerr Addison) and
Bema International Resources Ltd. Exploration work has
included mapping, soil sampling, ground-based geophysics
and a total of 13,856m (45,448’) of diamond drilling.
Some small-scale underground development has also been
completed. In 2001, EPL completed a 215 line-km airborne
geophysical survey which resulted in the delineation
of a number of untested anomalies. Most of the detailed
exploration and development work was focused on the
northern part of the Property in the area of the Jenner
and Portal Stocks. Drill results reported from the Portal
Zone include 30 meters averaging 3.17 g/T Au (EMPR ASS
RPT 19584). Drill results reported from the Jenner Stock
include 64m averaging 3.77 g/T (EMPR ASS RPT 20144).
In 1987, Kerr Addison collected a 1053 tonne bulk sample
from the Jenner Stock underground workings. Using the
metallurgical results from this sample combined with
extensive underground sampling and results from diamond
drilling, Kerr Addison reported an indicated grade of
3.2 – 4.1 g/t Au with an inferred tonnage of 1.3
million tonnes from surface to 100m elevation, and an
additional 2.2 million tonnes from surface to sea level
(EMPR ASS RPT 20144, MINFILE #92HSW092). Other gold-bearing
stocks identified on the Property include the Hill and
Lake Stocks. These areas have seen limited exploration
in comparison to the Jenner-Portal areas. Diamond drill
intersections reported from the Hill Stock area include
DDH BX88-130 which averaged 3.54 g/t Au and 6.3 g/t
Ag over 27 meters, and contained 8m averaging 8.7 g/t
Au and 14.2 g/t Ag (EMPR ASS RPT 20144). Eagle Plains
management has not confirmed the reliability of the
above estimates or reported drill results, but considers
the estimates to be reliable and relevant. This existing
data will form the basis for advanced exploration activity,
including work to confirm historical results.
The Copper Canyon project is held 100% under option
by Eagle Plains, and is located near the Stikine River,
approximately 65km southwest of Telegraph Creek, in
north-western British Columbia (see News Release May
27/02). The claims consist of 71 units (4300 acres)
covering the Copper Canyon alkalic porphyry gold-copper
occurrence, and are contiguous with claims comprising
the Galore Creek mineral resource, which has seen
extensive exploration to date.
Mineralization at Copper Canyon is very similar in
style to that which occurs at the Galore Creek deposit,
reported
to contain a number of mineralized zones with total
reported reserves of 234mT grading .57% Cu, .35g/T
Au, and 7.0g/T Ag (estimated), with an additional
gold-rich
zone reportedly containing 42.4 mT grading .55% Cu
and 1.03 g/T Au (source: BCGS MINFILE). 1990 drilling
at
Copper Canyon indicates the presence of widespread
values in copper similar in grade to Galore Creek,
but with
significantly higher gold metal values. Mineralization
occurs in three distinct areas within the property;
namely the Central (formerly Western), North, and
Eastern Zones. The largest of these is the Central
Zone, where
the majority of exploration activity has occurred.
Drilling highlights include: 90-DDH-1: 22.0 meters
grading 4.11
g/tonne Au, 13.02 g/tonne Ag and 0.71% Cu; 90-DDH-2:
117.0 meters of 2.47 g/tonne Au, 38.39 g/tonne Ag
and 1.84% Cu; 90-DDH-4: 13.0 meters of 4.04 g/tonne
Au,
33.25 g/tonne Ag and 1.54% Cu; 90-DDH-5: 32.0 meters
of 2.37 g/tonne Au, 17.48 g/tonne Ag and 0.77 % Cu.
These intersections are within wide lower-grade envelopes
such as found in 90-DDH-2 where a 270.8m (898’)
intersection averaged 1.92 g/tonne Au, 22.28 g/tonne
Ag and 1.05% Cu. (G. Leary, M.Sc., P.Eng. Assessment
Report #21062) At the end of 1990 drilling, an inferred
resource for a portion of the Central Zone was published
as 35.7 million tons grading 1.17 g/tonne gold, 0.75%
copper, and 17.1 g/tonne silver (Canamax Resources/
Consolidated Rhodes Resources news release; May 27,
1991). It was further stated that “the Central,
North, and Eastern copper zones were also estimated
to have the potential to host an additional 100 million
tons of reserves”. Though these estimates are
considered by Eagle Plains to be relevant, their reliability
has not been confirmed, but will constitute a target
basis for future exploration work. An inspection of
the property was made by Eagle Plains personnel during
August , 2001 with resampling of specific core intervals
completed, confirming the widespread distribution of
gold values, and presence of high grade mineralization
within specific intervals.
The Kokanee Creek project is owned 100% by EPL (less
NSR), and is located near Nelson, BC. A 1500-foot,
5-hole drilling program completed by EPL in February-March
of 1997 resulted in the discovery of near-surface
gold
mineralization. Hole KC97-02 returned 26.11 g/t gold
over 0.7m from 7.0-7.7m, and 13.52 g/t gold over 1.4m
from 21.8-23.2m. Fieldwork conducted during 1997 indicated
the extension of the mineralized zone to the north,
south and west.
In Yukon, major exploration activity is planned during
2003 on the McQuesten property, located approximately
5km south of Elsa. The property is currently under
option to Novagold Resources Ltd. (NRI-TSX; NVGLF-US
OTC) who
will earn a 70% interest upon completion of a 10,000’ drilling
program by October 31st, 2003 (see News Release Mar
8/02). The property has excellent infrastructure, with
access provided via the all-weather Silver Trail Highway.
Drilling and trenching completed to date on the McQuesten
property indicate the presence of a large mineralized
system hosted within calcareous meta-sediments and intrusive
rocks along the McQuesten Mineralized Structural Zone,
as defined by surface trenching, auger drilling and
a coincident geophysics (magnetics and electro-magnetics).
Highlights from previous drill holes located from west
to east along the McQuesten Structural Zone include:
18.3 m of 3.74 g/t Au; 24.4 m of 2.16 g/t Au; 16.3 meters
of 2.19 g/t; and 9.6 m of 2.87 g/t Au. Highlights from
previous trenching along the Mineralized Zone include:
16.0 m of 2.67 g/t Au; 9.2 m of 4.94 g/t Au; and 8.3
m of 2.72 g/t Au. Initial cyanide bottle-roll leach
tests have been completed on unoxidized drill core.
Up to 84.3% of the gold was recovered in these tests
indicating that the ores are amenable to conventional
cyanidation methods. Newmont Exploration of Canada completed
a five-hole diamond drill core program in 2000, with
all five holes intersecting gold mineralization. Highlights
include Hole MQ-00-04 with two intersections: 11.5 meters
grading 1.5g/t Au and 37 meters grading 1.4g/t Au (including
4.3 meters grading 3.3g/t). Hole MQ-00-01 with 2.5 meters
grading 3.2g/t Au and 6.1 meters grading 2.6g/t Au;
MQ-00-02 with 13.5 meters grading 0.65g/t Au; MQ-00-03
with 3 meters grading 2g/t Au and 3 meters grading 3g\t
Au; and MQ-00-05 with 14 meters grading 1.3g/t Au. The
five holes total 883 meters (2900 ft.) and test a 1.2
kilometre (4000 ft.) portion of the 3 kilometre McQuesten
Mineralized Structural Zone. These first step-out drill
holes demonstrate the continuity of the mineralization
along the McQuesten Structural Zone and significantly
advance the project towards the resource definition
stage. Mineralization consists of disseminated and semi-massive
sulphides (pyrrhotite, pyrite and arsenopyrite) in quartz-sericite
and skarn alteration packages of sedimentary rocks and
felsic sills and dikes intruded along a low angle shear
zone.
The Sprogge project is held 100% under option by EPL,
and consists of 25 claims located 11 kilometres east
of the recently re-activated Cantung road (see News
Release Mar 12/02). It is host to numerous styles
of intrusive and sediment-hosted gold mineralization
located
within three main bulk-tonnage target areas. The Kangas
Zone consists of a 75m x 400m zone of skarn and replacement
style mineralization within calcareous siltstone,
which has returned widespread anomalous values of
up to 1.6
g/t gold. At the Discovery Zone gold-bearing pyritic
mineralization occurs within a quartz monzonite dyke
and adjacent calcareous siltstone. Chip sampling across
this zone has returned 2.38 g/t gold over 22.5 meters.
This zone remains open to the east and along strike
to the north into overburden-covered areas. The Confluence
Zone consists of a 600m x 250m area of coarse clastics
hosting considerable fracture controlled chalcedonic
veining. Continuous chip sampling in Confluence Zone
trenches returned 4.24 g/T gold over 4.5m while individual
veins within this interval returned geochemical analyses
of up to 59,250 ppb (approximately 59 g/T gold). Previous
operators Viceroy Resources and Battle Mountain Gold
recommended drill testing of the Confluence and Discovery
Zones, but did not follow-up on this work. The Kangas
Zone requires further mapping and sampling to bring
it to the drill stage. The property is almost entirely
surrounded by claims held by Novagold Resources, with
the ground position being well situated to allow for
development of the various zones. Eagle Plains completed
limited fieldwork on the property in 2002, confirming
gold mineralization on the property, and defined future
drill targets.
The challenging conditions for the mining industry
have been considered by Eagle Plains management to
be an
unprecedented opportunity to acquire quality exploration
projects in known mineralized regions. By seeking
joint-venture participation on it’s properties, leveraged exploration
spending may be achieved, to the ultimate benefit of
the Company’s shareholders. Eagle Plains continues
to regard project generation, research and acquisition
as its primary functions, and is actively seeking joint-venture
partners for its projects.
On Behalf of the Board of Directors
Tim J. Termuende, P.Geo.
President and CEO
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