Mary K Mine Development Update
VANCOUVER - Bond Resources Inc. reported on the progress it has made on the development of a new access tunnel at the Mary K mine project, near Elk City, Idaho. With the goal of reaching, and bulk sampling, the reported high-grade Apex zone of the historical Mary K mine, Bond Resources has been busy constructing a parallel access tunnel.
"We initially planned on developing a new portal and breaking into the old workings about 230 ft (70 meters) into the mountain," said, Joseph Carrabba, President & CEO. "When probe holes were drilled, we hit water that had been dammed up by the collapsed old workings, so we continued to develop a parallel drift."
To date, the new 12-by-12 ft access tunnel has been developed approximately 600 ft (183 meters) towards the known gold-bearing zones in the Mary K mine. It is being driven parallel to, and at the same elevation (4,220 ft) as, the #4 level of the historical mine. According to Bond's earlier drill data and historical maps, the high-grade area of the Mary K vein system lies only 250 ft (76 meters) beyond the current extent of the new tunnel. Bond expects the tunnel to reach this area by mid-August.
"We hit one minor snag that created a two-week delay," said Carrabba. "Our mining team encountered a large, low-angle fault about 480-to-510 ft (146-to-155m) from the portal entrance. By utilizing different blasting techniques and reinforcing the tunnel with timber sets, they were able to safely advance through the poor ground conditions created by this fault zone. Once the target area is reached, Bond Resources will commence a bulk sampling program and develop a decline to access the reported high-grade Apex Area of the mine.”