Hercules Metals – Exploring for Copper in Washington County
I had an opportunity last month to tour the land that Hercules Metals Corporation is exploring. They are searching for copper just west of Cambridge, about 18 miles off Highway 71 in the Cuddy Mountain range between Great Creek and Camp Creek.
This is an area that has historically been mining land. The Seven Devils Mining District started in 1875 after silver was discovered in that area and they continued until the1980’s when silver bottomed out. Chris Paul, CEO of Hercules Metals Corporation, acquired the project in 2021 and began exploring for silver but the company was also hoping they might find copper. Last year, they found the copper they were hoping to find – The Hercules Porphyry Copper Belt.
Right now, the company has been soil sampling, field mapping, and conducting small temporary site drilling.
I was able to visit one of the three current drill sites. Each site has a core drill that uses the diamond drilling method which uses cylindrical bits embedded with synthetic industrial diamonds.
Right now they are exploring for more copper and better access to it and they are drilling deeper than before – below the silver and in between rock zones I can’t even name.
The drilling sites are only about 30 ft by 60 ft. Each site has a main drill and they use the area right around it to stage tools and equipment. They also have a centrifuge solids recovery unit that most of the drilling waste water drains into and recycles the water requiring minimal water usage.
The crews work 24/7. They have about two to three men working at a time for twelve hour shifts for twenty days on and then they have ten days off.
It was really cool to see where the old drilling sites were too. Actually, the old sites had to be pointed out to me because it was hard to tell where they had previously drilled. Hercules Metals Corporation is really proactive on environmental impact and have been working with Fish and Game to plant native grasses, flowers, and plants at the old sites after they are done. It’s only been one year since they were at these locations, but the native plants have filled in nicely and I wouldn’t have been able to tell it was a drill site other than the land was a little flatter in that small section.
Their goal for old drilling sites is reclamation – as if there will never be any more mining here. They reseed and rearrange for a natural feel. Ideally, to leave no trace. It looks like the only thing really noticeable are the roads they have upgraded.
If the company decides that this Hercules Porphyry Copper Belt is worth mining, it would take on average thirteen years of preparation including mine designing, permits, air and water quality tests, road improvements, mapping, and a long list of other requirements before mining would even begin. Right now, they are still just exploring.
Chris Langton, VP of Exploration, explained, “The Idaho Department of Fish and Game owns the land, but Hercules owns the mining rights. The two work closely to develop annual disturbance plans and follow all applicable regulations. Any water withdrawal is approved by the Idaho Department of Water Resources. Additional claims held by the company are on US Forest Service lands and the company works closely with the Forest Service to ensure compliance of all regulations.”
I found Chris Paul, Chris Langton, and everyone involved to be very friendly and open. They want to make a good impact on our community and have been open and proactive in educating our community about what they are doing. If you would like more information you can visit their web page at https://herculesmetals.com/.
