| PROSPECTING OF AREA COVERED BY PROSPECTING LICENSE 576 ARMIDALE, PARISHES ARDING, ELTON AND SALTASH, COUNTY OF SANDON. Between 23rd September and 8th October 1980, this organization carried out preliminary testing of the area covered by Prospecting License N0.576, issued on 9/6/80 to George Ambrose Drake and Kenneth Brian Lawson, under option agreement dated 24/4/80 between G.A. Drake, K.B. Lawson, T,J,S. Nunan and Nunan, approved by the Minister of Mineral Resources on 28/10/80. The area to be tested consisted of the bed and banks of the Rocky River, extending downstream for about II kilometers from a point about 800 meters downstream of the Maitland Point Bridge. The sandy bed averaged about 40 meters in width, with grassy terraces averaging about 5 meters in width on each side, between granite banks, The area was known to have been extensively dredged for alluvial gold in the early part of this century.( Areas known to be unworked in the original application for this license, No.249 Armidale, having been excluded from the granted license following subsequent applications and grant of Quarry Licenses by the Department of Lands.) Floods had covered any previous workings with sand so that it was impossible to tell what, if any, of the area was unworked The object of the testing was to locate any virgin ground remaining and determine its gold content, Testing was done by tracked backhoe (O&T OHMIC) following consent for this as an additional method on the 22/8/80. Forty-one holes were dug on an irregular pattern in the section of the area 2.5 kilometers downstream from the Southern boundary of the area, No regular grid was possible because of restricted access by soft surface conditions, No material which resembled virgin ground was discovered except along the outside edges near outcropping granite, in depths of less than 2 meters. As this was followed out towards the center of the valley, it abruptly gave way to what appeared to be tailings-loose, dark Grey sand and mud, with abundant decomposed vegetation. The flat grassy terraces contained similar material under about a meter of sandy loam, Holes in these terraces were generally bottomed on weathered granite at depths of 4 or 5 meters, Holes on the sandy bed could not be bottomed because of caving but depths of about 5 meters were obtained, without showing any consolidated material, Seven samples of I cubic meter each were treated in a mobile sampling plant consisting of dump-box, trommel and jig, all showed a trace ( less than 0.1 gm per cu. meter) of fine gold, except for one from 0.3m. of fine wash beneath about I.5 m of virgin ground on a bank which gave a value of 0,78 gm. per ca. meter, The yardage of wash indicated by this hole was negligible, Downstream of the area tested frequent bars of granite crossed the bed; leaving a potential volume of alluvium thought to be insufficient for a mining operation, CONCLUSIONS Because Of the inability to bottom holes in the center of the deposit no definite conclusions can be drawn as to the presence or absence of virgin ground, However the fact that virgin ground on the margins,, when followed out towards the center of the river invariably gave way suddenly over the full depth to unconsolidated unstratified material strongly suggests that all of the area tested had been previously worked. Attempts were made to find other equipment which would be capable of bottoming holes in the Center of the bed. Such equipment would need to travel on tracks and be capable of sinking eased holes of at least 2 meters diameter because of the reported bouldery bed. No such equipment could be located and the option was abandoned. Total expenditure on the operation was _7,517,00 all on fieldwork. http://groups.msn.com/AlluvialGoldProspectors/_whatsnew.msnw |
