Scottie Resources, corporate update + Q&A with VP Exploration, Dr. Thomas Mumford, Ph.D., P.Geo

Last year Scottie Resources (TSX-V: SCOT) / (OTCQB: SCTSF) discovered multiple high-grade, surface gold targets on its newly acquired Summit Lake claims and had exciting drill results on its Bow & Scottie Gold Mine properties.

Scottie Resources has been a consolidator of claims in the Golden Triangle. Management has grown its footprint from ~400 hectares in 2017 to nearly 24,600 hectares spread across nine properties.

Based on the nature & locations of the mineralizing systems & major structures, management is working the nine properties as two contiguous blocks, the Scottie Gold Mine and Cambria projects.

The Scottie Gold Mine project includes the Scottie Gold Mine, Bow, Summit Lake & Stock properties. Exploration on this 8,728-hectare contiguous block is focused on high-grade gold mineralization akin to the Company’s past-producing operation.

Bow saw modest drilling, but delivered notable hits like 73.3 g/t Au over 4.3m, incl. 152.5 g/t over 1.9m, on the Bend Vein, and 7.4 g/t Au over 34.8m, incl. 14.3 g/t over 14.0m, on the Blueberry Vein. The longest drill hole to date on the Scottie Gold Mine property returned an interval of 7.3 g/t Au over 25.0m, incl. 11.7 g/t over 11.0m.

This year, Scottie embarked on an ambitious drill program and recently reported seven assays, including a blockbuster intercept at the Scottie Gold mine project’s O-zone of 109.4 g/t gold + 32.4 g/t silver over 2.5 m.

Readers may recall that the Scottie Gold mine operated from 1981-85, and milled vein material averaging 16.2 g/t. New drill hole SR20-27 intercepted mineralization in a 30 m down plunge step-out from the nearest historical intercept in an open direction.

During the 2020 field season, Scottie completed a total of 7,040 m of diamond drilling – assays on 38 holes are pending. The O-Zone is the northern most of six parallel mineralized structures identified during operation of the past-producing Scottie Gold mine. It contained some of the highest grade intercepts, including 107 g/t gold over 4.2 m.

Importantly, new discoveries are likely and existing mineralized zones are expanding with each new drill hole. CEO, Bradley Rourke commented,

“The 2020 drill results continue to intersect gold and silver mineralization. Drilling at Blueberry and the O-Zone continues to expand mineralization down dip and along strike beyond previous extents.”

Despite spectacular grades, the O-Zone area had seen no exploration drilling in nearly 35 years! Previous exploration work identified 13 gold-bearing veins on the project. Management sees significant potential from extensions at depth, additional zones along strike and in parallel mineralized structures.

Scottie’s valuation is attractive, and right in the sweet spot of GT peers. Companies like Pretium, Skeena Resources, Tudor Gold, Ascot Resources & GT Gold are much larger. I think any of these five are prospective acquirers of Scottie, especially Pretium & Ascot, both of whom share borders with the Company.

By the end of next year, Scottie will have the full results from two more drill seasons, putting it in position to deliver a maiden mineral resource estimate. In 2022 there could be a PEA.

In the past I’ve written articles and conducted CEO interviews Scottie Resources’ Brad Rourke. This time I interviewed VP Exploration Dr. Thomas Mumford, Ph.D., P.Geo. He and Mr. Rourke are two of the hardest working execs in the Golden Triangle. And, they both spend A LOT of time in bush, at drill sites — kicking rocks, boots on the ground.

Thomas, please describe how many meters & holes your team drilled this year, and on which properties or targets.

Total drilling this season totaled 7,040 m in 45 holes, so an average of 150 m per hole. Drilling was done on the Blueberry Vein, Bend Vein, numerous Scottie Gold Mine targets, Domino and the 6 oz zone. Results on 7 holes were released, 38 assays are pending. The best intercept from the initial batch of assays was 109 g/t gold over 2.5 meters.

Besides drilling, what other exploration was done this season?

We continued our successful 2019 surface mapping & sampling program in areas of significant glacial retreat. We flew a 627 line km airborne electromagnetic survey. We did a few induced polarization (IP) grids over select targets to test the ability of the survey to identify known mineralization and to use it to delineate future drill targets.

Given the substantial amount of drilling done this year, might you be able to deliver a maiden resource estimate after next year’s drilling? Which properties, or what percentage of Scottie’s total land package would a resource estimate cover? 

The drilling we have been doing these past two seasons has all been exploration driven, targeting new discoveries and areas with the potential for substantial expansions. What we’re finding is that there are numerous areas with exciting grades and meaningful intercepts. Our aim at the moment is just to define pathways to try to prove up a multi-million ounce deposit.

The past-producing Scottie Gold mine has some serious high-grade mineralization. However, how do you know that it hasn’t been mined out?

Mined out? Not at all! We continue to expand the areas of known mineralization into open and untested ground, and drilling continues to deliver exceptional results. Less than 100k ounces of gold were taken from the Scottie Gold mine.

Furthermore, there’s plenty of room, on thousands of contiguous hectares, for new discoveries and to explore, sample & drill in and around historical underground workings. Last year we acquired the 4,877-hectare Summit Lake property that had been in private hands and barely explored for > 20 years.

Grab samples at Summit returned blockbuster gold & silver grades including 536 g/t Au, 63 g/t Au, 2,290 g/t Ag & 2,000 g/t Ag. A new discovery at Summit Lake, the Domino zone, delivered some of the best samples and was a meaningful part of this season’s exploration activities.

Please tell readers more about the Blueberry Vein.

The Blueberry Vein is located two km NE of the Scottie Gold Mine. Historic trenching & channel sampling include results of 103.9 g/t gold over 1.4 m and 203.8 g/t over 1.9 m. Despite high-grade surface samples and easy road access, the Blueberry Vein has seen limited drilling.

This promising target was significantly advanced during Scottie’s 2019 drill program when an interval grading 7.4 g/t gold over 34.8 m was intersected in a new splay of the main Blueberry Vein.

This new near-surface zone is much wider than indicated in previous exploration models, and expansion of it was a strong focus for us during this year’s drill program. Results from drilling and mapping of the area indicate that mineralization extends well past the historic Blueberry Vein, into the host rock.

Instead of the Blueberry Vein, we’re now calling it the Blueberry zone. A total 1,609 m in 11 holes were drilled into the Blueberry Zone during 2020.  

Why should readers consider buying shares of Scottie Resources instead of one of the many other Golden Triangle names?

I can’t speak to relative value, but I can reiterate the attributes of our Scottie Gold project. It’s over 8,000 hectares in size, with proven high-grade drill holes in multiple places. Historical production had an average grade of 16.2 g/t gold.

Our regional infrastructure is strong compared to some of the other northern Canadian or Alaskan jurisdictions. We’re fairly close to Seabridge’s massive, advanced-stage KSM project and even closer to Pretium’s Brucejack mine and Ascot Resources‘ Premiere / Red Mountain project.

Over the years, 570 drill holes have been completed on our Scottie and Bow properties. We feel there remains significant potential for additional gold bearing zones at Scottie Gold at depth, along strike, and in parallel structures and Summit Lake is wide open. So, if your readers want high-grade gold & silver and new discovery potential, Scottie Resources is one to look at.

Thank you Thomas, very helpful. I agree that Scottie Resources (TSX-V: SCOT) / (OTCQB: SCTSF) has a lot going for it and can’t wait for drill results from the 38 pending holes.

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