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MacDonald Mines Completes Trenching and Drilling Program of the Oxide Sands

Nov 10, 2017 @ 12:45

Figure 1. Plan map of trenching locations with gold AuEq values

MacDonald Mines Exploration Ltd. announces that it has completed its Trenching and Sonic Drilling Programs that were designed to assess the extend of the Oxide Sands trend at its Holdsworth Gold Project.

Quentin Yarie, President and Chief Executive Officer of MacDonald Mines stated, “Our Trenching Program has demonstrated the extensive length of the Oxide Sands which remain open along strike. The program also enabled us to identify key visual and chemical attributes of the precious metal-rich units in the soil formation.We expect pending assay results from the remaining trenches and drill holes to corroborate the visual cues from the material sampled.”

The Company is currently awaiting results on 228 trench samples.

Trenching Result Highlights to Date:

Trench ID SampleID From Depth(cm) To Depth(cm) Sample Length (cm) Au_Equ
TR750-6 18182 18 71 53 5.64
TR750-6 18181 0 18 18 4.49
TR775-0 18202 0 28 28 6.53
TR775-7 18218 0 30 30 5.71
TR775S-9 260121 20 103 83 4.62
TR1000-2 260895 80 115 35 5.07
TR1025S-3 260072 0 75 75 5.25
TR1025S-4 260074 50 120 70 5.30
TR1050S-2 260085 10 75 65 7.65
TR1050S-3 260086 20 110 90 8.94

Completion of Sonic Drilling Program
The 2,000 metres sonic drilling program at the Wawa-Holdsworth Project announced on September 20, 2017 has been completed. The program was undertaken to assess the vertical distribution of the precious metals within the Oxide Sands. Assays are pending for all 401 holes drilled.

Figure 2. Location of Reed-Booth Showing

Trenching and Channel Sampling at the Reed-Booth Showing
The Reed-Booth Showing is an exploration target on the Wawa-Holdsworth Project (Figure 2). In addition to the Oxide Sands, the Company continues to explore the area for lode gold targets. On July 17, 2017 MacDonald announced that a grab sample* containing 13.7 g/t gold was collected adjacent to the Reed-Booth Showing, and grab samples* from float at the main Reed-Booth Showing (considered representative of the main style of mineralization at the showing) contained 4.77 g/t and 6.0 g/t gold.

*Grab samples are selective and may not represent the true mineralization of the prospect.

The Company has mobilized an excavator and is conducting a trenching and channel sampling program in the area to sample and assess the potential of the Showing and the associated historical Reed Booth Mine.

Plans for Holdsworth Gold Project
The Company intends to have an inferred resource calculated on the Oxide Sands once all of the assay results have been received.  In addition to the Oxide Sands, MacDonald Mines will also continue investigating the lode gold potential on the property.  The current channel sampling of the Reed Booth Showing will be used to identify diamond drill targets.  These targets will be drilled this winter.

The Company is currently sufficiently financed to complete these activities.

Overview of the Wawa-Holdsworth Project

  • Neighbouring Alamos’ Island Gold Mine, Argonaut’s Magino Gold Project and Goldcorp’s Borden project
  • Numerous gold showings with diversified mineralization styles occurring in a 500 metres-wide deformation corridor
  • Year-long road access and easy access to rail, road, electrical power, labour force and suppliers

Historic work by previous operators defined three gold targets on the Wawa-Holdsworth Project:

  • Greenstone-hosted quartz-carbonate vein deposit (Soocana Vein System and Reed-Booth Showing);
  • BIF-hosted gold deposits (gold-bearing pyrite zones in an Algoma-type iron formation);
  • Gold-bearing Oxide Sands developed from the weathering of the auriferous pyrite zones.

MacDonald Mines is focusing its near-term exploration program on the Oxide Sands. These appear to extend for more than 2 km on the property as corroborated by MacDonald’s airborne magnetics results (see June 1, 2017 News Release) and reach a depth of at least 8 metres.

Positive preliminary metallurgical results (see July 11, 2017);

  • The concentration ratio of gold in rougher flotation averaged 6.0:1
  • The concentration ratio of silver in rougher flotation averaged 5.2:1
  • Reduction of feed volume in rougher flotation by approximately 85-90%
  • The Oxide Sands can be processed by a simple crushing/flotation process
  • No caustic treatments are necessary
  • The processing will require low power requirements
  • The waste material is inert (>70 percent silica/quartz)

The soft and relatively unconsolidated Oxide Sands material can be extracted like an aggregate. The Company is working to better define the Oxide Sands in preparation for their potential extraction.

About MacDonald Mines Exploration Ltd.

MacDonald Mines Exploration Ltd. is a mineral exploration company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario focused on gold exploration in Canada.  The Company has built a portfolio of safe-jurisdiction, infrastructure-rich projects that demonstrate the greatest market potential for return. The Company is aggressively advancing its highly prospective Wawa-Holdsworth Gold Project.

The Company’s common shares trade on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol “BMK”.

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