Relation of Gold Deposits to Structure, Yellowknife and Gordon ?Lake Areas, Northwest Territories

THIS paper relates to an area of more than 5,000 square miles in the Northwest Territories extending north from Great Slave lake and including-the Yellowknife, Beaulieu River and Gordon lake areas. Within the last three years much interest in the area has been created by the discovery of remarkably rich gold-bearing veins and the realization that thousands of square miles of unprospected ground are underlain by rocks like those in which the veins have been found. Probably there were more prospectors in this area in 1938 than in any other part of Canada. The area lies 650 miles north of Edmonton, and 425 miles north of the terminus of the Northern Alberta railway at Waterways, Alberta. The Athabaska and Slave rivers provide an excellent water route from Waterways to Great Slave lake for large oil and wood burning boats and barges which operate from the latter part of May to October. The only portage is around a 16-mile stretch of rapids on the Slave river between Fort Fitzgerald and Fort Smith. The town of Yellowknife, on the north side of Great Slave lake, has sprung into existence during the past year and is the centre for distribution of supplies for the Yellowknife-Beaulieu region. The Con-Rycon and Negus gold mines, which came into production in September, 1938, and February, 1939, respectively, lie about two miles south of the townsite. Excellent airplane service is available from Edmonton to Yellowknife and from Yellowknife to all parts of the area. The prospector and mining operator have come to rely almost entirely on the airplane for supplies and for the transportation of personnel, camp equipment, and canoes from Yellowknife to localities selected for intensive prospecting.