Lucky Strike Prospect, Kantishna Mining District, Denali Borough, Alaska, USAi

Regional Level Types
Lucky Strike Prospect	Prospect
Kantishna Mining District	Mining District
Denali Borough	Borough
Alaska	State
USA	Country

The prospect is in Denali National Park and Preserve.
Location: The Lucky Strike prospect (Cobb, 1980 [OFR 80-363]) is on the lower slope of Quigley Ridge, on the east side of the Kantishna road along Moose Creek. It is at an elevation of about 1750 feet, about 3000 feet northwest of Kantishna. The prospect corresponds to number 5 of Cobb (1972 [MF 366]), 5 of MacKevett and Holloway (1977), 13 of Bundtzen, Smith, and Tosdal (1976), 16 of Bundtzen (1981), and 26 of Thornsberry, McKee, and Salisbury (1984).
Geology: The country rocks at the Lucky Strike prospect are mainly quartz-muscovite semischist of felsic volcanic origin. The rocks are part of the Spruce Creek sequence (Bundtzen, 1981). The prospect is immediately northwest of an inferred high-angle fault that separates Spruce Creek sequence rocks from the Birch Creek Schist (Thornsberry, McKee, and Salisbury, 1984, fig. K-2). The discovery vein on the patented Lucky Strike claim strikes N. 59 E., and dips 84 SE, roughly parallel to the attitude of the inferred fault (Davis, 1923, p. 124); the vein is at least 6 feet thick and consists mainly of quartz and siderite. The average grade of two samples across a 6 foot width was about 0.045 ounce of gold per ton and 8.2 ounces of silver per ton. A second vein, poorly exposed in cuts about 125 feet to the north of the discovery cut, appears to be at least 8 feet thick. Higher-grade material has been reported at the prospect. Moffit (1933, p. 331) was told of samples that contained more than 0.4 ounce of gold per ton. Bundtzen (1981, table 9) reported free gold, galena, sphalerite, and lesser amounts of tetrahedrite in the deposit.
Workings: The claims were explored by open cuts and a short drift adit driven before 1922 (Davis, 1923); the workings were caved by 1931 (Moffit, 1933). There has been no important work on the prospect since then.
Age: The deposit is assumed to be Eocene (see record MM091).
Production: Possible minor production of gold and silver ore in about 1922.

Commodities (Major) - Ag, Au; (Minor) - Cu, Pb, Zn
Development Status: Undetermined.
Deposit Model: Polymetallic vein (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 22c).

Other Databases

Link to USGS - Alaska:	MM135

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References