WESTERN EXPLORATION PROVIDES UPDATE ON DRILLING ACTIVITIES AT GRAVEL CREEK Intersects High-Grade AU-AG Veins in the Jarbidge Rhyolite up to 250 Meters North-East of the Current Gravel Creek Resource
WESTERN EXPLORATION PROVIDES UPDATE ON
DRILLING ACTIVITIES AT GRAVEL CREEK
Intersects High-Grade AU-AG Veins in the Jarbidge Rhyolite
up to 250 Meters North-East of the Current Gravel Creek Resource
Vancouver, British Columbia – November 21, 2023 – Western Exploration Inc. (TSXV: WEX; OTCQX: WEXPF)
(the "Company" or " Western Exploration") is pleased to announce initial results of its 2023 core drilling
program, which aimed to identify vein extensions in the Jarbidge rhyolite north -east of the Gravel Creek
resource area at the Company's wholly-owned Aura gold-silver project (the "Aura Project").
Highlights from 2023 Drill Program:
• Two oriented core holes totaling 1,470 meters ( see Figure 1 below) were completed to verify the
existence of a mineralized corridor trending northeast from the Gravel Creek deposit, as outlined in
a news release of the Company dated March 6, 2023 , entitled "Western Exploration Announces
Additional Exploration Results at Gravel Creek".
• Both h oles WG456 and WG457 intersected multiple quartz -pyrite-marcasite bearing vein s,
stockwork and hydrothermal breccias within the targeted mineralized corridor.
• Hole WG456, located 250 meters north-east of the Gravel Creek resource area, reported individual
assays up to 34.9 g/t Au and 2800.0 g/t Ag, with key intercepts including:
o 4.7 meters of 9.20 g/t AuEq (4.55 g/t Au and 395.4 g/t Ag)
o 2.4 meters of 7.82 g/t AuEq (5.37 g/t Au and 208.1 g/t Ag)
o 2.0 meters of 21.96 g/t AuEq (12.77 g/t Au and 780.9 g/t Ag)
o 2.1 meters of 7.56 g/t AuEq (5.40 g/t Au and 183.1 g/t Ag)
o 3.0 meters of 6.75 g/t AuEq (5.42 g/t Au and 113 g/t Ag)
• Gold-silver grades in WG456 occur at the same elevation as the "productive horizon" in the Gravel
Creek deposit and are comparable in grade to those seen in multiple legacy intercepts.
• These results support further exploration drilling to the north -east along a 2.0 k ilometers trend of
Au-As soil and rock anomalies that parallel a N35E trending density anomaly.
• WG456 was abandoned at a depth of 730.6 meters due to drilling complications, with the final 3.0
meters returning 5.42 g/t Au and 113 g/t Ag.
• Assays for hole WG457 are currently being finalized by ALS Chemex.
Western Exploration CEO, Darcy Marud, commented: "Western Exploration has long believed in the
potential to greatly expand resources within the Wood Gulch/Gravel Creek mineralized system, and it is now
become more evident that Wood Gulch and Gravel Creek are part of a large Au- Ag bearing hydrothermal
system over an area of 10km2 . The integration of structural surface alteration and geochemical data
generated by the 2023 core drilling program has brought greater understanding of the controls on the high-
grade veins in the Jarbidge rhyolite overlying and peripheral to the Gravel Creek deposit. Significant additional
oriented core drilling is justified to better define the vein trends and determine the extent of the mineralized
system to the north-east, with the ultimate goal of expanding the project resource base."
2
Multiple High-Grade Au-Ag Vein Drill Intercepts in the Jarbidge Rhyolite Above and Peripheral to the Gravel
Creek Deposit
Previous drilling, as reported in the Technical Report (as defined herein), intersected multiple high-grade Au-
Ag bearing vein intercepts of up to 40.05 g/t Au and 1951.0 g/t Ag in the Miocene Jarbidge volcanics overlying
and lateral to the Gravel Creek deposit. None of these Jarbidge -hosted intercepts have been included in
previous resource calculations, due to the uncertainty of orientation.
Drill results for hole WG456, intersected 9 veins, stockwork or hydrothermal breccias, which identified AuEq
grades of over 3.0 g/t. Key intercepts are shown in Figure 2 and all +3.0 g/t AuEq results are summarized in
Table 1, with coordinates shown in Table 2.
A preliminary review of oriented core data shows an array of intersecting veins, stockwork and hydrothermal
breccias following north- west to north -east trends that mimic the known structural controls on
mineralization. Flow banded zones within the rhyolite show strong preferential steeply dipping north -east
trends, which control the emplacement of certain veins and hydrothermal breccia zones.
Table 1. Summary of +3.0 g/t AuEq intercepts in core hole WG456 testing the Jarbidge rhyolite north-east of
the Gravel Creek deposit.
START END Interval(1) AuEq(2) Au Ag
HOLE(3) (m) (m) (m) (ppm) (ppm) (ppm)
WG456 469.7 470.1 0.3 5.21 1.90 282
WG456 479.4 479.7 0.3 4.91 4.70 17.8
WG456 544.5 549.3 4.7 9.20 4.55 395.4
with 546.4 548.2 1.8 20.05 9.77 874
or 546.4 546.7 0.3 67.84 34.9 2800
WG456 553.4 558.1 4.7 4.17 2.24 163.3
with 553.4 555.4 1.9 6.41 3.82 219.9
or 553.4 553.9 0.5 10.66 4.34 537
WG456 569.3 570.2 0.9 4.19 2.87 112
WG456 625.6 629.1 3.5 6.64 4.59 174.6
with 625.6 628 2.4 7.82 5.37 208.1
WG456 631.1 633.1 2.0 21.96 12.77 780.9
with 631.1 632.2 1.0 31.95 19.60 1050
WG456 683.9 686 2.1 7.56 5.40 183.1
with 685.6 686 0.4 26.03 18.85 610
WG456 727.60 730.60 3.00 6.75 5.42 113.0
Notes:
(1) Intervals are calculated with minimum grades of 3.0 g/t AuEq. True widths are estimated at 30-90% of drill intervals.
(2) Assays are uncut and as received. AuEq calculated at a ratio of 85:1 of Ag:Au.
(3) WG456 terminated in mineralization due to drilling issues.
3
Table 2. Collar coordinates for Gravel Creek holes referenced in this press release.
Figure 1. Plan map showing location of 2023 drill holes relative to +3.0 g/t Au Gravel Creek resource blocks.
Hole ID East North Elev Azimuth Dip Depth (m)
WG456 587,298 4,616,507 2,185 186.3 48.1 727.3
WG457 587,178 4,616,351 2,198 180.0 62.1 743.0
4
Figure 2. Cross section of hole WG456 showing key gold-silver intercepts
Results Support Further Exploration Drilling Along North-East Trend.
Results from drill hole WG456, in combination with 2020 core hole WG450, identified multiple drill intercepts
with significant Au-Ag grades in a zone 200 meters wide near the north-east limit of current drilling area (see
Figure 3 below). This provides additional support for exploration potential associated with the strong multi-
element soil anomaly and coincident density anomaly extending from Wood Gulch through Gravel Creek and
continuing 2.0 kilometers to the north-east of the Gravel Creek deposit (see Figure 4 below).
5
Figure 3. Summary of key drill intercepts in holes WG450 and WG456 shows that multiple veins with
significant Au-Ag grades are present in a zone 200 meters wide at the north-east limit of the current drilling
area. Mineralization is coincident with a north-east-trending density anomaly.
6
Figure 4. Location of 2023 core hole relative to surface projection of the Gravel Creek deposit. Note the north-
east trending density anomaly that extends from Wood Gulch to at least 2.0 k ilometers to the north-east of
the Gravel Creek deposit is paralleled by a strong As -in-soil anomaly. The soil anomaly has been verified by
rock sampling returning anomalous Au-As-As-Sb-Mo values in outcrop/subcrop to the north-east of Badger.
7
and 0.9 kilometers north-east of the Gravel Creek deposit. The soil geochemistry and geophysical data are
documented in the Technical Report.
ABOUT THE AURA PROJECT
In addition to an established mineral resource estimate outlined in the Technical Report , the Aura Project
has well established infrastructure , including year-round accessibility by highway and county -maintained
road, with nearby access to water and electricity (see Figure 5 below). Western Exploration has exploration,
development, and mining rights on 930 hectares of privately owned fee lands through a mineral lease
agreement with a local landowner and may purchase those fee lands at any time for the development
of Doby George.
Figure 5. Aura Project – Land holdings and Infrastructure.
The 6,000-hectare Aura Project is unique in the junior mining space, as resources have been identified in
three different deposits (Doby George, Gravel Creek and Wood Gulch), as supported by the Technical Report
(see Table 3 below).
8
Table 3. Updated mineral resource estimate for the Aura Project as contained in the Technical Report
MINERAL RESOURCE ESTIMATE(1)
Indicated Inferred
Tonnes
Au
(g/t)
Au
(ozs)
Ag
(g/t)
Ag
(ozs)
AuEq
(g/t)
AuEq
(oz.) Tonnes
Au
(g/t)
Au
(ozs)
Ag
(g/t)
Ag
(ozs)
AuEq
(g/t)
AuEq
(oz.)
Doby
George(2) 12,922,000 0.98 407,000 - - 0.98 407,000 4,999,000 0.73 118,000 - - 0.73 118,000
Wood
Gulch(3) - - - - - - - 4,359,000 0.66 93,000 5.80 808,000 0.74 104,543
Gravel
Creek(4) 1,315,000 4.73 200,000 75.0 3,169,000 5.81 245,271 2,744,000 4.16 367,000 60.20 5,307,000 5.02 442,814
TOTAL 14,237,000 1.33 607,000 75.0 3,169,000 1.43 652,271 12,102,000 1.48 578,000 15.74 6,115,000 1.71 665,357
Notes:
(1) Au equivalent oz assumes US$1,800 per oz Au and 70:1 ratio of Ag:Au.
(2) Pit constrained 0.2 g/t AuEq cutoff for oxide, 0.4 g/t Au cutoff for mixed and 1.4 g/t Au cutoff for unoxidized.
(3) Pit constrained 0.2 g/t AuEq cutoff.
(4) 3.0 g/t Au cutoff.
The mineral resource estimate for the Aura project is disclosed in the Company's technical report, prepared
in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101"),
entitled "2021 Updated Resource Estimates and Technical Report for the Aura Gold -Silver Project,
Elko County, Nevada" dated October 20, 2021 (with an effective date of October 14, 2021) that was prepared
for the Company by Mine Development Associates (the "Technical Report").
About Western Exploration
Born from a 25-year history of advancing exploration projects in Nevada as a private company, today Western
Exploration is composed of an experienced team of precious metals experts that aims to lead Western
Exploration to becoming a premiere gold and silver development company in North America. The Company's
principal asset is the 100% owned Aura gold -silver project, located approximately 120 kilometers/75 miles
north of the city of Elko, Nevada, and includes three unique gold and silver deposits: Doby Geo rge, Gravel
Creek, and Wood Gulch. Additional information regarding Western Exploration and the Aura Project can be
found on the Company's website and on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca) under the Company's issuer profile.
For more information please contact:
Darcy Marud
Chief Executive Officer
Telephone: (775) 329-8119
Email: [email protected]
Nichole Cowles
Investor Relations
Telephone: 775-240-4172
Email: [email protected]