Balaklala Mine (Windy Camp Mine), Sugarloaf Mountain [3], West Shasta Copper - Zinc Mining District, Klamath Mountains, Shasta County, California, USAi
This page is currently not sponsored. Click here to sponsor this page.
Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
40° 43' 31'' North , 122° 29' 53'' West
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
Type:
KΓΆppen climate type:
Nearest Settlements:
| Place | Population | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Keswick | 451 (2011) | 11.8km |
| Central Valley (historical) | 4,340 (2015) | 11.8km |
| Shasta Lake | 10,159 (2017) | 11.8km |
| French Gulch | 346 (2011) | 12.1km |
| Shasta | 1,771 (2011) | 14.0km |
Nearest Clubs:
Local clubs are the best way to get access to collecting localities
Local clubs are the best way to get access to collecting localities
| Club | Location | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Shasta Gem & Mineral Society | Redding, California | 18km |
Mindat Locality ID:
92443
Long-form identifier:
mindat:1:2:92443:9
GUID (UUID V4):
9d653439-53c9-4c44-8e0a-58a13537df85
A former Cu-Au-Fe-Ag mine located in secs. 11-14, T33N, R6W, MDM, 4.2 km (2.6 miles) NNE of Sugarloaf Mountain (coordinates of record), and about 7 miles NW of Shasta Lake City, on private land (patented). Owned by the U.V. Chemical Co. (100.00%), California (1978). Discovered 1890. Production years were the 1890's, 1906-1911, 1914-1919, 1924-1925, 1926-1928, and 1948 (last year). MRDS database accuracy for this location is not stated.
Mineralization is a massive sulphide deposit (Model: 184: Massive sulfide, kuroko), hosted in the Balaklala Rhyolite (meta-rhyolite, tuff). The ore body is tabular at 22.86 meters thick and 150.00 meters wide, and 610 meters long, and a depth-to-top of 61 meters. The primary mode of origin was hydrothermal and the secondary mode was contact metasomatism. Primary ore control was faulting and secondary was folding. Wallrock alteration is moderate (sericitic, intermediate argillic and pyritization). Local rocks include Paleozoic metavolcanic rocks, unit 1 (Eastern Klamath Mountains).
Ore control descriptions: Broad ore control for the main ore zone is the contact between overlying upper and middle units of the Balaklala Rhyolite. More detail controls appear to be basin-shaped fold in rocks and thin layers of bedding plane foliation in flat-lying pyroclastic rock and shaly tuff.
Rocks in the area include the lower upper unit and upper middle unit of the Balaklala Rhyolite. The rhyolite is massive and essentially structureless. Shaly tuff and coarse and fine pyroclastic material underlies the rhyolite. Pyroclastic material ranges from thin black shale containing minor tuff layers to tan shaly tuff and thin beds of lapilli tuff with coarse volcanic breccia.
The ore presents large masses of solid Cu and Fe sulphides, with occasional Cu-Ag glance, black oxides of Ag & Cu, and native copper. Two large, separate ore bodies are known. The eastern body, near Mule Gulch, has a length of 1,200 feet (E-W) and a width of 300 feet (N-S), with a thickness of 20 to 40 feet. The other deposit, Mule Gulch, is over 900 feet long and 20 to 60 feet thick. The mineralization is Late Devonian.
Local structures include faults, folds and warps. Most faults have small offsets which are not recognized at surface. The Balaklala Fault has vertical displacement of 220 feet, downthrown on the N.
Local tectonic structures include an island arc.
Workings include underground openings with a total length of 1,524 meters and an overall depth of 27.43 meters. The developments consist of 4 tunnels at 800, 200, 80 and 70 feet long, along the outcrop, with a few shallow shafts. There are also 3,500 feet of drifting and crosscutting.
Assay analyses results: 1928: (1902-1928): ore: ^2.8% Cu, 1.3% Zn (?),1.0 oz/ton Ag, and 0.028 oz/ton Au.
Select Mineral List Type
Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical ElementsDetailed Mineral List:
| β Baryte Formula: BaSO4 |
| β Calcite Formula: CaCO3 |
| β Chalcocite Formula: Cu2S |
| β Chalcopyrite Formula: CuFeS2 |
| β 'Chlorite Group' |
| β Copper Formula: Cu |
| β Covellite Formula: CuS References: |
| β Gold Formula: Au |
| β Greenockite Formula: CdS |
| β Malachite Formula: Cu2(CO3)(OH)2 |
| β Muscovite Formula: KAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2 |
| β Muscovite var. Sericite Formula: KAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2 |
| β Pyrite Formula: FeS2 |
| β Quartz Formula: SiO2 |
| β Sphalerite Formula: ZnS |
| β 'Tetrahedrite Subgroup' Formula: Cu6(Cu4C2+2)Sb4S12S |
Gallery:
List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification
| Group 1 - Elements | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| β | Copper | 1.AA.05 | Cu |
| β | Gold | 1.AA.05 | Au |
| Group 2 - Sulphides and Sulfosalts | |||
| β | Chalcocite | 2.BA.05 | Cu2S |
| β | Covellite | 2.CA.05a | CuS |
| β | Sphalerite | 2.CB.05a | ZnS |
| β | Chalcopyrite | 2.CB.10a | CuFeS2 |
| β | Greenockite | 2.CB.45 | CdS |
| β | Pyrite | 2.EB.05a | FeS2 |
| β | 'Tetrahedrite Subgroup' | 2.GB.05 | Cu6(Cu4C2+2)Sb4S12S |
| Group 4 - Oxides and Hydroxides | |||
| β | Quartz | 4.DA.05 | SiO2 |
| Group 5 - Nitrates and Carbonates | |||
| β | Calcite | 5.AB.05 | CaCO3 |
| β | Malachite | 5.BA.10 | Cu2(CO3)(OH)2 |
| Group 7 - Sulphates, Chromates, Molybdates and Tungstates | |||
| β | Baryte | 7.AD.35 | BaSO4 |
| Group 9 - Silicates | |||
| β | Muscovite | 9.EC.15 | KAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2 |
| β | var. Sericite | 9.EC.15 | KAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2 |
| Unclassified | |||
| β | 'Chlorite Group' | - | |
List of minerals for each chemical element
Other Databases
| Link to USGS MRDS: | 10077587 |
|---|
Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality
This page contains all mineral locality references listed on mindat.org. This does not claim to be a complete list. If you know of more minerals from this site, please register so you can add to our database. This locality information is for reference purposes only. You should never attempt to
visit any sites listed in mindat.org without first ensuring that you have the permission of the land and/or mineral rights holders
for access and that you are aware of all safety precautions necessary.
References
(n.d.) Minerals Availability System (MAS), U.S. Bureau of Mines.file ID #0060890
Aubury, Lewis E. (1905) The Copper Resources of California. Bulletin 23. California State Mining Bureau p.65
