Montana Gold Claims: For Sale, Lease, or Joint Venture, the Bonanza Gulch Placer & Lode in Mineral County's historic Cedar Creek Mining District District. Contact Marlene Affled, montanagoldclaims.com - Call: 509-389-2606 - Email: marneaffled@mac.com

The Bonanza Gulch combo-claim (160 ac placer + 20 ac lode) presents a high-potential mining asset in a proven gold system. With ~1 mile of gold-favorable drainage, classic trap morphology, historical hydraulic/dredge evidence in the same corridor, and a neighbour that has been mining nearby for 10 years, the Bonanza Gulch claims are well-positioned.  

The snow-fed run-off system ensures strong spring freshet; road access and staging benches support mechanized work; and the internal lode claim adds upside beyond surface gravels. presenting an attractive combination of legacy production, near-term sampling upside and clear path toward pilot extraction.

Bonanza Gulch Placer + Lode – Technical & Historical Report

Project: Oregon Gulch / Big Flat Placer Program, Mineral County, MT

Claims:

Bonanza Gulch Placer – 160 ac (S½ of N½ Sec 2, T15N R28W)

Bonanza Gulch Lode – 20 ac (inside the placer boundary)

1.) Claim Overview & Location

• District & Region: Cedar Creek Historic Mining District, Oregon Creek/Big Flat sub-system.

• Legal Description: South half of the north half of Section 2, Township 15 North, Range 28 West, Mineral County, Montana.

• Configuration: 160-acre placer claim surrounds a 20-acre lode claim—creating a “combo” placer-plus-lode package.

• Access:  Seasonal USFS roads from Superior, MT → spur/2-track into Bonanza Gulch. Feasible for mechanized work May–October.

• Adjoiners: The lode claim lies fully within the placer perimeter, offering shared infrastructure and claims consolidation advantages.

2.)Terrain, Elevation & Stream Profile

• Elevation Range: Upper gulch benches ~4,600 ft descending to ~3,900-4,100 ft near main drainage; creating favorable gradient for gold‐trap formation (falls, steps, inside bends).

• Stream Length & Orientation: Estimated ~0.7 – 1.0 miles of claim-controlled gulch channel. Channel has sufficient sinuosity and morphological diversity to host classic placer gold traps.

• Ground Conditions:  Mix of forested benches and alluvial flats.  Recorded exposed bedrock shelves, natural gravel bars and old tailings visible in adjacent claims—positive indicator for residual pay.

3). Geology & Deposit Model

Gold Source & Transport: Placer gold derived from quartz-sulfide veins high in the Bitterroot Range, transported via tributaries into Cedar/Oregon systems. Gold is usually coarse, with reported fineness ~0.95-0.98 in this district.

Pay Zone Indicators:

• Active channel gravels over bedrock.

• Bench gravels (floodplain remnants) along gulch.

• Clay/hard-pan (false bedrock) beneath gravels.

• Heavy black sand layers (magnetite/hematite) as proxies for gold enrichment.

Lode Claim Focus: 

The internal 20-acre lode claim targets veining and structural breaks near the gulch axis—potential for primary sources or high-grade intercepts, complementing the placer system.

4). Industry History & Provenance

• 1869–1890s – Placer Rush Era

Cedar Creek discovery (1869) triggered rapid placer development.  Oregon Gulch and tributaries were among top producers. Early panners and small sluice operations laid the base for later industrial work.

• Early 1900s – Big Flat / Oregon Creek Hydraulic Phase

Big Flat Mining Co. conducted operations on Oregon Creek, building sawmill, bunkhouse, mechanic shop, and sluice infrastructu

• 1910 – Great Wildfire (“Big Burn”)

August 1910 fire swept the district, destroying the Big Flat camp/plant at its peak production.

This shutdown left large portions of pay ground untouched or incompletely worked, augmenting modern potential.

• 1930s – Mechanized Revival (Montana Dredge & Engineering Co., Guy “Lee” Covington)

Covington rebuilt road access, installed a gasoline drag‐dredge/dragline excavator on Big Flat/Oregon Creek in 1935–37.

While not centered in Bonanza Gulch, his work in the same system confirms the capability of mechanised working placer terrain.

• Charlie Miller / Bonanza Lode Era

Local histories attribute early road construction and lode development in Bonanza Gulch/adjacent tributaries to Charlie Miller, preceding Covington’s 1931 road and claims push.  Charlie Miller was a partner with Lee Covington in the Montana Enginering and Dredge Company with efforts focused on the Southern Cross Claim as well as the Bonanza Lode. 

This attribution supports the presence of historic lode work now encompassed by the 20-acre lode claim.

Water, Snow Pack & Operating Season

Snowmelt regime: The Bonanza Gulch corridor is snow-fed. Peak snow-water equivalent (SWE) and stream run‐off typically occur mid-March to early April at mid-elevations in western MT (NRCS data).

Example: Lolo Hot Springs (4055 ft) shows Jan ~32″ snow, Feb ~17″, Mar ~13″ in monthly snowfall normals.

Example: Lolo Pass SNOTEL (5280 ft) peaks SWE late Mar/early Apr – use as schedule indicator.

Working season window: Usually May–October, depending on snow clearance and road condition.

Implication: Spring water flows are reliable thanks to snowpack; timing your trenching, sluicing and plant commissioning during freshet ±2 weeks maximizes gold movement and accessibility.

Sampling & Work Program

Phase 1 – Reconnaissance: Pan and sluice inside bends every ~100-150 ft of channel, flag gold hits (GPS).

Phase 2 – Systematic testing:

Bench test pits/trenches (20-30 ft spacing) across alluvial benches & adjacent floodplain. Record depth to bedrock/clay, pay thickness and concentrate weight.

Channel augering/trenching every 20-25 ft where trenching impractical; target clay contact inside the channel.

Phase 3 – Pilot pilot production: Deploy small mobile processing unit (100-200 yd^3/day) along pay axis. Track yards processed → ounces recovered to calibrate cut-off grade and scale plan.

QA/QC: Duplicate pan samples, blank runs, photo log (date/station/depth) and ASSAY certificates for sent concentrates.

Compliance, Infrastructure & Hazards

Surface Ownership: U.S. Forest Service – Lolo National Forest (Superior RD)

Mineral Admin: BLM Missoula Field Office (placer + lode claims)

Permit Requirements:

• BLM “Notice of Operations” (5 acres. or less ) or “Plan of Operations” (more than 5 acres or mechanized work)

• Montana DEQ 318 Authorization (short-term turbidity)

• SP-310 Stream Protection Permit (Mineral County Conservation District) if instream/streambed work occurs.

• Road & Access Hazards: Spring-thaw road damage, avalanche/rockfall potential on gulch slopes.

Wildlife & Safety: Black bear, elk; legacy tailings and old pits require flagging. Stage fuel/equipment above flood line.

On-site Lode Workings (within placer boundaries).

Adit 1: ~100 ft into hillside; intact timbering, old ore car and ore rails in place.

Adit 2 (vein-follow): ~100 ft additional workings following a vein structure.

Notes: Substantial historical lode development with anecdotal notes of good production.

Adit 2 (vein-follow): ~100 ft additional workings following a vein structure.

Notes:  Substantial historical lode development with anecdotal notes of good produ

Sale Price: $319,900.00

Note: The Bonanza Gulch Lode Mine is located within the boundaries of the Bonanza Gulch Placer - the two claims are priced together.

Bonanza Lake drains into Bonanza Gulch, cascading down the mountain to merge with Oregon Creek.