VANCOUVER (miningweekly.com) – Ongoing drilling as part of a 130 000 m Phase 2 exploration programme by junior Barkerville Gold Mines on its flagship Cariboo gold project, in central British Columbia, has uncovered new high-grade gold mineralisation, not far from surface.

The TSX-V-listed company on Thursday reported that Phase 2 exploratory step-out drilling 100 m along strike to the northwest of the former Mosquito Creek mine had intersected a new occurrence of auriferous veining as defined by drill hole IM-17-032, which intersected 12.19 g/t gold over 3.6 m, at a vertical depth of 50 m below surface.

Deeper occurrences of new veining were also encountered in the largely untested area between the former Aurum and Mosquito Creek mines by drill holes IM-17-026 and IM-17-028, which intersected 6.51 g/t gold over 4.7 m and 14.35 g/t gold over 2.3 m, respectively. These new occurrences remain open for expansion in all directions and drilling is presently testing the lateral and depth extensions of these new occurrences, the company advised.

Meanwhile, Barkerville said the Aurum shaft zone continues to expand, with drill hole IM-17-033 at the footwall to the former Aurum mine, 280 m southeast of the Aurum shaft, intersecting previously unidentified veining averaging 7.84 g/t gold over 3.8 m, at a vertical depth of 40 m below surface. No historical drill holes occur within a 100 m radius of this new occurrence and it remains open for expansion in all directions, the company said.

Extensions to earlier reported veining from previous exploratory drilling, now referred to as the Shaft zone, were demonstrated by drill hole IM-17-027, which intersected new veining 280 m below surface grading 9.34 g/t gold over 5.4 m. Averaging 19.71 g/t gold over 2.25 m and 14.72 g/t gold over 2.5 m, drill hole IM-17-025 intersected two separate vein systems at 40 m and 190 m vertically below surface, respectively.

IM-17-031 also intersected further veining in the Shaft zone grading 22.36 g/t gold over 2 m and 9.68 g/t gold over 4.6 m.

The 130 000 m Phase 2 exploratory and delineation drill programme on Island Mountain is intended to determine the extent of the vein systems that were not historically explored, and is aimed at discovering new vein systems and sulphide replacement bodies that will ultimately inform a maiden resource, scheduled for this year.

Barkerville, which has the backing of major shareholders Eric Sprott, Osisko Mining and Osisko Gold Royalties, reported that seven drill rigs are currently operating on Island Mountain, with an eighth rig testing for additional mineralisation below the former Aurum and Cariboo gold quartz mines, which have not been explored since mining operations ceased in about 1960.