The 50/50 joint venture between Buchans Minerals & Benton Resources has now completed an autumn drilling program comprised of 8 holes totaling 823 metres to test mineralized quartz veins and float associated with the Goldquest trend, an open-ended 750 metre long trend defined by anomalous gold in bedrock and float. Results include intersections of mineralized quartz veins in the Goldquest North area, including 5.49 g/t gold and 4.5 g/t silver over 0.30 metres as well as 2.13 g/t gold and 8.4 g/t silver over 0.10 metres. All four holes in the north area returned anomalous assays exceeding 0.5 g/t gold, intersecting multiple sulphide bearing quartz veins ranging from centimetres to 0.3 metres in width. The four holes drilled in the Goldquest South area intersected variably mineralized bedrock containing minor quartz veins with anomalous gold values; however, no large veins similar to the abundant high-grade quartz float discovered by recent prospecting and trenching were intersected in either of the four holes drilled in this area. For full details of the results please refer to the news release of November 25th, 2011.

2011 Summer Trenching Program
The 50/50 joint venture between Buchans Minerals & Benton Resources has now completed a summer trenching program that has identified additional mineralized quartz material in bedrock and float, enhancing our understanding of the mineralized system and its potential to host high grade gold mineralization over an open ended, 750 metre long trend. Based on these results, the joint venture have submitted permit applications to undertake an 8 hole drill program (875m) to commence in September.

At the Goldquest North area, trenching has extended the gold-bearing quartz vein over a minimum strike length of 35 metres in bedrock, where the vein varies in width between 0.20 m and 0.45 m and dips steeply to subverticaly to the west. New exposures have returned channel samples assaying 0.064 g/t Au over 0.22 m, 0.81 g/t Au over 0.40 m, and 5.5 g/t Au over 0.45 m respectively. Excessive overburden prevented further excavation of the vein which remains open along strike in both directions.

To date, prospecting and trenching along the Goldquest Trend has returned assays collected form quartz in bedrock and float ranging between 0.005 g/t and 123.81 g/t Au. Of a total of 52 samples collected from mineralized quartz float and bedrock in 2010 and 2011, assays for gold and silver range between 0.005 g/t and 123.8 g/t gold (average 12.8 g/t, median 0.82 g/t) and between 0.2 g/t and 425.7 g/t silver (average 75.9 g/t, median 4.2 g/t). A table summarizing assay highlights from the 2011 trenching program is presented below. A map showing the property location, assay sample locations and highlights is presented on Buchans Minerals’ website at http://www.buchansminerals.com. 

2010 Discovery
In late 2010 and early 2011 the joint venture completed prospecting activities that identified abundant mineralized quartz vein material containing trace to several percent sulphides and assaying up to 106.38 g/t gold and 364.3 g/t silver in float samples as well as grab samples from outcrop assaying up to 8.52 g/t gold and 30.7 g/t silver.

The prospecting program that made the original Goldquest discovery utilized local forestry tracks and successfully identified two areas of highly anomalous samples located on two separate logging tracks located more than 1 kilometre apart. Samples derived from float and subcrop material at the original discovery site (north area) returned values as high as 18.3 g/t gold and 87.1 g/t silver, whilst samples derived from the second anomalous area (south area) returned assays as high as 106.38 g/t gold and 364.3 g/t silver. Numerous other samples located in close proximity to these two main anomalous areas returned gold assays in excess of 10 g/t.

A subsequent soil sampling grid measuring 1,000m x 600m over the original Goldquest discovery site successfully identified an anomalous trend who’s orientation pointed from the north area down to the south area located more than 1 kilometre away, leading to the current interpretation that a mineralized trend extends between the two mineralized areas and remains open in both strike directions. Although there is currently no prospecting or sampling in the area between the two mineralized areas an expanded soil geochemical survey will be conducted in March 2011 that will test for possible strike extensions and parallel or cross-cutting structures. A map showing the expanded soil geochemical grid is visible  in the images to the right. In addition, several gold-bearing float samples have been discovered up to 150 to 325 metres off the main Goldquest trend, including samples assaying up to 21.99 g/t gold and 84.0 g/t silver, and suggest additional parallel mineralized trends may be present.

Subsequent to the prospecting program and soil grid, a two-day excavating program was undertaken over the original discovery site in the north area that successfully exposed mineralized quartz veins within meta-granitic bedrock measuring up to 0.7 metres wide and returning grab samples assaying up to 8.52 g/t gold and 30.7 g/t silver. A table summarizing assay highlights for the discovery is presented below.

The Companies are greatly encouraged by the high gold values and wide spread mineralization associated with the Goldquest discovery and have expanded the land position by staking 128 additional claims covering 32 square kilometers. Ongoing work on the prospect will initially focus on expanding the soil geochemistry grid over the upcoming winter months in preparation for more expansive prospecting and trenching once the winter thaw is over. The goal of the spring prospecting and trenching will be aimed towards identifying future drill targets for the second half of 2011. These results represent the first recorded discovery of gold in this particular geologic environment of interior Newfoundland. A search of previous exploration work filed with the government of Newfoundland and Labrador indicates no previous exploration has been filed within several kilometres of the discovery. The discovery is located less than 10 kilometres from paved highway 480 and less than 10 kilometres south of existing power lines.

The program will test two key locations along the Goldquest Trend: the Goldquest South area, where prospecting and trenching have identified additional high-grade mineralized float 50 metres east of high-grade float discovered in late 2010; and the Goldquest North area, where mineralization has been located in bedrock.

At the Goldquest South area, trenching unearthed abundant gold-bearing quartz float within the till, including partially disaggregated slabs measuring up to 10 m x 0.5 m with smaller angular blocks measuring up to 25 cm in diameter. Samples collected from this float material returned assays of up to 123.81 g/t gold and 414.2 g/t silver as well as 104.10 g/t gold and 425.7 g/t silver. These newly discovered quartz float samples were identified within the till bed and located approximately 50 metres east of previously discovered surface float samples that returned assays up to 106.38 g/t gold and 364.3 g/t silver (announced January 10, 2011). Glacial transport directions recently identified in trenched bedrock exposures in the Goldquest South area suggest the float was likely transported from east to west. Given the abundance, size and angularity of the float, the Companies believe the bedrock source may lie immediately east of existing trenches, where thick overburden prevented further testing by trenching. The Companies further believe this location represents high priority target for discovery of a significant, high-grade, vein-hosted, gold deposit.