Trailbreaker Expands Footprint of High-Grade Gold Structure at Atsutla Gold Project, BC
(TheNewswire)
January 8, 2026 – TheNewswire - Trailbreaker Resources Ltd.(TBK.V) (“Trailbreaker” or “theCompany”) is pleased to announce results from its 2025 explorationprogram at the Atsutla Gold project in northwestern British Columbia(BC). Detailed prospecting and mapping in the Highlands zone area hasexpanded the known footprint of high-grade gold (Au) showings and ledto discovery of new high-grade copper-gold-silver (Cu-Au-Ag) showingson recently acquired claims.
Previous exploration at the Highlands zone led todiscovery of a shallowly-dipping shear structure which hostshigh-grade gold-bearing quartz veins, returning assays up to 630 g/tAu. During the 2025 program, thestructure’s continuity was explored on recently acquiredclaims, expanding the Highlands zonestructural feature to a 1.0 km x 1.2 km area. A zone of high-gradecopper and silver, the Highlands North zone, was also discovered 1.1km north of the high-grade gold showings.
Mineralization at the Highlands zone is related to amuch larger system (Atsutla West), which includes the Christmas Creekand Snook zones. Combined, this area covers 5.0 km x 4.3 km.Trailbreaker’s team interprets the gold mineralization to beorogenic in nature, with multiple gold ± silver± copper-bearing shear zones related to largerfaults occurring in the area.
Daithi Mac Gearailt, CEO ofTrailbreaker, commented, “The Highlands zone continues to exceed our expectations. To datewe have not defined its extent, and its footprint expands with eachcampaign. It is important to remember that this is a new discovery,where high-grade gold and silver have been discovered at surfaceover multiple kilometers. It has never been drilled and is only onepart of the story at the Atsutla Gold project.”
Figure 1: Goldmineralization in the Atsutla West project area.
Trailbreaker’s 100%-owned Atsutla Gold projectis located 70 km south of the Yukon-BritishColumbia border and 120 km northwest of the Village of Dease Lake, BC.The project covers over 40,000 hectares (ha) ofground with very limited historic exploration.
The 2025 exploration program consisted of the collection of 147 soilsamples and 77 prospecting grab samples during late August and earlySeptember. Final assays were not received until late December due tomultiple re-analyses of high-grade gold, copper, and silver as well asadditional QA/QC completed by Bureau Veritas Labs. Table 1 (below)displays the ten highest gold values returned from these assays.
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Table 1: Ten highest gold valuesreturned from rock grab samples taken during the 2025 program.
Sample ID | Au (g/t) | Ag (ppm) | Sample Weight (kg) | Exposure | Description |
2013421 | 401.8 | 493 | 1.90 | Float | Train of quartz vein slabs in gossanous talus soilscree. 10 cm X 40 cm pieces. Oxidized fractures. Dark brown blebs ofoxidized pyrite. Crumbles easily. No fresh sulphides. |
2013418 | 221.6 | 264 | 1.37 | Subcrop | Oxidized granitic zone in talus slope. 1 to 5 cm-longquartz vein float, all located at the base of oxidized outcrop.Crumbles easily. Fractures with oxidized pyrite stringers and blebs(3%). Gossan zone appears to follow shear @ 094/77. Vein orientationuncertain. |
2013402 | 65.1 | 70.3 | 1.55 | Outcrop | Pinch-and-swell quartz vein up to 20 cm wide withpatchy sulphides. Vein is foliated with 5% sulphides (pyrite,chalcopyrite, and galena locally). Traced up cliff for 10 m. Orientedat 200/40. |
2013473 | 62.1 | 836 | 1.20 | Subcrop | 20 cm wide quartz vein in middle of 3 m wide gossanzone on knoll. Vein is in place, but loose. Minor limonitic pyrite andgalena, trace malachite. Fairly competent. |
2013472 | 55.2 | 45.5 | 0.97 | Float | Abundant high-grade float in 1 m x 1 m area. Verylocal. Vein is 5 cm wide. Foliated material through middle of vein,some slickenslides. Limonitic pyrite. |
2013469 | 17.0 | 1.9 | 0.70 | Float | 20 cm wide, 40 cm long quartz boulder with 1 inch seamof limonitic pyrite. A few sporadic arsenopyrite blebs. Minorcockscomb textures. Competent. Abundant similar material in thisarea. |
2013484 | 13.9 | 24.4 | 0.71 | Float | High-grade quartz vein chips trailing up gossanousslide. Traced up to source. Vein is 2 to 5 cm wide. Pyritic vugs,trace limonitic pyrite. |
2013471 | 10.4 | 26.2 | 0.82 | Float | Gossan zone about 3 m wide. Sample is comprised of fiverepresentative quartz chips from 3 m area. Vein is 2 to 6 cm wide.Pyritic vugs. Oxidized fractures. Similar appearance to high-gradevein. |
2013422 | 10.1 | 8.2 | 1.17 | Outcrop | Flat-lying oxidized decomposed quartz vein along cliffledge. In situ, traced for 5 m. Discontinuous. Similar appearance tohigh-grade vein. No fresh sulphides. |
2013490 | 9.3 | 3.1 | 0.29 | Float | Quartz cobble about 8 cm wide with minor limoniticpyrite. Possibly related to copper-bearing fractures occurring in thisoutcrop. Further prospecting warranted. |
The purpose of the program was to further delineate theHighlands zone shear structure by additional prospecting in areas ofpreviously discovered mineralization and on newly acquired claims tothe west and north of the known gold zones.
Gold at the Highlands zone is found within quartz veinsranging from 10 cm to 60 cm thick occurring within a continuous,shallow-dipping shear structure. The gold-bearing quartz veinstypically host galena and arsenopyrite, but commonly have no visiblesulphide minerals. During 2025, this structure was traced along theside of a ridge for 1.0 km in a NE-SW direction (Figures 2 and 3).Rock samples taken from the northeast corner returned assays up to221.6 g/t Au, and rocks taken from the southwest corner returnedassays up to 9.32 g/t Au. The highest gold value returned,401.8 g/t Au, 493 ppm Ag(Photo 1), was obtained from a rock taken 140 mfrom the previously discovered high-grade showings. The structure wastraced for an additional 1.2 km to the west, onto newly acquiredclaims, where assays returned values up to 4.83 g/t Au.
A newly discovered zone of high-grade copper, termedthe Highlands North zone, yielded up to 1.65% Cu, 5.92 g/t Au, and 551ppm Ag (from separate rocks) in an area 1.1 km north of the high-gradegold showing at the Highlands zone. The high-grade copper values werereturned from more steeply dipping quartz veins from 20 cm to 80 cmthick, hosting chalcopyrite, bornite, malachite, azurite, and pyrite.Five rock samples in this area returned assay values greater than 1%Cu, and eight samples returned values greater than 100 ppm Ag (seePhoto 3).
Reconnaissance soil sampling to the west of theHighlands North zone returned values up to 66 ppb Au, suggestingpotential for additional mineralization in this direction.
Statistical analysis of rock and soil sample assays inthe Highlands zone show that gold correlates with mercury (Hg),selenium (Se), lead (Pb), silver, antimony (Sb), copper, and arsenic(As). High bismuth (Bi) values also occur, but are generally relatedto high-grade copper.
Figure 2:High-grade gold-bearing rock sample locations and interpretedstructural features at the Highlands zone.
Photo 1 (left): Rock sample 2013421was taken 140 m from the initial high-grade vein discovery. This rockreturned values of 401.8 g/t Au, 493 ppm Ag, >10,000 ppm Pb, 1,779ppm Cu, and 1,867 ppm As. It is typical of much of the high-grade veinmaterial – incompetent, oxidized quartz with no visible sulphideminerals.
Photo 2 (right): Rock sample 2013473was also taken in the main Highlands zone, 440 m southwest of 2013421.This sample shows more competent quartz veining with trace pyrite,galena, and malachite. Assays returned values of 62.1 g/t Au, 836 ppmAg, >10,000 ppm Pb, 1,039 ppm Cu, 7,746 ppm As, and >2,000 ppmSb.
Photo 3: Example of one of thesteeper dipping high-grade copper veins found in the newly discoveredHighlands North area. A grab sample from this vein (2013406) returned1.17% Cu, 0.43 g/t Au, 294 ppm Ag, 7,020 ppm Pb, 1,391 ppm Zn, and 449ppm Bi.
Trailbreaker’s team has interpreted the shear structure delineatedat the Highlands zone to be continuous, with similar structures foundat the Christmas Creek zone (1.5 km to the east), and the Snook zone(4.5 km to the north). The total surficial footprint of this area is5.0 km x 4.3 km. Figures 1 and 4 display mineralization across theAtsutla West area. Rock samplingindicates potential for further shear-hosted mineralized quartz veinsat lower elevations along the slope, however much of this area ismasked by a thick talus apron (Figure 3). Further rock sampling andgeological mapping is warranted to test for their presence.
Figure 3: Lookingwest towards the auriferous shear zone exposed along the ridge at theHighlands zone.
Figure 4:High-grade gold occurrences across the Atsutla West region are hostedin potentially continuous shear structures within a 5.0 km x 4.3 kmarea.
The Highlands zone and greater Atsutla West area arefully permitted for drilling. During the 2025 program, theTrailbreaker team ground-truthed potential drill pads to test theshear structure. The Swan target, situated 26 km to the southeast, isalso fully permitted for drilling. The two areas represent differentdeposit models: Atsutla West is an orogenic Au target while Swan is aporphyry Cu-Au-Ag target.
More about the Atsutla Goldproject
The Atsutla Gold project is centered over theregional-scale Teslin-Thibert fault system which marks the contactbetween the Quesnel and Cache Creek terranes. Gold mineralization isassociated with Mesozoic batholitic intrusions that are thepredominant geological unit on the property. Since discovery in2020, Trailbreaker has outlined five significant zonesof gold mineralization on the property, across a span of 26kilometers. These are:
Highlands Zone – A 2.0 km by 1.5 km area in the western Atsutla Goldproject region, with veins containing coarse visible gold assaying upto 630 g/t Au and 1,894 g/tAg
Christmas Creek Zone – Gold-bearing quartz veins 1.5 km east of the HighlandsZone, with rock samples assaying up to 102 g/t Au and 524 g/tAg
Snook Zone –High-grade veins 3.5 km northeast of the Highlands Zone, with rocksamples assaying up to 53.3g/t
Willie Jack Zone – 1.25 km long gold-in-soil anomaly with soil samplesassaying up to 3.77 g/t Au and rocksamples up to 9.9 g/t Au
Swan Zone– ACu-Au-Ag porphyry target defined by a 1.5 km x 1.5 km multi-elementsoil geochemical anomaly (Au-Cu-Ag-As-molybdenum[Mo]-Sb-Bi),with rock grab samples grading up to11.7 g/t Au, 212 g/t Ag,and 0.81% Cu. The geochemical anomalyis coincident with a 2.1 km x1.4 km donut-shapedchargeability high (defined by a 2024induced polarization survey) as well as a zone of elevated potassiummarked by a magnetic low signature indicated from a 2024 airbornemagnetic and radiometric survey.
Quality Assurance/ Quality Control(QA/QC)
Rock and soil samples were stored at the Atsutla camp for the durationof the program. At the program’s conclusion, samples were flown outand then driven by Trailbreaker personnel to Bureau Veritas’ preplab in Whitehorse, YT.
Rock samples were prepared using industry-standardpreparation methods, which involved crushing the entire sample until70% passed through a 2 mm screen. A resulting 250 g split waspulverized to > 85% passing a 75-micron screen (Bureau Veritas prepcode PRP70-250). Soil samples were prepared by drying at 60° C and sieved to -80 mesh (prep code SS80).
After preparation, the samples were sent to BureauVeritas’ lab in Vancouver, BC. Rock samples underwent 37-elementanalysis (analytical code AQ200). This packageinvolves aqua regia digestion (1:1:1HNO3:HCl:H2O) of a 0.5-gramsplit followed by ICP-ES/MS analysis. Rock samples also underwent goldfire assay analysis (code FA350-Au). This package uses a 50-gramsplit, fire assay, and ICP-ES analysis. Samples assaying >10 g/tAu or >100 g/t Ag underwent additional gravimetric analysis (codesFA550-Au and FA550-Ag). Samples assaying >1% Cu underwentadditional atomic absorption (AAS) analysis (code AR401).
Soil samples underwent analytical package AQ201 whichreturns values for 37 elements. This packageinvolves aqua regia digestion of a 15-gram split followed by ICP-ES/MSanalysis.
Bureau Veritas performs its own QA/QC procedure and isISO 17025 certified. Blanks, duplicates, and standard referencematerials are sequentially inserted into the client’s sample streamto test for contamination, uniformity of element distribution, andanalytical accuracy.
About Trailbreaker Resources
Trailbreaker Resources is a mining exploration companyfocused primarily on mining-friendly British Columbia and YukonTerritory, Canada. Trailbreaker is committed to continuous explorationand research, allowing maintenance of a portfolio of quality mineralproperties which in turn provides value for shareholders. The companyhas an experienced management team with a proven track record asexplorers and developers throughout the Yukon Territory, BritishColumbia, Alaska and Nevada.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD
Daithi Mac Gearailt
President and Chief Executive Officer
Carl Schulze, P. Geo., Consulting Geologist with AuroraGeosciences Ltd, is a qualified person as defined by NationalInstrument 43-101 for Trailbreaker's BC and Yukon explorationprojects, and has reviewed and approved the technical information inthis release.
Other
For new information about the Company’s projects,please visit Trailbreaker’s website at TrailbreakerResources.comand sign up to receive news. For further information, followTrailbreaker’s tweets at ,use the ‘Contact’ section of our website, or contact us at (604) 681-1820 or at info@trailbreakerresources.com.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange norits Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in thepolicies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for theadequacy or accuracy of this release.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements contained in this newsrelease that are not historical facts are "forward-lookinginformation" or "forward-looking statements"(collectively, "Forward-Looking Information") within themeaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation and the UnitedStates Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.Forward-Looking Information includes, but is not limited to,disclosure regarding possible events, conditions or financialperformance that is based on assumptions about future economicconditions and courses of action; expectations regarding futureexploration and drilling programs and receipt of related permitting.In certain cases, Forward-Looking Information can be identified by theuse of words and phrases such as "anticipates","expects", "understanding", "has agreedto" or variations of such words and phrases or statements thatcertain actions, events or results "would","occur" or "be achieved". Although Trailbreakerhas attempted to identify important factors that could affectTrailbreaker and may cause actual actions, events or results to differmaterially from those described in Forward-Looking Information, theremay be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to beas anticipated, estimated or intended. In making the forward-lookingstatements in this news release, if any, Trailbreaker has appliedseveral material assumptions, including the assumption that generalbusiness and economic conditions will not change in a materiallyadverse manner. There can be no assurance that Forward-LookingInformation will prove to be accurate, as actual results and futureevents could differ materially from those anticipated in suchstatements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance onForward-Looking Information. Except as required by law, Trailbreakerdoes not assume any obligation to release publicly any revisions toForward-Looking Information contained in this news release to reflectevents or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect theoccurrence of unanticipated events.
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