Gold has done it! Gold has breached the $1,000-level, and for the last two days has closed above US$1,000 per ounce. As I write this on Wednesday, Sept. 16, the price is inching its way toward US$1,020. That's good news for Canada's miners and gold bugs everywhere.
Analysts are pointing toward a softer U.S. dollar, falling global output and the threat of more economic upheaval as reasons for the rise. Even the recent softening in jewellery demand in India isn't going tarnish the bullish outlook.
Against this rosy backdrop, gold explorers are reaping bonanza grades in both east and west Canada.
Metanor Resources has discovered a new zone at its Nelligan property near Val d'Or. A near surface intersection returned 28.06 g/t Au over 4.54 metres, including 234.00 g/t Au over 0.5 metres in the hanging wall and 17.9 g/t over 0.7 metres in the footwall. Even better assays came from the Billy zone, 582.00 g/t Au over a 0.53-metre intersection.
At Mine Centre in northwest Ontario, Q-Gold Resources has been trenching at its property 65 km east of Fort Francis. The top assay result was 45.40 g/t Au in a 3.89-kg sample taken from the Baseline vein. The weighted average of all samples from Baseline was 8.17 g/t. Not to be outdone, the weighted average of the Nugget Extension West vein was 12.44 g/t, although the best assay was only 34.90 g/t.
At the Hardrock project, a joint venture of Premier Gold Mines (70%) and Roxmark Mines (30%), a new zone with grades up to 1,141.54 g/t Au (33.33 opt) across 2.0 metres and 2,535.00 g/t (74.02 opt) over 0.9 metres has been intersected by drilling. The Hardrock project lies within the Beardmore-Geraldton Greenstone belt in northwest Ontario.
Also in the Beardmore-Geraldton camp, Kodiak Exploration is receiving bonanza results from its initial drill program on the Hercules project. The best assays came from the West Geraldton property where core tested 208.80 g/t Au over 0.7 metres within a 2.1-metre section grading 82.5 g/t Au.
Don't be misled by the name of the Galena Hill zone at the Snowfield project 15 km southeast of the former high-grade Eskay Creek mine. Owner Silver Standard Resources of Vancouver reports a best assay of 16.95 kg/t Au over 1.5 metres from hole SU-12. Yes, kilograms of gold. The silver content of the same interval was a mere 8.70 kg/t.
Everyone should have such promising holes. At least with a strong gold price, everyone will be looking for them.
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