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  SUMMARY
The Joy Gold Prospect is located ~ 60km northeast of Keno City in Central Yukon. The prospect and surrounding claim blocks are favorably located directly southeast of the main ore-hosting zone of the Rau Gold Property, giving the Joy Prospect similar potential to host gold mineralization. Gold mineralization at Rau Gold's property consists of both oxide and sulphide styles hosted in lower Paleozoic carbonate rocks of the Bouvette Formation. The style of mineralization observed at the Rau property is comparable to that found in the giant Carlin-type gold deposits of north-eastern Nevada where submicron size gold is hosted within pyrite contained in lower Paleozoic carbonate rocks that form the footwall to the Roberts Mountains Thrust Fault. Road infrastructure in the region is restricted to dirt roads and trails in the Keno City region, with some trails leading north through the Rau property. Current aggressive drilling and sampling programs at the adjacent Rau property are a potential source of access improvement.
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Figure 1. Location of the Joy Prospect with respect to other known mineral occurrences and camps.
LOCATION
The Joy prospect is located on a 7.3 km x 3.6 km claim block, ~ 60 km northeast of Keno City, central Yukon and approximately 15 km east-northeast of ATAC Resources' Rau Gold property (Figure 1). The Joy prospect lies along strike between the Tiger and Osiris Zones of the Rau Gold property.
EXPLORATION HISTORY
Beginning with the Klondike Gold Rush in 1896, gold mining has been ingrained in the Yukon culture for over one hundred years. Since 1896, over 12.5 million ounces of gold have been produced from the Territory with a present day worth of approximately $15.6 billion USD. However, the Yukon Territory is still relatively unexplored, with mining camps having the potential for springing to fruition over incredibly short times. E.g., Capstone Resources' Cu-Au-Ag Minto Mine: claims purchased in 2005, and mining commenced in 2007 (SRK Consulting, 2009). Presently there are about 80 mineral deposits in the Yukon with published official reserves. Approximately 2,700 known mineral occurrences are yet to be thoroughly investigated with modern exploration technologies.
The area covered by the Joy Prospect has been the focus of sporadic lead-zinc exploration between 1967 and 1980. The area's tungsten potential was identified near the end of this period, but was not examined in detail. In 2006, ATAC was attracted to the area by 99th percentile gold (150 ppb) and tungsten (25 ppm) values from a GSC reconnaissance silt sample. In 2006 and 2007, ATAC conducted limited mapping and soil sampling of the area directly north of the Joy Prospect. In 2008, 18 diamond drill holes targeted geochemical anomalies in that area, resulting in discovery of sediment-hosted replacement-style gold, in a similar style to the giant Carlin-type gold deposits of northeastern Nevada. These discoveries are currently being developed as the Rau Gold Property.
GEOLOGY AND MINERAL POTENTIAL
The Joy Prospect occurs within Selwyn Basin sedimentary rocks, a package of Cambrian -- Paleozoic clastic and carbonate rocks. These rocks are the same host rocks that contain the Osiris Zone at the Rau Property. The Rau gold property lies within a band of regional-scale thrust faults, including the Tombstone, Dawson and Robert Service Thrusts that imbricate rocks of the Selwyn Basin and Mackenzie Platform. The thrust panel that contains the Rau property approximately straddles the boundary between Selwyn Basin and Mackenzie Platform and contains units belonging to both tectonic elements. The Rau gold discovery lies within a 22 km long anomalous trend, which has been traced by soil and silt geochemistry and helicopter-borne VTEM and magnetic surveys west-northwesterly from a high-level, Late Cretaceous granitic stock. Gold occurs within sulphide minerals that wholly or partially replace dolomitized horizons along the crest of an anticline. The sulphide minerals are locally concentrated beneath a stacked series of sericitized volcaniclastic beds, which may have acted as impermeable caps (ATAC Resources, 2009).
The style of gold mineralization at the Rau Gold Property has been compared to Carlin-style gold mineralization in Nevada which accounts for nearly 1/10 of global gold production. Host rock geology of the Joy Prospect, and the Rau Gold Property is similar to that hosting Carlin-type gold deposits. A permeable carbonate sedimentary footwall allows for the passage of gold-bearing hydrothermal fluid and precipitation of metals while an impermeable volcaniclastic hangingwall sequence inhibits flow of ore-forming fluids. Hence, the area directly beneath the impermeable hangingwall sequence is a robust target for the pooling of gold-bearing hydrothermal fluids and the subsequent concentration of gold. Similarly, secondary fault structures occurring off primary fault structures are also strong targets for the focusing of gold-bearing fluids.
ACCESS AND INFRASTRUCTURE
The Joy Prospect is located in semi-mountainous terrain, similar to ridge and spur topography of the Rau Property to the North. A number of roads exist between Keno City and the Rau claim blocks however roads do not extend into the claim blocks hosting the Joy Prospect. Drilling at the Rau property is dominantly helicopter supported, hence drilling at the Joy Prospect would most efficiently be helicopter supported with the additional possibility of seasonal camps and all-terrain-vehicles.
Phase II Work Program Results
Phase I Maps
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