Feb 3 2017
Gray Rock Resources Ltd. "Gray Rock" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the release of petrological and geochemical studies by the British Columbia Geological Survey (BCGS) from the July, 2016 discovery of coarse visible gold mineralization in bedrock along Otter Creek at the Godkin (Otter Creek) pit on the Company's Surprise Lake Project (BCGS Paper 2017-1, p.179-193). The road accessible Surprise Lake Project, 18 kilometers east of the town of Atlin in northwestern British Columbia, is owned by DeCoors Mining Corp. which has signed a binding letter of intent to transfer ownership of 33 mineral titles to Gray Rock Resources Ltd. (September 30, 2016 news release). The paper describes a different geological model to explain the coarse gold in bedrock along Otter Creek, different host rock, and the source of the nuggets found in the Atlin placers. This new approach significantly expands the target area for lode gold exploration in the Atlin mining camp.
The following is a summary of the BCGS paper. Primary exploration targets for lode gold near Atlin, northwestern British Columbia, have historically been listwanite altered ultramafic and mafic bedrock (considered to be the source of the nearby placer deposits) and locally do contain fine visible gold. The discovery of coarse lode gold (>5 mm) in bedrock at the Otter Creek pit in 2016 on the Surprise Lake Project initiated the BCGS study. The study concluded that the coarse gold in bedrock, and probable associated placers, may be related to Jurassic age deformation and batholith development. The native gold in bedrock is intergrown with quartz-albite veins, and occurs as open space fillings and within both the quartz vein stockwork and encasing, commonly graphitic, sedimentary phyllite (see photos on following page or refer to page 185 of the paper). The study does not imply that an economic lode gold deposit has or will be found on the Company's Surprise Lake Project. However, this new conceptual model will serve to guide future exploration toward that end.
Exploration on the Surprise Lake Project in 2016 returned significant results from the coarse visible gold discovery area along Otter Creek including three one meter samples of 42.1, 6.89 and 3.05 g/t Au, with grab samples of 20.8 and 4.11 g/t Au, 550-600m north of the discovery (October 31, 2016 news release) which are accompanied by anomalous arsenic, antimony and bismuth.
The new lode gold discovery along Otter Creek is detailed in the Company's NI 43-101 technical report on the Surprise Lake Project which has been filed, and can be viewed under the Company's profile, at www.sedar.com. There has been no drilling conducted on the new discovery and no drilling by the Company, but 1705m of historical diamond drilling in 15 holes was completed on the Surprise Lake Project, targeting altered ultramafic and mafic bedrock as opposed to the underlying phyllitic sedimentary rocks which host the new discovery. Details of this historical drilling are outlined in the Company's NI 43-101 technical report on SEDAR. The Company's news release of October 31, 2016 mistakenly reported that no drilling had occurred on the over 5,000 hectare Surprise Lake Project.
Photos are from the bedrock in the Otter Creek (Godkin) pit on the Surprise Lake Project: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/1084660%20Link.pdf
The full text of BCGS Paper 2017-1 can be found in the following link:
http://www.empr.gov.bc.ca/Mining/Geoscience/PublicationsCatalogue/Fieldwork/Documents/2016/10_Mihalynuk_et_al.pdf
Qualified Person
Mr. John Buckle, P.Geo., P.Geoph., a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101, has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical disclosure in this news release. At the closing of the property purchase agreement between DeCoors Mining Corp. ("DeCoors") and the Company, previously announced on Sept. 30, 2016, Mr. Buckle will be appointed as a director of the Company, and he will receive 750,000 common shares of the Company from DeCoors.