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General Geology
The Uruachic mining camp is predominantly
underlain by Tertiary volcanic rocks on the Lower Volcanic Complex,
cut locally by small intrusive bodies. These rocks are highly
favourable for hosting gold and silver mineralization, with an
estimated 90% of the precious metal mines in the Sierra Madre
Occidental occurring within this package. Throughout most of the
Sierra Madre, the Lower Volcanic Sequence is covered by a thick
layer of rhyolitic tuffaceous rocks of the Upper Volcanic Sequence,
which prohibits the exploration of the favourable rocks underlying
it. In the Uruachic area, the Rio Oteros has eroded the overlying
rhyolitic rocks and has left exposed a complete section through the
Lower Volcanic suite. It is in these highly altered rocks that the
precious metal mineralization of the Uruachic camp is found.
Location and Access
The town of Uruachic is located in the
north western part of Chihuahua State, some 60 kilometres south of
the main highway connecting the cities of Chihuahua and Hermosillo,
Sonora. A secondaryl road leads from the highway to the waterfalls
at Basaseachic and then continues south for a further 45 kilometres
to Uruachic. The geographic (Google Earth) coordinates for the town
are 27° 52’ 06” North and 108° 12’ 52” West. |
