Happy Creek Minerals Provides Exploration Update and Prepares for Drilling at Silverboss Gold-Silver Property, Southern BC
Happy Creek Minerals Provides Exploration Update and Prepares for Drilling at
Silverboss Gold-Silver Property, Southern BC
August 4, 2021, Vancouver, British Columbia – Happy Creek Minerals Ltd. (TSX-V: HPY) (“Happy
Creek” or the “Company”) is pleased to provide an update on the Company’s 2021 field activities
in southern British Columbia, including the identification of an exciting new copper-in-soil anomaly
named Billy South on the Highland Valley project, and plans for an early fall drill program to test
high-grade gold-silver targets on the Silverboss property.
The Company has completed the first phase of the field program, including the collection of nearly
2200 soil, silt and rock samples, prospecting and geological studies on the Company’s Highland
Valley and Cariboo copper and precious-metal projects. The work was done in June and early
July, prior to the onset of wildfires that are currently affecting the region.
Assay results from this work are beginning to arrive and are being compiled in preparation for
follow-up sampling, which will commence once the wildfire risk subsides. For more information
including new maps and photos, please see the full release on the Company website at
www.happycreekminerals.com.
Highlights:
At the Silverboss property in the Cariboo, a six- to ten-hole, 1200-metre drill program is
being designed to test the previously undrilled Silverboss Shaft, Dogtooth and Horse
Trail targets. A drill permit has been received, contractors are being lined up and drilling
is planned for early fall. As outlined below, sampling of historic prospects and outcrop by
the Company and previous workers has returned very high values of gold, silver and
copper and there is bulk-tonnage potential as well.
The 2021 field program has included prospecting, geological studies and the collection of
2195 soil, silt and rock samples on parts of the Company’s extensive mineral properties
in the Highland Valley and Cariboo regions. The Company’s lead consultant, C.J. Greig
and Associates is continuing to compile results as they are received and define targets for
follow-up.
A new copper-in-soil anomaly is developing in the Billy South area of the Highland Valley
project. The anomaly has been defined by very wide-spaced sampling over an area of
approximately 2000 by 400 m. There has been no previous drilling in the Billy South area,
which is located 800 m northeast of the Company’s Zone 2 copper-gold deposit and 6.5
km southeast of Teck’s operating Hi ghmont copper-molybdenum pits. Additional
geochemical sampling, prospecting and geological studies are planned for late summer
to expand and refine this target.
Also at Highland Valley, archeological field work was completed in early July over several
dozen potential drill and/or trench sites and a report is pending from the contractor. The
company holds two permits for the West Valley and Rateria portions of the property, which
allow for a total of over 100 drill pads, associated access trails and trenching through 2025.
2
On the Cariboo project, prospecting of new logging roads, and infill and expanded soil
grids have been completed to expand and refine targets for copper, gold, silver,
molybdenum and tungsten on the Silverboss, Hen, Art-DL, Hawk and Fox Tungsten
properties.
Silverboss Targets
The Silverboss property (Figure 1) is located 55 km northeast of the community of 100 Mile House
and surrounds the closed Boss Mountain molybdenum mine, owned by Glencore Canada. Field
work completed so far in 2021 includes rock sampling and geological evaluation of high-grade
and bulk-tonnage gold-silver and copper targets. 143 soil samples were collected to extend the
2.5 kilometre-long Gus copper anomaly in a southeasterly direction. Additional follow-up
prospecting is planned.
A drill program of 6-10 holes totaling 1200 m has been approved for early fall 2021 and logistics
and contracts are currently being finalized. The drill program will include both short holes to test
directly beneath previously un-drilled, high-grade Au-Ag mineralization identified at the
Silverboss Shaft vein, Dogtooth vein, and Horse Trail vein targets (Figure 2). Several longer
holes will also test nearby bulk-tonnage targets with coincident geophysical and geochemical
anomalies and sheeted or stockwork quartz-sulphide vein zones.
At the Silverboss Shaft vein target, a 0.5 to 2.0 m wide shear-vein has been traced for 350 m
along a northeast trend. The vein trend has been developed by a series of pits and trenches and
a single short adit and shaft (Photo 1). It is accessible by an old dozer / ATV trail from the nearby
Boss mine access road. The mineralized vein is hosted by diorite of the Takomkane batholith and
is reported to have been discovered before 1917. Sampling by Happy Creek and previous
operators has returned values ranging from 0.22 to 72.8 g/t Au, 28 to 1026 g/t Ag, and trace to
11.95% Cu from grabs of dump materials and chip samples up to 0.5 m in width. Despite the
locally high grades and good access, there is no record of any previous drilling.
A 2012 Happy Creek induced polarization (IP) survey defined a moderately strong chargeability
anomaly beneath the Siverboss Shaft target, with dimensions of 200 m by 200 m near surface,
and extending to at least 250 m below surface (Figure 3). This chargeability anomaly and the
presence of sheeted and stockwork veins (Photo 2) and anomalous soil values suggests the
potential for bulk-tonnage gold mineralization near the main vein structure.
At the Dogtooth gold-silver vein target (Figure 2; Photos 3 and 4), located 900 m south of the
Silverboss shaft, a historic pit and nearby veins hosted by diorite were sampled by Happy Creek
in 2005-2006 returning values of 0.05 to 53.18 g/t Au and 0.8 to 365 g/t Ag in grab samples, with
associated anomalous arsenic and bismuth. A one-metre chip assayed 10.06 g/t Au and 26 g/t
Ag. Additional samples were collected in 2021 and results are pending. Also present nearby are
zones of primarily sheeted veinlets of quartz with narrow selvages of epidote, chlorite and
potassium feldspar alteration. The Dogtooth target has never been tested by drilling. The
geological setting and metal association are suggestive of Intrusion Related Gold Deposits
(IRGD) similar to Kinross’ Fort Knox Mine in Alaska and Victoria Gold’s Eagle Mine in Yukon.
The Horse Trail target (Figure 2) is between 350 and 1500 metres west of the Boss Mountain
molybdenum mine open pits, and appears different than the moly-only mine, in that copper, gold,
silver, molybdenum and tungsten values occur in mineralized quartz veins and soil. In 2012, the
Company completed an IP geophysical survey over this area which has confirmed potential for
mineralization to extend to depth and zones with up to 40 millisecond chargeability that are
untested by drilling.
3
Billy South Copper-In-Soil Anomaly, Highland Valley Project
The new Billy South anomaly at Highland Valley (Figure 4) has been partially defined by soil
(till) values over an area of 2000 m by 400 m, with values ranging from 100 to 1120 ppm copper.
The Billy South area is covered by a thin veneer of glacial till with minimal outcrop, but previous
bedrock sampling by Happy Creek in the area returned assays of 3.21%, 2.75%, and 0.61% Cu.
The area is underlain by prospective phases of the Guichon Creek batholith with IP chargeability,
resistivity and magnetic low features suggestive of porphyry mineralization. Follow-up is planned
in late summer.
About the Highland Valley Project
The 100-percent-owned Highland Valley project adjoins the southern side of the world-class
Highland Valley Copper (HVC) open-pit mine, which is Canada’s largest metal mine. HVC has
been in continuous operation for nearly 60 years. Happy Creek has made several porphyry copper
discoveries, most notably Rateria Zones 1 and 2, that lie just 6.5 kilometres from the HVC pits.
The property has potential to host very lar ge deposits and can be explored year-round on an
extensive network of industrial roads.
About the Cariboo Project
The road-accesible Cariboo project include the Silverboss, Hen, Art-DL, Hawk and Black Riders
properties. They are prospective for high-grade gold-silver and bulk-tonnage gold-silver and
copper-molybdenum-gold.
About Fox Tungsten
Fox Tungsten is a high-grade critical mineral project that Happy Creek has advanced from initial
discovery to the drill definition stage. Three deposits (BN, RC and BK) have a resource estimate
of 582,400 tonnes grading 0.826% WO 3 (Indicated) and 565,400 tonnes grading 1.231%
WO3 (Inferred). These resource grades are among the highest reported worldwide, and the
deposits are open for expansion within a robust tungsten mineral system that is 12 by 5 kilometres
in size.
About Tungsten
Tungsten is a rare, heavy and hard element used mainly in cemented tungsten carbide and high-
speed alloy cutting tools and other high-tech applications. Tungsten has been declared a “critical
mineral” by governments in Canada, USA and EU. Currently 85% of world production comes from
China.
More information on the Company’s projects can be found on the website at
www.happycreekminerals.com.
The Company operates with the principles and guidelines set out for COVID-19 that are
established by provincial health and safety authorities to protect workers and the communities in
which the Company operates.
On behalf of the Board of Directors,
“Mike Cathro”
Interim President and Chief Executive Officer
4
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Mike Cathro, P.Geo, Interim President and Chief Executive Officer
Office: Phone: (604) 662-8310
Email: [email protected]
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is def ined in the policies of the
TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Mike Cathro, P.Geo. is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and is responsible for the
preparation and approval of the technical information disclosed in the news release. The reader is cautioned that results
or information from an adjacent property does not infer or in dicate similar results or information will or does occur on
the subject property. Historical information from the subj ect or adjacent property cannot not be relied upon as the
Company’s QP, a term which was created and defined under NI-43-101 has not prepared nor verified the historical
information.
This press release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including
statements that address capital costs, recovery, grade, and timing of work or plans at the Company’s mineral projects.
Forward-looking information may be, but not always, identi fied by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate",
“foresee”, "plan", "planned", "continue", "expect", “thought to”, "project", "predict", "potential", "tar geting", "intends",
"believe", “opportunity”, “further” and others, or which describes a goal or action, event or result such as "may", "should",
"could", "would", "might" or "will" be undertaken, occur or achieved. Statements also include those that address future
mineral production, reserve potential, potential size or scale of a miner alized zone, potential expansion of
mineralization, potential type(s) of mini ng, potential grades as well as to Happy Creek’s ability to fund ongoing
expenditure, or assumptions about future metal or mineral prices, currency exchange rates, metallurgical recoveries
and grades, favourable operating conditi ons, access, political stab ility, obtaining or renewal of existing or required
mineral titles, licenses and permits, labour stability, market conditions, availability of equipment, accuracy of any mineral
resources, anticipated costs and expenditures. Assumpti ons may be based on factors and events that are not within
the control of Happy Creek a nd there is no assurance they will prove to be correct. Such forward-looking information
involves known and unknown risks, which may cause the actual results to materially differ, and/or any future results
expressed or implied by such forward-looking informati on. Additional information on risks and uncertainties can be
found within Financial Statem ents, Prospectus and other materials f ound on the Company’s SEDAR profile at
www.sedar.com. Although Happy Creek has attempted to identify im portant factors that coul d cause actual actions,
events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there can be no assurance
that such information will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ materially from those
anticipated in such statements. H appy Creek withholds any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking
information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless required by law.
Figure 1. Regional property map showing Happy Creek Minerals’ Cariboo Project in southern
British Columbia, including the Hawk, Silverboss, Hen-Art-DL and Fox Tungsten properties.
Figure 2. Location of Silverboss Shaft, Dogtooth, and Horse Trail gold-silver prospects on the
Silverboss Property, Cariboo Project.
Figure 3. Cross-section, looking northeast, through IP chargeability inversion model at
Silverboss Shaft prospect, including proposed diamond drill holes.
Photo 1. Geologists examine the historic Silverboss Shaft gold-silver-copper prospect in July
2021. Sampling by Happy Creek and previous operators has returned values ranging from 0.22
to 72.8 g/t Au , 28 to 1026 g/t Ag , and trace to 11.95% Cu from grabs of dump materials and
chip samples up to 0.5 m in width. Despite good access and grades, there has been no previous
drilling.
8
Photo 2. Stockwork quartz-epidote veinlets in dioirite near the Silverboss Shaft vein target.