Rise Gold (CSE:RISE) has released the assay results of the first drill hole completed at the Idaho-Maryland project in California. This hole was completed in 2017 and as we explained in our recently-released report, we were anxiously awaiting to see if Rise found more gold.
As you might remember, this first hole was supposed to be a pilot hole, making it easier for Rise Gold to drill several holes using the pilot hole as starting point for deviating holes. With a total depth of 1419 meters (and reaching a depth of almost 1,200 meters below surface), drilling appeared to go pretty well, and an assay result of 2.7 meters containing 62.7 g/t gold (which is in excess of 2 ounces per tonne) was encountered just 540 meters below surface, and just 50 meters away from the known B1600 level (as well as a second intercept of 15 meters containing 4.5 g/t gold).
This actually surprised Rise Gold as the company didn’t really expect to find high-grade gold at this level, considering the lack of historical data on this area. What’s perhaps even more intriguing, is the fact the gold mineralization appeared to be located in the wall rocks adjacent to the quartz vein, rather than in the quartz vein itself. This could be a game changer, as we believe this is the first time the exploration theory of finding gold in the walls rather than the vein is being put on the table as the previous operators only assayed the quartz veins for gold.
Not only could this indicate the width and grade of the gold zones could be wider and higher than anticipated, it also opens up the possibility the ‘old timers’ left gold behind in the walls as the sole focus was on the quartz veins.
This is actually interesting and excellent news, and although the drill hole deviated from the azimuth and didn’t encounter the Idaho #1 vein, we dare to say this first hole actually was a success given the (unexpected) gold occurrences and grades.
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The author has a long position in Rise Gold. Rise is a sponsor of the website. Please read the disclaimer
