Hot Air Bench

The Hot Air Bench is a gold mine located in Alaska.

About the MRDS Data:

All mine locations were obtained from the USGS Mineral Resources Data System. The locations and other information in this database have not been verified for accuracy. It should be assumed that all mines are on private property.

Mine Info

Satelite View

MRDS mine locations are often very general, and in some cases are incorrect. Some mine remains have been covered or removed by modern industrial activity or by development of things like housing. The satellite view offers a quick glimpse as to whether the MRDS location corresponds to visible mine remains.

Site Name

Primary: Hot Air Bench
Secondary: Last Chance Creek

Commodity

Primary: Gold

Location

State: Alaska
District: Valdez Creek

Land Status

Not available

Holdings

Not available

Workings

Not available

Ownership

Not available

Production

Not available

Deposit

Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Producer
Operation Type: Unknown
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant:

Physiography

Not available

Mineral Deposit Model

Model Name: Placer Au-PGE

Orebody

Not available

Structure

Not available

Alterations

Not available

Rocks

Not available

Analytical Data

Not available

Materials

Ore: Gold

Comments

Comment (Exploration): Status = Active

Comment (Geology): Age = Quaternary. Most of the bench probably consists of moraines from the last phase of valley glaciation.

Comment (Reference): Primary Reference = This record

Comment (Workings): Workings / Exploration = In 1986, a reconnaissance-scale drilling program tested these gravels. The Last Chance Creek gulch has been mined sporadically since the early days in the district. The most recent mining was in the mid-1980's. The gold is bright and shiny and some nuggets were found (D.L. Stevens, personal observations).

Comment (Deposit): Model Name = Placer Au-PGE (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 39a)

Comment (Production): Production Notes = There has been very small production.

Comment (Geology): Geologic Description = The Hot Air Bench consists mostly of glacial-moraine gravels and of fluvial channels that cross the bench. All of the gravels are auriferous but none is rich enough to mine at this time (1999). A limited cross section is exposed in Last Chance Creek, along the lower portion of the bench, where Valdez Creek fluvial gravels are interbedded with apparently glacial-moraine gravels. In drill holes along the lower portion of the bench there was a large amount of ground water (D. L. Stevens, personal observations).

References

Reference (Deposit): Stevens, D.L., 2001, Alaska Resource Data File, Healy quadrangle: U. S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 01-109, 441 p.

The Top Ten Gold Producing States

These ten states contributed the most to the gold production that built the West from 1848 through the 1930s. The Top Ten Gold Producing States.