Dear shareholder,
The following response was provided by Evolving Gold Management.
In spite of the large number of drill holes we have completed at Rattlesnake, we are still in the exploration stage of defining this alkalic gold system. We compare this system to Cripple Creek to a significant extent because of the similarities in the geology of the two systems. That being said, we have not fully defined the lateral extent of the Rattlesnake system. In our latest news release we identified, for example, five exploration targets that we have yet to drill with even one hole.
The diatreme complex at Rattlesnake is about a third the size of the Cripple Creek diatreme complex, but it is important to recognize that mineralization at Rattlesnake is not restricted to the diatreme complex and extends well into the surrounding schist. At the Antelope Basin target area the mineralization is hosted by an intrusion and not by the diatreme breccia. The mineralized porphyry we have identified south and southeast of the North Stock zone still awaits considerable more drilling to define its size and extent. The fact that some of the untested targets also appear to include porphyry outcrops in zones of anomalous surface gold samples and alteration suggests additional size potential to the porphyry target which will be extensively tested in 2010.
We have identified significant gold intersections to a depth of 700 meters below the surface, and the mineralization appears to remain open to depth. Cripple Creek was mined to a depth of about 1,000 meters by the underground mining operations. The shape of the mineralized systems in both areas is similar, with a steep component.
We do not have a resource estimate for Rattlesnake and have not modeled the mineralization to examine such things as strip ratio. Some of the mineralization begins at the "grass roots", but the details of how this system would be mined await a lot more work, compilation and modeling.
Every gold system has its own specific characteristics. Each one is different, but the geological similarities between Rattlesnake Hills and Cripple Creek provide important guides for our exploration efforts and help us understand the size potential of the systems we are exploring.
Hope this adequately addresses your questions.
Regards,
AGORACOM