Projects

Details

The 10, 927 hectare Prospect Valley (PV) Gold Property is located roughly 30 kilometres to the west of Merritt, British Columbia and is situated in the Spences Bridge Gold Belt (SBGB). The property is road accessible and benefits from its proximity to both towns and highways. Westhaven acquired a 100% interest in this property subject to a 2% NSR in 2016.

The SBGB is a northwest–trending belt of intermediate to felsic volcanic rocks dominated by the Cretaceous Spences Bridge group. These relatively underexplored volcanic rocks are highly prospective for epithermal style gold mineralization. Westhaven has been working on the SBGB since 2011.

For additional information on SBGB properties including the Prospect Valley please click the following link:

NI43-101 Technical Report on SBGB Group of WHN Gold Properties (20 MB)

Overview

The PV property was first staked in the fall of 2001 as a result of the discovery of numerous gold–bearing quartz vein and breccia float occurrences demonstrating classic epithermal textures.

Mineralization Type and Model

The PV property area is an intrusion related low–sulphidation epithermal mineralization type system, where deposited gold mineralization is controlled by folded rock and fault structure and closely associated with pyrite. Low–sulphidation epithermal deposits are precious metal–bearing quartz veins, stockworks and breccias which formed from boiling of volcanic–related hydrothermal to geothermal systems.

Regional and Property Geology

The primary rock assemblage underlying the property is the mid–Cretaceous Spences Bridge Group, which is related to continental arc subduction–related volcanism, and includes andesite and dacite flows and breccias; minor basalt and rhyolite; chert and volcanic–clast conglomerates; sandstone, siltstone and mudstone.

Detailed geologic mapping confirmed that the mid–Cretaceous Spences Bridge Group is exposed throughout the majority of the claim area.

In 2016 Westhaven completed property mapping, collected 1,028 soil and 78 rock samples, reexcavated 4 trenches, and drilled 8 holes (1,519 m). Numerous exploration targets are known to exist external to the showings highlighted below.

Exploration to date has delineated six gold-quartz vein showings hosted by Spius Formation rocks including Bonanza Valley, QCA, South Discovery, North Discovery, NEZ, and NIC. Several other targets have also been identified by exploration including Crown, Ridgeline, Dome, Dog Leg, and Teepee Creek.

The Bonanza Target, Discovery Zones and Northeast Extension areas are aligned along a north-northeast trend and are hypothesized to be related to a multi-kilometre scale fault system extending across the property.

Bonanza Valley

In 2001 and 2002, prospectors discovered quartz vein and breccia float with distinctive low–sulphidation epithermal textures in a largely overburden–covered area 3–4 kilometres south of the South Discovery Zone. No bedrock source has been found for this float, which returned up to 43.3 g/tonne Au, despite further prospecting, soil geochemistry, trenching and geophysical surveys in the next few years.

At Bonanza Valley showing gold bearing sub-angular quartz float with distinctive low-sulphidation epithermal textures, occurs scattered within a 1.5 square km area that straddles Bonanza Creek valley. No bedrock source has been found for this float to date.

Discovery Zone

Three drilling campaigns have been completed on the Property by various operators to date; the 2006 to 2007 programs (38 holes) completed by Spire, the 2010 program (19 holes) completed by Altair, and the 2016 program (8 holes) completed by Westhaven for a total of 10,337 m drilled.

The majority of historical drilling on the Prospect Valley property has taken place in the centre of the claim block, along the Discovery Trend. This drilling outlined an extensive low grade epithermal gold system.

A total of 48 holes have been drilled in the Discovery zone to date, 20 in the north and 28 in the south. Quartz veins, hydrothermal alteration and gold mineralization at the South and North Discovery zones are concentrated in the hanging wall of the Early Fault Zone and gradually decrease to the west and at depth.

The zone is dominated by sheeted to stockwork microcrystalline quartz veins and veinlets as well as disseminated and vein pyrite over an area 1.7 km long by 140 to 230 m wide. At least six styles of silicification and epithermal microcrystalline quartz veins have been identified in drill core and from surface geologic mapping.

Past Drilling Highlights at Prospect Valley:

• DDH–2006–21 returned 45.70 metres (m) of 1.57g/t gold (Au) including 4.60m grading 4.38g/t Au and 8.90m grading 2.03g/t Au.

• DDH–2007–05 returned 6.71m of 3.62 g/t Au including 1.33m grading 12.20 g/t Au.  

• DDH-2007-01 returned 61.40m of 0.70g/t Au.

• DDH-2007-02 returned 32.20m of 1.40g/t Au.

• PV16-04 returned 95.80m of 0.70 g/t Au starting at bedrock surface including, 38.00m of 1.36 g/t Au and 15.00m of 2.23 g/t Au.

Northeast Extension Zone (NEZ)

The Northeast Extension area (NEZ), located 1,200 m northeast along strike of the North Discovery zone contains locally intense quartz stockwork and vein zones that have been traced for 135 m along a north?northeasterly strike and across a width of up to 32 m. The strike of the NEZ correlates well with the orientation of the South and North Discovery zones and may be part of a multi?km long epithermal system.

The NIC zone, located approximately 4.5 km northeast of the North Discovery zone, hosts gold silver bearing quartz-vein and breccia float in an irregular zone of quartz veins and silica flooding along an approximate 20-m exposure hosted in clay altered andesite (± basalt) tuffs.

2020 Exploration

Westhaven initiated a ground magnetics survey at its Prospect Valley gold property during October 2020. The purpose of this ground geophysics program is to extend coverage to the south of the Discovery Zone and better define potential structural trends.

The survey will cover a 3 x 4-kilometre area known as the Bonanza Target, where 43.34 g/t gold in quartz vein float was first discovered in 2001.