Drill results Marathon Gold Hits High-Grade Intercepts in Step-out Drilling at the Leprechaun Gold Deposit, Valentine Lake
Tuesday, April 03, 2012
TORONTO, April 3, 2012/CNW/ - Marathon Gold Corporation ("Marathon" or the "Company") (MOZ: TSX) today announced the results of 8 new drill holes from the 2012 drilling campaign at the Leprechaun Gold Deposit in Valentine Lake, Newfoundland (Figure 1).Continued step-out drilling has intersected significant new intervals of high-grade mineralization located up to 70 meters down-dip of previously defined Main Zone mineralization at the Leprechaun Gold Deposit.
Results include:
- 4.31 g/t Au over 13.5 meters including 25.42 g/t Au over 1.8 meters and 8.85 g/t Au over 3.6 meters including 32.31 g/t Au over 0.9 meters (Photo 1)in VL-12-393.
- 11.28 g/t Au over 7.65 meters including 41.80 g/t Au over 1.7 meters and 1.75 g/t Au over 14.45 meters including 17.87 g/t Au over 0.85 in VL-12-395.
- 2.41 g/t Au over 17.0 meters including 16.84 g/t Au over 2.0 meters and 3.43 g/t Au over 5.7 meters including 19.61 g/t Au over 0.95 in VL-12-400.
"Our ongoing success with intersecting new intervals of high-grade mineralization in down dip and along strike step out drill holes at the Leprechaun Gold Deposit is exciting as we utilize our proven exploration strategies to continue expanding the boundary of the deposit in 2012", said Phillip Walford, President and CEO of Marathon Gold.
The Valentine LakeProject, including the Leprechaun Gold Deposit, is a 50/50 joint venture between Marathon and Mountain Lake Resources Inc. Both companies are equal contributors to a planned 40,000 meter 2012 drilling program in which Marathon is the operator. The 2012 exploration program has started at the Leprechaun Gold Deposit and will continue to expand southwest into the J. Frank Zoneand northeast into the Sprite Zone. All grades in this release are uncut, and all thicknesses are estimated true thicknesses. A total of 47 drill holes totaling 13,010 meters (32.5%) of the planned 2012 drilling campaign have now been completed.
Highlights:
- The new high-grade Main Zone intercepts in drill holes VL-12-393, VL-12-395, and VL-12-400 provide significant expansion of the Main Zone mineralization as drilling stepped out up to 70 meters down dip from previously drilled mineralization in the central part of the Leprechaun Gold Deposit.
- The high grade intercepts in VL-12-400, located 13 meters south and 30 meters down-dip of the high grade Au intercepts reported in VL-12-397 (news release, March 2, 2012), form part of a 30-60 meter wide, SW dipping high-grade dilational lens of Au that extends 150 meters up dip to near surface, over 100m along strike, and is currently open at depth.
- Significant new near surface Hanging Wall zone mineralization includes 6.19 g/t Au over 3.0 meters including 17.94 g/t Au over 1.0 meters in step out drill hole VL-12-392, and 1.17 g/t Au over 5.0 meters including 4.81 g/t Au over 1.0 meter in VL-12-394.
- Significant new Footwall Zone mineralization includes 3.33 g/t Au over 2.1 meters including 8.43 g/t Au over 0.7 meters in VL-12-393.
- Current drilling at the Leprechaun Gold Deposit is now focused on expanding the deposit to the southwest along strike with three drills focussed between the Leprechaun Gold Deposit and the J. Frank Zone.
TABLE 1: Significant Assay Intervals from drill holes, Leprechaun Gold Deposit*
| DDH | Section | Zone* | Design | From | To | Core
Length | TT (m) | Gold
(g/t)
Uncut |
| VL-12-392 | 9825 | HW | Step Out | 41 | 44 | 3 | 3 | 6.19 |
| including | | HW | | 42 | 43 | 1 | 1 | 17.94 |
| | | MZ | | 129 | 132 | 3 | 2.85 | 1.05 |
| VL-12-393 | 10400 | MZ | Step Out | 115 | 130 | 15 | 13.5 | 4.31 |
| including | | MZ | (35 m) | 120 | 122 | 2 | 1.8 | 25.42 |
| | | MZ | | 135 | 139 | 4 | 3.6 | 8.85 |
| including | | MZ | | 136 | 137 | 1 | 0.9 | 32.31 |
| | | MZ | | 195 | 198 | 3 | 2.7 | 2.03 |
| | | FW | | 282 | 285 | 3 | 2.1 | 3.33 |
| including | | FW | | 282 | 283 | 1 | 0.7 | 8.43 |
| VL-12-394 | 9875 | HW | In Fill | 3 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 1.17 |
| including | | | | 5 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4.81 |
| | | MZ | | 173 | 176 | 3 | 2.7 | 2.10 |
| VL-12-395 | 10387.5 | MZ | Step Out | 204 | 207 | 3 | 2.55 | 4.38 |
| | | MZ | (70 m) | 252 | 261 | 9 | 7.65 | 11.28 |
| including | | MZ | | 252 | 254 | 2 | 1.7 | 41.80 |
| | | MZ | | 267 | 284 | 17 | 14.45 | 1.75 |
| including | | MZ | | 282 | 283 | 1 | 0.85 | 17.87 |
| VL-12-396 | 9875 | HW | In Fill | 3 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0.58 |
| VL-12-398 | 9925 | HW | Step Out | 128 | 131 | 3 | 3 | 2.29 |
| | | MZ | (80 m) | 274 | 277 | 3 | 2.7 | 2.56 |
| VL-12-399 | 10362.5 | MZ | Step Out | 201 | 206 | 5 | 4 | 2.50 |
| including | | MZ | (30 m) | 203 | 204 | 1 | 0.8 | 6.46 |
| VL-12-400 | 10137.5 | MZ | Step Out | 101 | 108 | 7 | 7 | 5.29 |
| including | | MZ | (60 m) | 105 | 107 | 2 | 2 | 16.84 |
| | | MZ | | 166 | 169 | 3 | 2.85 | 6.70 |
| including | | MZ | | 166 | 167 | 1 | 0.95 | 19.61 |
| | | MZ | | 188 | 191 | 3 | 2.85 | 2.48 |
| | | MZ | | 209 | 212 | 3 | 2.85 | 3.11 |
*Denotes: MZ - main zone, HW - hanging wall zone and FW - foot wall zone
All of the samples were analyzed at Eastern Analytical Laboratory Ltd., in Springdale, Newfoundland. Samples were assayed using lead collection fire assay with AA (atomic absorption) finish. Due to the coarse nature of the gold at the Leprechaun Gold Deposit, the metallic screening method is used on economically important intersections using standard fire assay techniques. The reported values in this release are fire assay results.
Sherry Dunsworth, M.Sc., P. Geo., VP of Exploration, Marathon's Qualified Person, has reviewed the contents for accuracy and has approved this press release on behalf of Marathon.