Latitude: 63°9'5"N
Longitude: 144°45'7"W
Location: This mine is in the lower part of Quartz Creek, a tributary of the east fork of the upper Chisna River. The mine is at an elevation of about 4,100 feet and is about 0.1 mile southeast of the center of section 30, T. 20 S., R. 16 E., Fairbanks Meridian. The approximate location of the mine was shown by Yeend (1981 [OFR 81-355]). This mine corresponds to locality 25 on figure 6 of Cobb (1979 [OFR 79-238] and locality 11 in table 3 of Nokleberg and others (1991).
Geology: This mine is on Quartz Creek on an alluvial fan at the mouth of the creek, similar to the lower placer deposit at Ruby Creek (Gulch) (MH305). Good 'pay' occurs on false bedrock within the fan and on bedrock at the base of the fan. The gravel is poorly sorted and consists mainly of sand-size angular chips of blue-gray slate and cobbles to 1-foot diameter composed of quartz and igneous and metamorphic rocks probably derived from the 'round wash' conglomerate of Tertiary age (Yeend, 1981 [OFR 81-355]). Heavy minerals, abundant in the concentrates, consist predominantly of magnetite, but include amphibole, garnet, ilmenite, chlorite, epidote, pyrite, and zircon. Two varieties of gold are present: bright yellow, and orange brown. Some gold has adhering quartz; small nuggets are mostly flattened (Yeend, 1981 [OFR 81-355]). The placer deposit exploited at the mine is Holocene in age, formed by reconcentration of gold contained in an older alluvial fan and from bedrock sources. 'Round wash' conglomerate of Tertiary age was probably the ultimate source of most of the gold.
Workings: The property was being mined when visited by Yeend (1981 [OFR 81-355]) in 1979.
Age: Holocene deposit formed by reworking of Tertiary and Pleistocene (?) deposits.
Reserves: Yeend (1981 [OFR 81-355]) estimated that the gold-bearing alluvial fan contained about 600,000 cubic meters of gravel, only part of which would have been of ore grade.
Commodities (Major) - Au; (Minor) - Ag
Development Status: Yes; small
Deposit Model: Placer Au (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 39a).
References
Cobb, E.H., 1979, Summary of references to mineral occurrences (other than mineral fuels and construction materials) in the Mount Hayes quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 79-238, 140 p. Moffit, F.H., 1954, Geology of the eastern part of the Alaska Range and adjacent area: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 989-D, p. 65-218. Nokleberg, W.J., Lange, I.M., Roback, R.C., Yeend, Warren, and Silva, S.R., 1991, Map showing locations of metalliferous lode and placer mineral occurrences, mineral deposits, prospects, and mines, Mount Hayes quadrangle, eastern Alaska Range, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-1996-C, 42 p., 1 sheet, scale 1:250,000. Rose, A.W., 1967, Geology of the upper Chistochina River area, Mount Hayes quadrangle, Alaska: Alaska Division of Mines and Minerals Geologic Report 28, 41 p., 2 maps, scale 1:40,000. Yeend, Warren, 1981, Placer gold deposits, Mount Hayes quadrangle, Alaska, IN Albert, N.R.D., and Hudson, Travis, eds., The United States Geological Survey in Alaska--Accomplishments during 1979: U.S. Geological Survey Circular 823-B, p. B68. Yeend, Warren, 1981, Placer gold deposits, Mt. Hayes quadrangle, Alaska, IN Silberman, M.L., Field, C.W., and Berry, A.L., eds., Proceedings of the symposium on mineral deposits of the Pacific Northwest: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 81-355, p. 74-83.
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