Toodoggone: Gold, Silver and Copper District in British Columbia

Toodoggone: A mineral-rich district

A 2003 BC Geological Survey said that regional geological and metallogenic studies of the Toodoggone River map area conducted over the past 20 years demonstrate that the porphyry and epithermal styles of mineralization in the district formed “200 to 190 million years ago.” Today, explorers informally link the Toodoggone with the Golden Triangle in what is known as the “Golden Horseshoe.”

Exploration for porphyry copper deposits in the Toodoggone began in the late 1960s. A significant development was Kennco Exploration’s stream sediment geochemical results, which indicated anomalous gold and silver concentrations at the time. This was followed by production in the early 1980s to the 1990s, with DuPont mining the Baker deposit (now owned by TDG Gold) and Cheni Gold operating the Lawyers property (now owned by Thesis Gold and Silver) until 1992. The district’s largest historic producer, Kemess South, ran from 1998 to 2011 and produced about 3 million ounces of gold and 750 million pounds of copper.

Different deposit styles dominate different parts of the district. Porphyry deposits such as Kemess are exposed in the south, while epithermal deposits dominate the central and northern areas. A Geoscience BC-funded study by the University of BC's Mineral Deposit Research Unit concluded that the range of mineralization suggests deeper porphyry deposits could sit beneath the shallow epithermal ones. In practice, a near-surface gold-silver discovery can point to a larger system below.

Large parts of the district have seen limited modern work, with much of earlier exploration worked with older methods. Explorers are now applying modern, systematic exploration methods and advanced technology such as induced polarization surveys, ground penetrating radar, satellite remote sending imaging, LiDAR and drone-based magnetic surveys to cost effectively identify new targets. A growing quiver of tools is aiding to advance exploration is also in the Toodoggone and BC in general.

A prominent feature aiding acces in the district is the Omineca Resource Access Road, previously maintained by Cheni Gold Mines. The road is currently owned by the BC government as public Crown land managed by the BC Ministry of Forests. It primarily provides access to the Toodoggone from Mackenzie. Several mining and exploration companies rely on this Access Road

In 2024, BC's Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation reported a C$195 million budget for a federal-provincial highway upgrade in Northwestern BC. The funding is meant to enhance road safety in portions such as Highway 37, alongside improved access to services for local communities and for the development of critical minerals.

Growing resource activity

Recent developments in past-producing mines and new discoveries in the Toodoggone include:

• Lawyers-Ranch: Thesis Gold & Silver (TSXV:TAU,OTCQX:THSGF) has completed a prefeasibility study and commenced permitting for the project in December 2025. Regarded as one of Canada’s largest undeveloped mineral resources, the project contains 4.6 million ounces of epithermal-style gold-equivalent ounces.

• Kemess project: Current operator Centerra Gold (TSX:CG,NYSE:CGAU) said that the past-producing mine’s preliminary economic assessment outlined a combined open pit and underground operation with a 15 year mine life.

• AngloGold and Thesis Gold & Silver: AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU,JSE:ANG) took a roughly 5 percent stake in Thesis Gold & Silver in February 2026, raised to 9.7 percent in August through a C$58.5 million investment.

• Theory project: Sun Summit Minerals (TSXV:SMN,OTCQB:SMREF) commenced a fully funded, 10,000 meter program at its JD project in June 2026, and approved a three phase exploration program at the Theory copper-gold project.

Omega Pacific Resources: Advancing the GIC gold discovery

With its flagship Williams property in the Golden Horseshoe, Omega Pacific Resources is among the notable companies in the Toodoggone’s reemergence.

The project is home to three defined mineralized zones, GIC, ROI and T-Bill. GIC, which is prospective for gold, intersected gold in all four holes during its 2024 inaugural drill program. That gold discovery, which intersected multiple 200 gram meter holes (1.69 g/t Au over 104 meters and 2.16 g/t Au over 96.9 meters), lies within an 1,800 m long gold geochemical signature. The GIC mineralization is open in all directions. Two km directly east of GIC, the ROI copper-gold target extends another three km. These two primary targets also lie within a magnetic high geophysical target more than 12 kilometers long.

Drilling at GIC began in September 2026, designed to deliver results similar to the 2024 program and set up for an expanded Phase 2 drill program in 2027 at both GIC and ROI. As part of the 2026 exploration program, Omega Pacific also mapped and sampled across both the GIC and ROI targets, showing highly altered zones covering these two targets spanning a distance of 5 km. Although the 2026 drilling focused on the GIC gold discovery, the company’s technical team is advancing to drill stage at the neighbouring ROI porphyry target, which CEO Jason Leikam described as distinct from GIC but “equally compelling.”

Investor takeaway

The Toodoggone brings together past production and advancing development projects. With established road access, legacy infrastructure, a geological framework linking epithermal and porphyry systems, and multi-lateral government support for mineral development, the district offers an accessible setting for gold, silver and copper exploration.

Companies such as Omega Pacific illustrate how a focused explorer can pursue both deposit styles that define the district and attract strategic partnerships with globally positioned senior miners. Developments from the GIC gold target alongside its neighboring ROI porphyry target at the Williams property can demonstrate Toodoggone’s reemergence and what makes the district especially worth watching now.

This INNspired article is sponsored by Omega Pacific Resources (CSE:OMGA,OTCQB:OMGPF,FWB:Q0F). This INNspired article provides information which was sourced by the Investing News Network (INN) and approved by Omega Pacific Resources in order to help investors learn more about the company. Omega Pacific Resources is a client of INN. The company’s campaign fees pay for INN to create and update this INNspired article.

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