Mined in the 1950s means it was significant, since it avoided the demise of the War Act that shut down almost all gold mines.
Gold District of California
Gold Mine in Northern California Sierras of USA, 5000 feet to 3,000 feet elevationConsolidated four historically active mines at different elevations on the mountain into one claim group.
It is a lode gold-mining district.
Regional History
Many rich strikes were made. This area produced many gold nuggets weighing pounds.
Production of this mine group is slated to start soon, since there is no new disturbance of the earth, only rehab of existing drift adits. Plenty of water.
Milling: ore can be trucked to Nevada ($10,000 worth of ore per daily truck expense of $800), thereby avoiding the time for on-site mill permit. On-site mill permit filed two years ago, anticipate full approval in two years.
Phase Two has $120 million worth of ore blocked out (estimate based upon $1200/oz gold). $100,000 buys out the claim owner, with no relative assigns other than his wife.
The applicable jurisdictions want the mine in production. Other similar mines in the region have already been approved for all permits relative to mining in two years of application processing.
The Claim Leasee has the following plan for phased development.
The gold project presently under lease agreement has oxidized free milling gold that only requires a gravity wash system to extract.
The property is presently in the permitting phase and expects to be able to commence exploitation soon. 95% of permit accomplished a year ago. Prior to commercial quantity mining, the exploration permit allows 10 tons per day to plan operations for both extraction and milling.
After one year will increase production. According to the Geological report by the well known regional geologist, there is a section just 50 feet from the portal of the Drift vein that contains 250 to 660 tons of one oz-Au per ton ore. Mining Contractor has verified this block of ore and company assays confirm that quality. The portal is all that will have to be rebuilt in order to immediately and safely access this block of ore. Within this tunnel there is also substantial 1/2 oz/t ore that, at the time of geologist's' study, was not considered viable when gold at $375, but most certainly is at today's prices.
There is another, more substantial, 6 blocks of quality ore in a separate adit that we have been unable to verify due to capsizing. Company has the old miners reports and maps. To access this area, Operations proposes bypassing the majority of the tunnel system by driving a decline and arriving at the location of the 6 blocks. Plan is to drive the decline into the vein system and thereby extracting gold bearing ore in the vein. (Know when reading reports before 1990s, professionals called "tunnels" what today we call "adits".)
Additionally there is a large shear zone where the geologist estimated the potential for an open pit mining operation with, at today's prices, an approximate $100,000,000 worth of readily accessible gold bearing ore at between 6 and 8 grams per ton. Although the company has not explored this section of the mines claims, the mine owner claims that presently there are three tunnels that lead into this 35 foot wide ore body and that it is his position that much better grade ore must be in this ore body in order for the old miners to concern themselves with extracting this ore when gold was so $20/ton in 1926, and 1 oz/t was the usual cut-off grade.
There are tailing dump piles at the Group claim that have yet to be studied, although the geologist did. But again, what is valuable today is a lot different than when the regional geologist analyzed the 4 different mines when gold was $375/oz.
Company has a 40t/day ball mill as well as conveyors and crushing jaws that are on the California site. Later company will buy a custom set-up for the free milling gold.
165 acres of prime 'pocket' gold country, few miles southeast of historic north California mining district, north of Lake Tahoe, north of U.S. Interstate Hwy 80, historically famous during the latter California Gold Rush in the 1850-1900.
Three Phases have been identified to exploit known mineralization ranging from easiest deposit (Phase One) which is small compared to larger and additional tunnels on two separate claims, which will be be more work to open. (Phases 2 and 3).
Financial requirements to reopen Phase One of Mine site, California.
Spring 2011, sufficient investments have been transacted to continue progress on schedule.
$ 50,000 - COMPLETION OF PERMITTING
$1000 has been funded. Consultant has begun initial research and cost analysis into processing the permits.
$ 2,500 - California Water Control Board Permit. (Estimate)
Actual charge TBD when filing submittal.
$10,000 - Site Preparation and Mining Equipment Installation
Clean-up of rock slide at portal - estimate one week by three person crew.
Prepare existing, on-site operations equipment and two buildings for Production.
Mobilization - Relocate Mining Equipment from prior operations elsewhere in 2 states, California and Nevada, and a mobile core drill from the State of Sonora, Mexico.
$ 5,000 - Rehabilitate portal of the Drift tunnel on one claim.
Mining prior to closing in 1970 did not complete exploitation of the drift, but rather drift was begun to intersect vein extending from the claim. Vein was intersected at 54 feet, and drift was extended an additional 50 feet along vein structure. Vein is exposed and extends along surface an additional 300 feet. Trenching to uncover vein structure could show this vein extends further.
Historically respected California Geologist compiled assays of the main body of mineralization in the drift.
Geological Report estimates possible to probable value of calculated gold mineralization he encountered to be $350,000 - $1,000,000 inside that one drift. This is calculated at gold values of $1200/oz. His analysis of the visible vein structure concluded that a gold grade of above 1 oz/ton (OPT) should hold for the length of the vein structure in the Drift for a thickness 25 feet above and 25 feet below the tunnel (50 feet plus height of adit). His report further states the values correspond to values in the claim of the Group, and should continue along the 300 foot extension beyond the existing drift, as well as to depth. With further testing and sampling, this should increase the known values of Phase I significantly.
$10,000 - Exploration
Further investigate and test multiple historic tunnels and ore bodies in the Claim Group.
Claim 1 (P Drift)
Claim 2 (Adit 2)
Claim 3 and Annex Claim at southwest with three tunnels - Heaney estimated $100,000,000 (100M) dollars of gold bearing ore at today's adjusted values.
$25,000 - First Phase Exploitation of ore, once the permits are in place.
Initial extraction: 10 tons per day.
Infrastructure upgrades: 30 tons per day.
Since host rock for gold is an easy to liberate oxide, estimate $50,000 worth of gold in about one week of mining and milling.
$35,000 - Incorporation, Infrastructure Set-up and materials, fuel, salaries, accommodations, travel, vehicles
Project Director has associates slated to invest $15,000 and $35,000.
Project Director, stated in regards to the #3 mine:
It is too complicated now to explain all the particulars of how we plan on working this claim, but the mine owner, whose grandfather over one hundred years ago opened the #2 Mine in 1898, says that the values of this section of the Mine are actually much higher than what the report conservatively estimates, because the geologist, only studied the surface of the 35 foot wide, broad vein structure, but never entered the 3 tunnels (adits) which exploited this massive ore body.
The old miners never exploited gold bearing ore with a content below 1/2 oz/ton. Not at this mine, or almost anywhere else when lode gold mining. One half oz/ton was their "cut-off" point of profitability. The geologist took his samples while he followed and traced the surface area of the ore body, but not inside the tunnels where the old-timers mined because he was studying this broad shear zone for the feasibility of an open pit mine, not for subterranean mining.
So we would like to secure the portals and re-enter this area of the claims for further investigation, including assaying of the interior of the tunnels. This section of the mine would be exploited as either Phase 2 or 3, depending upon the results of our exploration assays.
Our mining operations manager recommends that Phase Two mining occur during the 2 years of Phase One.
Phase Two: No. 1 Adit on the No.2 claim can be quickly opened and exploited, and because it literally sits below the existing staging area, and it would involve no added infrastructure. Historic maps claim it has greater resource than Phase One, but its' opening would also still have a larger expense. Our rationale is to start mining with a low budget for Phase One. Profits from Phase One are to be used to mine the larger Phase Two deposit of six bodies blocked out by miners. (Miners only "block out" what they are going to mine next. They are not exploration geologists defining an area of mineralization for someone else to use many years in the future. Miners only plan to mine what is profitable for the current time. (1926).
Maps and old reports of the No. 1 adit mine show that there are 6 blocks of ore which the original miners discovered and prepared for mining. However non-essential gold mines were closed by the Second World War - War Act 1942 so that manpower and equipment could be put to use for the WWII effort. Mine claim owner believes this area of the mine has not been exploited because the portal and another large area of the tunnel caved in since closure. His grandfather owned and operated the mine at that time. The reports claim the ore contains free gold with pin-head to one inch nuggets. We propose to first exploit those areas of the mine that have known valuable mineralization, and leave other sections for exploration once we have the financial resources to open a decline to another blocked out area, bypassing the caved-in areas. Our staged operational plan would be to follow the vein structure down to a stoped area adjacent to the 6 blocks of ore. While descending along the vein, we could thereby be raising potential revenue from the less valuable ore known to exist at surface, while simultaneously proceeding to the deeper and richer parts of the vein structure below.
Permitting for Milling after Phase One:
Presently, there are no known obstacles to permitting the documented existing Mill-site for ore processing, but it takes approximately 4 years to satisfy all points of state requirements. However, if difficulties are to be associated with that aspect of permitting, Mine Co would then propose to truck Phase One ore to mine friendly Nevada for milling. The other permits have been successfully completed to 95% with only a few items were extended by request of the local Water Board for further testing even though they said all was accomplished 2 years ago. However on-site milling might be approved sooner than later since our water is rated Benign. On site, mill permitting process could otherwise occur during Phase One mining. The mill permitting process would then be approved during Phase Two.
Phase One - Phase Two Transition
$75,000 would be needed to set up the milling operation on the historic mill site. Presently the company has a 40 ton/day ball mill that goes with the mine, along with a set of jaw-crushers and two partially complete conveyors. Mine Co would have to buy a grissley as well as construct some ore bins. Also, concrete would need to be poured to anchor the ball mill. Mine Co would need to purchase a motor and belts to power the ball mill. Mine Co would also need a wash system ($100,000 to $250,000) and generator. There are other miscellaneous parts that would be required.
Seven geological reports totaling approximately 100 pages of PDFs can be sent upon request, plus the 2011 report for current permitting.
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Video of North Motherlode Historic Workings Air Vent http://youtu.be/exOaS-yBYcM
