| Talk about lousy timing. In the summer of
| |
| | correlated with the tuff that hosts
|
| 1980, exploration manager Clancy Wendt,
| |
| | beryllium deposits nearby.
|
| then working for Phillips Uranium, a
| |
| | Another indicator mineral suggesting
|
| subsidiary of the oil company, had three
| |
| | uranium mineralization came about by
|
| rigs and a crew drilling mile centers in
| |
| | accident on the first pass two decades
|
| Utah's Thomas mountain range. They
| |
| | ago. "When I drove up in my truck and I
|
| drilled between 60 and 70 holes, over
| |
| | started walking toward the drill rig,"
|
| every square mile, looking for altered
| |
| | Wendt remembered. "I thought for a minute
|
| versus unaltered rock to indicate
| |
| | the drillers had been dumping cottonseed
|
| uranium. One of those drill holes
| |
| | hulls. (Drillers sometimes use cottonseed
|
| encountered 0.05% U3O8 over a 100-foot
| |
| | hulls to plug up formations that might
|
| thickness at a depth of 900 feet. Shortly
| |
| | suck up water.) Instead of hulls, I'm
|
| thereafter, Clancy Wendt was transferred
| |
| | looking at this long line of black quartz
|
| to the company's minerals division,
| |
| | crystals on the rocks." Smoky quartz, or
|
| Phillips drilled a few more holes, and
| |
| | black quartz, crystals are formed through
|
| oh, by the way, there had been an
| |
| | natural radiation coming from nearby
|
| accident about 2,000 miles away near
| |
| | uranium deposits. That confirmed for
|
| Middletown, Pennsylvania, at a place
| |
| | Wendt that a uranium deposit was in the
|
| called Three Mile Island. Utilities
| |
| | vicinity. "It's not an indicator mineral
|
| stopped building reactors and the uranium
| |
| | in all systems, but it is in this one,"
|
| exploration business came to a grinding
| |
| | said Wendt.
|
| halt.
| |
| | Reverse Circulation Drilling Could
|
| Phillips Petroleum got out of the
| |
| | Increase Grade
|
| minerals business, and Clancy Wendt went
| |
| | Asked if he would find uranium during
|
| on to discover the Mt. Hamilton gold
| |
| | this month's drill program, Wendt
|
| deposit in the Carlin Trend for another
| |
| | chuckled after answering "Yep." Why is he
|
| company. But that drill hole about 150
| |
| | certain he would when most geologists
|
| miles southwest of Salt Lake City never
| |
| | pause on questions asking for a
|
| stopped bugging him. "When you find
| |
| | guarantee? "Because I found it there
|
| something, you always remember that,"
| |
| | before," Wendt laughed. "If I hadn't
|
| Wendt told "I was working with it day
| |
| | drilled the hole there before, I would
|
| and night. That was my project." And it
| |
| | waffle, too. After the first hole, I
|
| is his project again today.
| |
| | don't promise any guarantees. That's the
|
| After a twenty-odd-year hiatus, Wendt
| |
| | one I drilled." Why test what was once
|
| staked 540 acres of the property, which
| |
| | drilled in 1980? "We're going to re-drill
|
| had been abandoned, and then optioned the
| |
| | to confirm the hole so that it complies
|
| 27 claims to Max Resource Corp (TSX: MXR;
| |
| | with National Instrument 43-101," Wendt
|
| OTC BB: MXORF) for what both parties
| |
| | explained. "Secondly, we want to get a
|
| called a reasonable sum. Since then, Max
| |
| | good sample that we can assay."
|
| Resource Corp staked around those claims,
| |
| | His comment about getting a "good sample"
|
| and increased the company's land position
| |
| | to assay opened the door to the previous
|
| to 195 lode claims comprising 3,900 acres
| |
| | drilling, which was mud rotary style.
|
| in the Thomas Mountain range. "We staked
| |
| | Wendt explained how mud rotary drilling
|
| the entire caldera rim," Wendt explained,
| |
| | was done over 25 years ago at the present
|
| "because that is exactly where I think
| |
| | site:
|
| the uranium is going to be, within that
| |
| | "You would dig two pits, like baby
|
| rim or within the moat inside that rim."
| |
| | swimming pools, next to each other, and
|
| Wendt is now the vice president of
| |
| | fill both of them up with water. The rig
|
| exploration for Max Resource Corp.
| |
| | would start drilling a hole. Out of the
|
| Max Resource Corp President Stuart Rogers
| |
| | hole would come the material that you're
|
| is quite thrilled with the upcoming
| |
| | grinding. It would go in the first pit,
|
| exploration of the caldera rim that he
| |
| | which would be the settling pond for any
|
| hopes will yield an economic grade of
| |
| | of the material coming out of the hole.
|
| uranium, "It's felt that the caldera was
| |
| | Material would then flow over into the
|
| the source of the mineralization for the
| |
| | next hole where you've got your intake
|
| nearby Yellow Chief uranium mine." A
| |
| | hose pumping the water back down into the
|
| caldera is a large crater formed by
| |
| | hole. You would catch your sample coming
|
| volcanic explosion or by the collapse of
| |
| | out of a pipe with a colander (just like
|
| a volcanic cone. "This is one that didn't
| |
| | you would for a salad or spaghetti). You
|
| get on the radar screen because it just
| |
| | would catch up the ground up material,
|
| had the one ore grade hole on it before
| |
| | and dump a lump of it on the ground every
|
| they stopped exploration," Rogers
| |
| | five feet, building 20 piles of material
|
| explained about the PPCO claims. "Clancy
| |
| | in a row - that's a hundred feet. And you
|
| was one of the few guys who knew about
| |
| | would just keep plopping them down. When
|
| it."
| |
| | you got to whatever depth you were going
|
| The Geological Significance
| |
| | to do it to, you would stop."
|
| Who would have remembered Utah's Yellow
| |
| | Wendt agreed this was not a very
|
| Chief, a uranium mine defunct since the
| |
| | scientific method in determining grades.
|
| early 1960s? It was a small producing
| |
| | "When you dumped it on the ground, you
|
| open pit mine of less than 100,000 metric
| |
| | really didn't get a great sample for
|
| tons with a grade of 0.20 - 0.23 percent
| |
| | assay," he laughed. "You're only getting
|
| U3O8 in the middle of a desert in a
| |
| | the chunky material. Any of the "real
|
| mountain range. Delta, the closest town,
| |
| | fine" material" would go through the
|
| is 20 miles away with a population of
| |
| | colander. Wendt is optimistic about
|
| 3209, according to the last census.
| |
| | establishing a more accurate grade from
|
| Uranium might be the last thought on
| |
| | the upcoming drill program, "It should
|
| anyone's mind. About 1.5 miles west at
| |
| | come in higher." How will reverse
|
| Spor Mountain is the world's largest
| |
| | circulation provide a different grade?
|
| economic beryllium deposit, owned by
| |
| | "With reverse circ, you are sucking the
|
| Brush Wellman (NYSE: BW).
| |
| | material right up out of the center of
|
| Like enriched uranium, beryllium is high
| |
| | the pipe," Wendt emphasized. "You are not
|
| up on the U.S. government's classified
| |
| | losing the fine material."
|
| list. Beryllium is a strategic material
| |
| | Another reason for reverse circulation is
|
| used in most sophisticated U.S. weapon
| |
| | Wendt believes the system is "probably
|
| systems, used to control reactors on
| |
| | 6-7 million years old and in
|
| nuclear powered submarines and surface
| |
| | disequilibrium." He clarified, "This
|
| vessels, as a triggering device for
| |
| | means that you have a reading on the
|
| nuclear warheads, and used in guidance,
| |
| | electronic probe that may give you a
|
| optical and satellite systems for which
| |
| | lower reading than is really there."
|
| there are no substitute metals. Needless
| |
| | Lindsay's geological survey report points
|
| to say, there probably won't be much
| |
| | in the same direction, "Mineralogical and
|
| environmental challenge in Utah for
| |
| | geochemical studies of the (water-laid)
|
| uranium mining. Clancy Wendt observed,
| |
| | tuff have shown it is extensively
|
| "This is an area that is well known for
| |
| | zeolitized, leached of alkali metals, and
|
| mining. They all want mining to happen.
| |
| | likely to have been leached of uranium by
|
| It helps the community. The Brush Wellman
| |
| | ground water, so that the tuff is a
|
| mine runs all year long."
| |
| | possible source for the uranium at the
|
| Back to the Yellow Chief mine. Discovered
| |
| | Yellow Chief mine."
|
| by prospectors in 1953, the ore zone was
| |
| | The historic grade at the Yellow Chief
|
| outlined by rotary drilling in 1955 and
| |
| | was 0.2 percent. How would Clancy Wendt
|
| open pit mining of tabular ore lenses
| |
| | feel if the new drilling brought in 0.2?
|
| began in 1959. Most of the ore was mined
| |
| | "If I had 100 feet of 0.2, then I'm in
|
| by 1962. Stuart Rogers explained, "Most
| |
| | heaven. I would have over $100 in my
|
| people agree the Yellow Chief stopped
| |
| | rock. That would be like drilling 100
|
| production because mineralization was
| |
| | feet of 0.3 gold. Would that attract
|
| faulted off to the east." And that is the
| |
| | anyone?" He knows it would. Perhaps the
|
| direction where Max Resource Corp is
| |
| | timing was bad for Phillips Uranium, but
|
| going.
| |
| | just perfect for a very patient Clancy
|
| Wendt explained the geology of the
| |
| | Wendt and Max Resource Corp. As a side
|
| caldera, "The age of the mineralization
| |
| | note, and a possible parallel, there's
|
| is very young, when compared to uranium
| |
| | now an oil rush in central Utah,
|
| in Wyoming. It's between 27 and 34
| |
| | according to Associated Press in Salt
|
| million years. It's found within the
| |
| | Lake City. It appears a tiny
|
| caldera ring of the vent within a major
| |
| | Michigan-based oil and gas exploration
|
| vent, which is 40 to 50 miles across.
| |
| | company triggered the "oil rush" after a
|
| Right at the edge of the circle (it
| |
| | wildcat strike. Before then, the region
|
| stands out just like a circle on a
| |
| | had a history of frustrating oil
|
| topography map or land sat image), is
| |
| | exploration. Will a uranium discovery by
|
| where we found the mineralization." Wendt
| |
| | Max Resource Corp trigger a 1950's style
|
| added, "It is postulated that this vent
| |
| | uranium boom in western Utah?
|
| was the source rock for the Yellow Chief
| |
| | On July 6, 1952, Charlie A. Steen struck
|
| sediments. I am hoping a great deal of
| |
| | the biggest deposit of high-grade uranium
|
| the ring itself will be mineralized
| |
| | ore in the United States on the other
|
| because that's a nice conduit area. It's
| |
| | side of Utah. School teachers, insurance
|
| an area that's going to be permeable
| |
| | brokers, used car salesmen, and shoe
|
| because it's along the ring fracture of
| |
| | clerks around the nation rushed to Utah
|
| the major vent."
| |
| | to seek their fortune. A group of high
|
| David A. Lindsay of the U.S. Geological
| |
| | school students staked forty claims,
|
| Survey (Denver) who has written
| |
| | later selling them for $15,000. Within a
|
| extensively about mineralization in
| |
| | few years, nearly six hundred producers
|
| western Utah, wrote in a 1978 report,
| |
| | were shipping uranium ore. Employment in
|
| where Yellow Chief was mined and where
| |
| | the industry topped 8,000 workers in the
|
| Max Resource Corp plans to drill,
| |
| | mines and mills. Salt Lake City was
|
| "Uranium occurs in four diverse settings
| |
| | dubbed "The Wall Street of Uranium." The
|
| in the Thomas Range:
| |
| | boom ended in 1964 when the Atomic Energy
|
| 1. In tuffaceous sandstone and
| |
| | Commission announced, "It is no longer in
|
| conglomerate at the Yellow Chief mine,
| |
| | the interest of the Government to expand
|
| 2. In beryllium deposits in water-laid
| |
| | production of uranium concentrate." A lot
|
| tuff,
| |
| | has changed over those three decades.
|
| 3. In fluorspar pipes, and
| |
| | Since 2001, spot uranium has jumped by
|
| 4. In veinlets of opaline silica in
| |
| | more than 500 percent. Accompanying the
|
| volcanic rocks of all ages."
| |
| | new uranium upswing, many of the old
|
| Wendt, who has talked with Lindsay about
| |
| | projects in Wyoming, New Mexico and
|
| the geology at Thomas Mountain, said this
| |
| | elsewhere are being revived. According to
|
| about the beryllium tuft, "The
| |
| | a USA Today article published in mid
|
| mineralization found in our drill hole, I
| |
| | January, "...a new generation of
|
| think, is in the beryllium tuff unit. If
| |
| | prospectors is staking thousands of
|
| it is not that unit then it is probably
| |
| | claims in the desert Southwest." The Utah
|
| the source." Wendt also explained that
| |
| | Geological Survey said more than 6,000
|
| background or trace values might be
| |
| | uranium claims were filed in 2005. Max
|
| present, but economic values of beryllium
| |
| | Resource Corp's uranium project in Utah
|
| would be very unusual. Ore occurs in
| |
| | may be one of those worth investigating.
|
| tuffaceous sandstone that has been
| |
| |
|
