Mineral Investigations in the Aniak Mining District, Southwestern Alaska, 2004 Field Season

The Aniak Mining District study focuses on the evaluation of mineral resources in a large, approximately 27 million-acre (11 million hectares) area of southwestern Alaska, expanded to include parts of the adjacent Anvik, Iditarod, Innoko, Marshall, and McGrath Mining Districts. Fieldwork for the district evaluation will be completed in three years and followed by the publication of a comprehensive, district-wide report in year four. The second season of the three-year field investigation was completed in 2004 by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Alaska State Office, Solid Minerals Branch.

The 2004 field investigation examined properties in the central one-third of the district, which includes the gold occurrences at Donlin Creek and Flat, in addition to placer and lode prospects in the Napaimiut, Taylor Mountains, Fortyseven Creek, and George River areas. The historic DeCourcy Mountain and Red Devil area mercury deposits, as well as placer gold occurrences along the Oskawalik River, were investigated. A 64-sample soil survey grid completed in the Eagle Creek area followed-up reconnaissance data provided by Calista Corporation. In all, 86 mineral occurrences were evaluated and 290 samples collected during the 2004 Aniak Mining District mineral investigation.