Showing posts with label University of Wyoming. Show all posts
Showing posts with label University of Wyoming. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 14, 2023


Dr. Paul Graff, 1988, Snow Gulch, Alaska.

I was sadden to hear we lost another member of the Donlin Creek discovery crew! My best friend, Dr. Paul Graff passed away on March 2nd, 2023. He had a spirit that would infect anyone with laughter and happiness, so it is difficult for me to lose such a close friend. The world lost one of the greatest exploration geologists of the 20th and 21st centuries. 

Paul was my best friend! I met him in 1977 at the University of Wyoming while completing his PhD dissertation. Since then, we developed a close friendship lasting 45 years. I always looked forward to seeing Paul when he stopped by my office at the Wyoming Geological Survey at the University of Wyoming, as well as the days we broke rocks on the outcrop together. Then there were the times we exchanged prospector stories and lies in my office.

One of the greatest experiences of my life was when Paul hired me to search for gold in Kuskokwim Mountains of Alaska in 1988 and 1989 for WestGold (a subsidiary of DeBeers and Selection Trust). What a great time! Bears, bush pilots, rocks, gold, eskimos, caribou, and bears! I know I said bears twice - but that's because they were so much bigger in Alaska than in Montana and Wyoming. Paul and I were tent mates and I shared the art of pranking with Paul, something I was pretty good at. 

Paul was a wonderful victim: he was always so focused on gold and rocks that he always missed how sticks and stones ended up under his sleeping bag, or how the outhouse got locked, why his Mills Brothers tape was floating in the Donlin Creek pond, or where did my camera go when he was about to be carried of by thousands of mosquitos. 

Paul was squatting down looking at an ATV smashed by a D9 Cat, and his back immediately became infested by more mosquitos than found in the entire lower 48. I told Paul to hold still because I was tying to snap a picture of the hoard of mosquitoes on his back for my next talk to the Wyoming Geological Association in Casper. He tried to hold still for a minute, but then the bites got the best of him, so he squirmed. "Come on Paul, you were an airborne Ranger, surely you can hold still for another 30 seconds so I can get a photo". On the third try, Paul replied, "Damned it Hausel, if you don't have the photo by now, then heck with it". I was shocked, that was the first time I ever heard Paul swear. And as he turned around to face me to again announce he had enough of posing - he noticed I didn't have a camera.  

Thank you so very much Paul for the wonderful memories. God bless you! I look forward to the time I will see you in God's gold fields in another dimension. For those of you who did not know Paul, you missed out on one of the greatest experiences in life. Rest in peace my friend!

Some years prior to his illness, Paul and I went to the Iron Mountain kimberlite district in the Laramie Mountains so I could show him some of the kimberlite complex. Along the way, we came across specimens of a mineral known as picroilmenite - a distinctly rounded, black, metallic mineral found in kimberlite. We came across a specimen in the field that I showed Paul. So, at the next spot, Paul thought he had found one. So he picked it up, licked it to clean off the surface of the mineral, and started spitting profusely. 

I looked at him curiously - after he stopped spitting. He looked at me and said, "Elk droppings look like picroilmenite. So after considerable laughter, I decided to acknowledge Paul in one of my books - "Minerals and Rocks of Wyoming" WGS Bulletin 72, on page 88. I wrote a personal communication from Paul about mineral identification of ilmenite, and mailed a copy of my book to him. But to make him feel better about his error, I told him, yes, they look similar; however, one is moist, soft, and has a low specific gravity, and a distinct salty taste, and rotten egg gas odor.

Thank you for the many, many wonderful memories Paul. Paul, along with a mutual friend of ours, Dr. Gordon Marlatt, were the two best geologists I ever knew! 


Rest in Peace my friend! 
After finding one of the largest gold deposits in 
the world at Donlin Creek, Alaska, the WestGold
team was presented the prestigious, Canadian 2009
Thayer Lindsley Award. May Bruce, Paul and Toni
RIP. God Bless you - and thanks for the 
memories!

Thursday, August 9, 2012

Donlin Creek is one of the largest Potential Gold Developments in the World

The Northern Miner (2012, vol 98, no. 23) and NovaGold reported, "

Donlin is one of the largest potential gold developments in the world and NovaGold is moving ahead with the project alongside mega-miner Barrick Gold ...". 

NovaGold further stated, "The Donlin Gold project is an uniquely attractive asset which in terms of size, grade, exploration potential and jurisdictional safety, is quite possibly the most important project in the world today". 

Due to the extensive project, the mine is delayed until at least 2015. This giant gold deposit was discovered by seven geologists in 1988 and sampled and mapped in 1989. In alphabetical order: Mark Bronston, Richard Garnett, Paul Graff, W. Dan Hausel, Bruce Hickok, Toni Hinderman and Robert Retherford found this giant deposit. Three (Bronston, Graff, and Hausel) were either alumni or affiliated with the University of Wyoming. At the time, I was on leave from the Wyoming Geological Survey and working as a consultant for WestGold.

A forth member of the group, Richard Garnett, was part of the discovery group of a giant nickel deposit later in Canada. So, Richard was part of two incredible discoveries! Bruce Hickok (RIP), a descendant of Wild Bill Hickok, later was killed in an avalanche in Alaska. Wild Bruce was a great guy and the world misses him.

Dr. Graff stands with Mrs. Lyman at site of plane crash on
Snow Gulch,
 Donlin Creek, Alaska, 1989. All survived, and this
is common in Alaska.
Gold has been one of the primary reasons Alaska has done so well economically, and with the development of the Donlin Creek  and possibly the Pebble porphyry copper deposit, Alaska stands to gain two world-class mines located on two world-class deposits. Each of these two deposits eclipse the total amount of gold mined from the famous Klondike which produced about 18.3 million troy ounces over its entire history. Now that's a lot of gold (Donlin has essentially 41 million ounces of identified gold in place, and will likely increase as mining progresses.

I was recently asked, what does it feel like to have been on the discovery of what is now considered to be 'possibly' the most important mining project in the world today? "I feel proud, but at the same time, I wish I could have a little of the gold we found." "Just a little - a few bars or so would do".
"It is an honor to have been recognized for the discovery of this giant deposit, and I'm sure the other 6 team members from WestGold who were on the discovery of this giant deposit feel the same". 

"I look forward to NovaGold and Barrick Gold developing this mine. I just wish WestGold would have survived the 1980s and that we could all be there working and developing this property we discovered in 1988. We found this giant deposit, but unfortunately, WestGold fell apart before it could develop Donlin into a gold mine".

Back in 1988 and 1989 while working as a consultant for WestGold (while on leave from the Wyoming Geological Survey), I was part of the discovery team of this giant gold deposit. Dr. Graff with Richard Garnett and Mark Bronston hired me because of my ability to produce detailed geological maps as well as having a reputation for finding gold deposits. 

I made many friends and had a great time in Alaska, especially working with my good friend Paul Graff (even if he can't tell the difference between elk droppings and picroilmenite - a personal joke). I have the greatest respect for Paul as well as Richard and Mark.  And thanks to Richard, we were presented the 2009 Thayer Lindsley Award for an International Mineral Discovery by the largest mining association in the world - the PDAC in Toronto, Canada.

Dr. Paul was unhappy - someone threw his awful - err I mean entertaining
Mills Brothers tape into the pond outside the tent. We tried to find the 
culprit, but no one would confess. Personally, I think it was a grizzly bear
What is a Mills Brothers tape? It is a way to make all other music sound 
much better.
So, how did we find this deposit? It was by using science, geological techniques along with detailed geological mapping, trenching, sampling and drilling.  Unfortunately, we did not receive an royalties for this discovery - only our consulting fees.

But I must say, I am one of the luckiest people in the world. I had a great time in Alaska, learned more geology in a state I previously had little experience, and had a wonderful time pulling pranks on my buddy - Paul. I would have liked to have some of the gold, but the experience for me, was worth more than all of the gold at Donlin Creek.

For me, making the discovery with my 6 colleagues was much more important than money. Sure, it would be nice to have some of the gold and go out and buy a Ferrari, but money only lasts until the grim reaper shows up at your door step. After that, what we have done with our lives may live on for a few more generations. So, hopefully, you will all be reading about me in some textbook when I go knocking at the Gates.



Mapping on the ridge overlooking Snow Gulch (part of the Donlin Creek gold discovery) in 1988. I was hired by WestGold because of my expertise in detailed geological mapping and finding mineral deposits.  I thank Paul for bringing me into this project and for all of the constant fun he provided in camp.
Some people think I have a problem with authority. My boss, Dr. Paul,
came into the field to tell me to get back to work. (photo by Paul Graff).

Driving to work along the Queen trench at the Donlin Creek gold
discovery, 1988