Prospecting Methods in Nunavik

A number of special guest were invited to the camp to talk to the students about their specialty. One of these guests was Rénald Gauthier, the Technical Director of the Nunavik Mineral Exploration Fund.

Rénald presented a brief geological history of the Nunavik area to the students during one of our evening sessions. He also demonstrated the use of several electronic tools such as VLF and BeepMap, which are useful in the discovery of buried minerals.

The following day, the science camp moved to the tundra for the practical application of the lessons learned the previous evening. It must be noted at this time that neither rain nor a brisk cold wind deterred the students from venturing out on the land to use these tools and put there new knowledge to the test.

While out on the land, the students learned a number of things, including: how to "pan" for minerals; the setting up and using of a sluice box in a stream bed; how to identify the results of the panning and sluice-box processes; how to use and align the VLF tool; and how to walk a traverse with the BeepMap apparatus in tow.

The day ended with the digestion of some fresh Hudson Coast style bannock before returning to camp for a wonderful meal of Chinese food.