VANCOUVER, Aug. 23 /CNW/ - Radius Gold Inc. (TSX-V: RDU): Simon Ridgway, President of Radius Gold, is pleased to provide an update on progress at the Company's Sixty Mile property in the Yukon Territory. Fieldwork is well underway and to date over 1,500 soil samples, 385 auger drill holes, excavator trenching and a low level helicopter magnetic-radiometric-VLF-EM survey have been completed over the property.
The property, which consists of 741 Yukon Quartz Claims covering approximately 140 sq.km. and 30 Alaska State claims covering 14 sq.km., straddles the Yukon/Alaska border west of Dawson City. Radius's exploration target is the bedrock source of the rich placer gold in the creeks of the Sixty Mile gold camp.
Assay results for 30% of the soil and rock sampling are still pending. However, the results received to date are very encouraging and several drill targets have been defined. A drill is being mobilized to the property next week and drilling should be underway before month end. Bedrock gold mineralization has been identified in two distinct geological settings.
1. Gold Associated with Thrust Controlled Tectonic Mélange
Geological mapping, soil sampling and the airborne geophysical program have defined a northeast-trending tectonic mélange unit associated with a thrust or detachment fault zone within a package of schists and quartzites overlain by younger andesitic volcanic rocks. This structural zone strikes through the Sixty Mile district, cross cutting the major gold bearing creeks and is a priority target for Radius. It has been defined to date over a strike length of 8km and over widths varying from 250m to 800m. The high-resolution airborne magnetic and radiometric survey completed over the property clearly defines a radiometric anomaly coincident with the structural zone.
Soil sampling by hand-held and mechanized auger has shown, where sampling was possible, that the unit is locally strongly anomalous in gold and arsenic. Limited trenching conducted within the structural zone has returned encouraging results from a more quartzose schist unit:
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Trench Interval (m) Au (g/t)
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TR10-3 8 1.1
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TR10-2 10 0.9
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and 10 1.6
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TR99-6 13 1.6
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Radius's field crews have experienced some difficulty trenching through thick, frozen overburden. A Rotary Air Blast (RAB) drill was therefore mobilized to the property to drill regularly spaced holes along complete sections through the structural mélange where ridges and road access allow. To date 3,000 ft. of drilling has been completed. The RAB drilling will help to define targets for the main diamond drilling program.
2. Epithermal Gold Mineralization in the Sixty Mile Graben Fault Zone
Soil sampling has defined a strong gold-in-soil anomaly on the southeastern bank of the Sixty Mile river valley. The anomaly, which measures 800m by 300m and is open in all directions, is defined by strongly anomalous gold values associated with andesitic volcanic rocks and an epithermal geochemical signature. Grab samples of the limited bedrock outcrops in the area have returned values from trace up to 5 g/t Au. Two trenches were attempted but again difficulties were encountered with frozen black muck. The mineralization in the valley may be associated with the northeast-trending Sixty Mile graben fault zone and possible splays off that fault. Drilling will test this concept.
About the Sixty Mile Project
Radius has successfully consolidated approximately 12,000 hectares in the Sixty Mile placer gold district, which reportedly produced over 500,000 ounces of gold from the creeks that drain the Company's land position. The hardrock source for this placer gold has never been determined. The regional geology, geochemical signature and structural setting have strong similarities to the setting of International Tower Hill's major Livengood gold discovery in Alaska, a multimillion-ounce gold discovery driven by the search for the source of placer gold in that area.
Gold in the Sixty Mile district was first discovered in 1892, when C. Miller staked claims on what was to become known as Miller Creek. Placer gold mining has been continuous in the district since that time and is still active today.
The properties are located approximately 75 kilometres due west of Dawson, adjacent to the Yukon-Alaska border. Access to the claims is by the posted 15-kilometre-long Sixty Mile Road, from the Top of the World Highway.
Qualified Person
Roger Hulstein, a member of the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia and a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, is responsible for the accuracy of the technical information in this news release, and for overseeing the design and execution of Radius's Sixty Mile exploration program.
About Radius
Radius has been exploring for gold in Latin America for nearly a decade, and has assembled interests in a portfolio of promising gold projects throughout the region, including carried stakes in two small-scale developing gold projects in Guatemala and Nicaragua. Radius also has two 100% owned exploration plays, the HB property in Guatemala and Sixty Mile property in the Yukon Territory - with drilling campaigns for 2010 about to commence.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD
"Simon Ridgway"
Simon Ridgway, President & CEO
Investor relations: Ralph Rushton / Erin Ostrom
Symbol: TSXV-RDU; OTCBB-RDUFF
Shares Issued: 72.9-million
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor the Investment Industry Regulatory
Organization of Canada accepts responsibility for the adequacy or
accuracy of this release.
For further information: on Radius and its properties, please call toll free 1-888-627-9378 or visit our web site (www.radiusgold.com)
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