Rodeo Creek Property - Carlin Trend, Nevada - The company has an option to earn a 75% interest in the Rodeo Creek project located on the Carlin Gold Trend in Nevada. This property is considered to have very high potential for the discovery of one or more gold deposits similar to those presently being mined elsewhere along the Carlin Trend in Elko County, Nevada, and approximately 56 km northwest of the town of Carlin. The property comprises 29 contiguous mineral claims covering an area of 547 acres (221 hectares).
The satellite view of the Carlin Trend (above) shows the locations of various mine sites neighboring Amarok Resources’ Rodeo Creek project. Initial exploration on the site shows substantial promise for significant new gold discoveries.
The salient points regarding this property are as follows:
- Strategically located 1.5 kilometers northwest of Barrick Gold Corp's Storm, Dee and Arturo South deposits,
- The Carlin Trend, currently the most prolific gold mining area in North America, is host to as many as 30 gold mines and advanced projects, on which a combined 100 million ounces of gold production and inventory have been identified to 2002 (USGS), including world class deposits such as the Carlin, Goldstrike and Meikle Mines,
- Recent mine discoveries in this camp are in the 1.5M to 5.0M ounce category, at grades in excess of 0.3 oz/t Au, all from sedimentary and structural type gold mineralization as found throughout the Rodeo Creek property,
- Previous drilling on the property confirms that the geological and alteration features common to all deposits on the Carlin Trend exist at Rodeo Creek, namely NW&NE-trending faults with decalcification, silicification and argillization within the highly prospective Popovich Formation, currently the host to 85% of all deposits along the Carlin Trend,
- The property also contains the anomalous geochemical signature of Carlin Trend deposits (As-Sb-Tl) in altered Popovich Formation and as “leakage anomalies” along the NW&NE-trending faults,
- One such “leakage” anomaly (Flower Zone) has drill intercepts of up to 9.60 gm/T Au (0.28 oz/t) across 6m, including 29.10 gm/T Au (0.85 oz/t) over 1.5m. Mineralization occurs in a small fault-bound area within 90m of surface, and has the characteristics of a strong leakage anomaly derived from underlying gold mineralization,
- Other “leakage” anomalies occur as an intensely altered gold-bearing fault zones (Look and Flower Faults) accompanied by large gold-arsenic soil anomalies traceable over more than 500m of strike length. These anomalies are also believed to represent leakages from deeper gold mineralization; Amarok’s prime exploration targets are where these gold-enriched faults penetrate the Popovich Fm,
- To date, only seven holes deep enough to reach the Popovich Fm have been drilled on the property: in 1996/97, at the north end of the property, drill hole DD96-1C encountered 27m of hydrothermally altered Popovich Fm grading 0.89 gm/T Au (0.025 oz/t). In the west, DD96-2A intercepted 7m of 0.42 gm/T Au in similar alteration. In 2003, three holes drilled on three separate “leakage” anomalies encountered significant Carlin-style alteration in the basal 24m to 35m of the Popovich Fm,
- Alteration encountered in drilling is anomalous in pathfinder elements and is consistent with alteration halos surrounding Carlin type gold deposits, demonstrating that the type of hydrothermal system that produced mineral deposits along the Carlin Trend was present at Rodeo Creek
- In 2007 a geological study was conducted to validate the control structures that cross the property and that are believed to be associated with nearby gold deposits. One noteworthy example is the NW-trending Arturo fault which is reportedly related to the Storm, Dee and South-Arturo deposits located immediately south of Rodeo Creek. This Arturo fault zone is one of Amarok’s most important targets, notably where it intercepts the geochemically anomalous Look fault in the vicinity of the 2003 drilling; more particularly where the Arturo-Look fault-junction encounters the Popovich Fm.
- Other areas of interest are the Flower and the North targets, both located on the auriferous Flower fault system. More exploratory drilling is required in areas where these structures go through the Popovich Fm. The 2007 study also confirmed the presence of several previously suspected features, including a major fault system, which may have been important conduits for gold mineralization in the western portion of the claims. These, the West and Arsenic targets, adjoin the NW-trending Antelope fault and have had no previous exploration investigation and are being included in Amarok’s next drill program.
The Rodeo Creek property is considered to have very high potential for the discovery of one or more gold deposits similar to those presently being mined elsewhere on the Carlin Trend. Five geochemically anomalous target areas are outlined for further exploration. Exploration permits are current, and Amarok Resources is in the process of completing an aggressive Phase 1 exploration program on the property.