One of the reasons that I love this industry.

Back home now I am writing a bit of a reflection but also an update as Equitas’ exploration progresses at the Garland Project. It has been a tremendous evolution in regards to building the team, the base camp and  the advancement of the project. It has been an amazing experience for me being on site and watching events unfold. I’d like to share with all of you some of the developments that have occurred to get to where we are at now.

Initially the Garland base camp was meant to house 20 people but when I arrived we were at full capacity with 25 individuals. Each person had a duty and task each day to fulfill. There were meetings at night to plan what the next day would entail, of course weather permitting.  6:30 am came,  meetings to OK whether or not these plans could occur. Some days weather did slow down the progression, like when the fog rolled in it was not safe for the helicopter to fly. Some braved the terrain and walked to destinations without air support while waited out for the clearing of the fog.

Thanks goes to the group in camp that constructed and maintained where we called home. Mac Jenkins (Wayne’s brother, and unfortunately his last camp) and Edward John (Nain, Labrador) were there when I arrived. Randy Best (matched Everett in Poker night wins) was on his way out helped EQT build the camp. Big credit to these fellas for building and maintaining our home away from home. If you need anything modhe is or your comfort Mac is the man to go to. Like his brother Wayne, he’s good natured, always on the go and is capable of whatever needs to be done. Another amazing go-to contact here on the east coast, too bad our camp might be his final.

Can’t forget about the first ones that are into the less chartered terrain, the line cutters. These men get dropped off into aerial targets that none of us have been before. They clear out a path for some tough terrain the geophysical, geological and drilling teams may need to go. Happy go lucky guys that would smile when they see the bears and stand sturdy when the helicopter is delayed. The right picture is of Ross Burton and Everett having a farewell chat before shift change. Ross can climb any hill or mountain at the age of 67 then anyone in camp.

Priority number one was safety as being in a remote location there are chance of encounters of the 230 pound bull moose, at least 10 sightings of black bears, the night owl that seemed larger then life, the nightly base camp circling of ..  bats or ducks? Also the black flies and mosquitoes. The latter did not slow us down as there was no escaping it. I have evidence as I am still itching bites from my wrists to my waist. They seem to find a way through bug jackets and even through the strong winds of the helicopter blades. Equitas medic on site was Olivier from Sirius where he literally kept his demeanor “serious”. Soft spoken yet very aware of what dangers our camp might endure, he made sure that we all stayed safe and sound. Camp personel had instructional lessons on what to do if ‘xyz’ occurred.

FOOD. Before I left the Vancouver city life I imagined eating army rations, stuff you would find in the surplus store for emergencies. On the contrary we lucked out in having Bucky Clarke as our head chef. I had the privilege in sharing a bunk with the very talkative Newfoundlander. The red sealed chef spent 30+ years on the naval ships of the eastern coast ad about 6 years as camp chef for remote camps as far as Nunavut. His job is an 8 hour shift, on his feet cooking breakfast, lunch, snacks and dinner but I bet he spent 8 hours more in the kitchen keeping the camp happy. A god send to any exploration camp group. Can’t forget about Hillary, his stand in sous chef from Nain, Labrador. Each day, she indulged us with lemon tarts and other childhood favorites. *** Don’t play Bucky in cribbage, he hasn’t played in 15 years but I witnessed 2 skunks!

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Another godsend was Equitas’ helicopter pilot Patrick Cote. Before I even got to fly with Pat, Wayne Jenkins gave great credit to his flying and harnessing ability. Patrick’s ability to fly is beyond comparable to most, goes to show why he is the training pilot for Canadian helicopters. As mentioned before I have a fear of flying but being able to see the pilots confidence gave me the assurance that I am safe. Having a pilot like Pat was the antidote. Jay the helicopter engineer in camp spent more than 15 hours maintaining the aircraft daily, it gave me the assurance that we are in great hands.

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Side Notes: I spoke with our VP of Exploration Everett Makela at camp and he had a great point that should be shared with all involved in the mineral exploration industry. He mentioned many individuals he spoke to at PDAC 2015 said they are ‘waiting for the turn around, keeping the lights on, etc.’ yet we both agreed that you can not achieve anything just waiting, you need to advance and try your damn hardest to achieve, to create value even when we are in the worst mineral markets anyone has ever been in as when the markets will turn (as they always have) the companies and individuals that contributed to it will be in the forefront.

Everett Makela is one of a kind and we are so fortunate to have his expertise apart of the company. He is genuinely confident about Equitas’ future for all of the investors, stakeholders, the contractors, and most of all the potential that the Garland area has. On my last full day at camp Pilot Pat flew Everett Makela, Bonnie Spence, Kenny Clarke (not related to Bucky Clarke) and myself to spot a drill target to a potential hole and despite the attacks from the massive swarms of black flies and mosquitoes it did not cloud our focus.

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More to come shortly.