Upside Gold Corp. has completed a major compilation of historic exploration data at its Kena Gold-Copper Property in southeastern British Columbia, revealing a mineralized system that extends well beyond previously defined boundaries. The work, which integrated geological, geophysical and geochemical data from exploration conducted since 1974, indicates the gold-copper system remains open in multiple directions and at depth. The compilation identified a mineralized trend extending at least seven kilometres along strike, highlighting significant expansion potential across the 10,115-hectare property. This integrated approach has outlined multiple priority gold-copper drill targets for the 2026 program, including the potential to define a second major mineralized zone within the Kena Copper Zone.
Dr. Trevor Boyd, Vice President, Exploration of Upside Gold, stated that this compilation work has significantly improved understanding of the Kena mineralized system. Integrating decades of exploration data into a modern 3D model is helping identify areas where mineralization may extend beyond the historic resource and focus 2026 drilling on the most promising expansion targets. A key finding emerged during the review of the property's drillhole database containing 24,200 core samples. While previous work largely recorded only gold results, the company systematically extracted copper and silver data from historical analytical certificates. This revealed copper values reaching up to 71,800 ppm, with more than 2,900 samples exceeding 500 ppm Cu, while silver values reached up to 145 ppm, with over 2,650 samples exceeding 1 ppm for Ag. These results occur within a database containing 6,300 samples grading greater than 0.25 g/t Au.
The geological interpretation indicates mineralization at Kena is predominantly structurally controlled by a major steeply dipping, southeast-trending hydrothermally altered fault zone known as the Kena Deformation Zone. This structure marks the contact between the Silver King Porphyry intrusive and Elsie Group intermediate volcanic rocks and is characterized by a dominant low magnetic signature that can be traced for at least 11 kilometres along strike, as illustrated in the company's February 3, 2026 news release. Induced polarization surveys covering much of the northern portion of the property identify zones of high chargeability and low resistivity that support the definition of disseminated pyrite-hosted mineralization. Sporadic historic drilling of anomalies outside the Kena historic mineral resource has returned wide intervals of both lode and porphyry-style gold and copper mineralization, including at or near surface intervals of 117 metres of 0.22% Cu and 0.14g/t Au, 88.69 metres of 0.13% Cu and 0.21 g/t Au, and 210 metres of 0.17% Cu and 0.13 g/t Au within the Kena Copper Zone.
The addition of extensive historic soil survey data to the exploration model is consistent with the current geological interpretation. Copper and gold geochemical anomalies are spatially associated with favorable IP and magnetic signatures, with high soil gold anomalies covering broad areas southwest of the Kena lode gold body. This suggests mineralization extends southwestward at depth beyond the boundaries of the historic resource. The majority of first priority gold-copper diamond drill targets for 2026 will focus on testing along strike to the southeast within the Kena Copper Zone, with the goal of demonstrating sufficient continuity and grade to define a second major mineralized zone on the property. The work also supports the belief that the precious metal and copper mineralized system extends across much of the southern half of the property, which has never undergone diamond drilling or detailed exploration. The Kootenay region of southeastern British Columbia has been largely overlooked for gold and copper exploration in the past, offering opportunities for both new discoveries and the development of known historic prospects into viable mineralized bodies.
