Project Description
Location and Access
The Zulu claims lie 14 miles southwest of the town of Payson. The property is on USFS land in the Tonto National Forest. USFS roads access several points on the property and well-maintained unpaved roads are about 1.5 miles away. The Payson- Roosevelt Highway is a further 4 miles.
Geology and Mineralization
Green Valley District which is underlain by Payson Ophiolite that includes volcanics, sheeted dike swarms, diorite, gabbro, and tonalite. This lies on a basement complex of granitic rocks that include felsic volcanics and volcaniclastic rocks. The Green Valley District is highly fractured and faulted with fissures with auriferous quartz veins. High grade, free milling gold was initially mined above the water table.
The Zulu claims property is underlain by diorite intruded by granite porphyry dikes. Gold is reported to be found in quartz veins on the property ranging in value from 0.02 opt to 5.94 opt. The main vein strikes northwest for 4,000 feet but may extend further. It is 15 feet wide bordered by walls of altered granite. Numerous smaller veins of varying size occur on the property that reportedly all are gold-bearing.
History and Exploration Plans
Claims were first staked in 1878 by Sam Hill. At one point in the 1880s a pocket of gold ore that fit into a wheelbarrow was found worth $7,000 at gold prices of that period. Mining followed a high-grade vein that was reported to be 20 feet in width. Development consisted of a 200-foot deep two compartment shaft. Ore was initially processed by arrastra and in later years shipped south to Globe. The old workings are now caved. The mine was later extensively explored by dozer trenching. A heap leach operation was run by two miners in the early 1980s.
Recent work by the Company has included a geophysical survey, sampling and mapping. Further steps at this property are currently being considered based on new data.