Dryden Gold - Systematic Exploration in Emerging Gold District

• Dryden Gold is a junior exploration company with a large 60,000-hectare land package in an emerging gold district.
• The company is completing a five-phase drill program, with the final phase starting soon, aiming to show consistent high-grade gold results.
• They are conducting a re-logging program of historical core to potentially expand known mineralization and improve continuity.
• Dryden Gold has excellent infrastructure, with many targets accessible by highway, and is applying systematic exploration techniques.
• The company believes they have a district-scale opportunity with similarities to other major gold camps, offering significant upside potential.

Introduction

Dryden Gold Corp (TSXV:DRY, OTCQB:DRYGF) is a junior exploration company that has quietly assembled a district-scale land package in an emerging gold district in Ontario, Canada. With a property spanning 60,000 hectares, excellent infrastructure, and numerous high-grade gold occurrences, Dryden Gold presents an intriguing opportunity for investors seeking exposure to a potentially significant new gold discovery.

Interview with CEO, Trey Wasser & President, Maura Kolb

A Promising Land Package

Dryden Gold's flagship property is located in the Dryden area of northwestern Ontario, a region with a rich history of gold mining dating back to the early 20th century. The company has consolidated a vast land package of 60,000 hectares, which is remarkable for a junior explorer. This district-scale opportunity is something typically only seen in the portfolios of major mining companies.

CEO Trey Wasser emphasizes the significance of this land position:

"This land package is 60,000 hectares... while we're a very small micro-cap company here, we have a land package put together which we're very close to owning 100% of... It's a district size scale play, and so it's something that's attractive to a larger company. It's something only a larger company would generally be able to put together."

The property is characterized by numerous high-grade gold occurrences spread across its entire extent. Historical exploration, including grab samples, drilling, and trenching, has revealed gold mineralization from one end of the property to the other. This widespread presence of gold provides multiple targets for exploration and increases the odds of making a significant discovery.

Infrastructure Advantage

One of Dryden Gold's key strengths is the excellent infrastructure surrounding its property. Unlike many remote exploration projects that require helicopter access or the construction of new roads, Dryden's targets are easily accessible. The Trans-Canada Highway runs through part of the property, and other targets are accessible via Highway 502.

This infrastructure advantage translates to lower exploration costs and easier development potential if a economic deposit is discovered. President Maura Kolb notes:

"We're very, very lucky with the amount of logistically favorable targets we have. We're right off the highway with that one. We have another that's just off the 502 Highway. We're not using helicopters here. We're just walking into these targets or driving right over top of them."

The presence of existing power lines near the property further enhances its development potential, reducing potential future capital costs for any mining operation.

Exploration Strategy: Balancing High-Grade Potential with Systematic Approach

Dryden Gold is employing a dual strategy in its exploration efforts. On one hand, the company is following up on known high-grade occurrences, particularly in the Gold Rock area, where historical drilling intersected bonanza grades, including 53,700 g/t gold over 0.55 meters and 3,497 g/t gold over 0.65 meters. These spectacular grades, while not necessarily representative of the entire deposit, demonstrate the system's high-grade potential.

Simultaneously, the company is taking a systematic, scientific approach to understanding the controls on gold mineralization across its entire land package. This methodical strategy involves:

Five-Phase Drill Program

Dryden Gold is currently completing a five-phase drill program, with the final phase set to begin imminently. This program aims to expand the known mineralization footprint, understand the controls on high-grade mineralization, and test new high-grade targets.

Maura Kolb explains the objectives: "We had three major objectives to the first drill campaign: to expand the overall footprint, to understand the high-grade controls, and then to test new high-grade targets. Based on those, we were successful on all of those."

Re-logging Historical Core

A significant component of Dryden's strategy is the re-logging of approximately 20,000 meters of historical core. This process involves examining and re-sampling core from previous drilling campaigns, with a focus on identifying mineralization that may have been overlooked due to selective sampling practices in the past.

Kolb elaborates on the potential of this work: "We don't right now see continuity because of the selective sampling. We don't actually know how much halo mineralization there is...We really want to get a better sense of what that halo mineralization is and see if there's better continuity than we can see today."

This re-logging effort has the potential to significantly expand the known mineralization and improve the continuity between high-grade zones, potentially leading to a more robust resource in the future.

Systematic Target Ranking

Dryden Gold employs a sophisticated target ranking system to prioritize its exploration efforts across its vast land package. This system, developed by Kolb during her time at Goldcorp (now part of Newmont), takes into account multiple factors including potential size, grade, logistics, and social license considerations.

Kolb describes this approach: "We constantly rank and rate the targets based on the size of the prize, the grade, the logistics of how easy... It's basically the spend to discovery. I'm always looking at discovery cost, and this project everywhere on it has very low discovery costs because of the great infrastructure."

This systematic approach ensures that the company's limited resources are focused on the most promising targets, maximizing the chances of a significant discovery.

Recent Discoveries & Expansion

While much of Dryden's focus has been on the Gold Rock area, where the bulk of historical work was concentrated, the company has also made new discoveries that highlight the district-scale potential of its land package.One such discovery is at the Hyndman property, located adjacent to the Trans-Canada Highway. Kolb describes this exciting find:

"We had a new discovery in our field program last year... It's basically next to the Trans-Canada highway. We expanded that property, it's called Hyndman. We tripled the size of it over this year through staking... It was five grab samples, four of which were over 10 grams per ton."

This discovery, along with the subsequent expansion of the Hyndman property, demonstrates the potential for new, significant gold occurrences across Dryden's vast land holdings.

Geological Potential: Comparisons to Major Gold Camps

While it's important to approach such comparisons with caution, Dryden Gold's management sees geological similarities between their property and other major gold camps in Canada. Specifically, they draw parallels to the geology of the Red Lake district, home to some of Canada's richest gold mines.

Wasser alludes to this potential:

"A lot of people say they're undervalued. Not many companies have what potentially could be, you know, the same geology as...Red Lake and same kind of rocks, the same type of potential as Great Bear."

The comparison to Great Bear Resources, which was acquired by Kinross Gold for C$1.8 billion in 2022 after making a significant discovery in the Red Lake district, is particularly noteworthy. While it's far too early to say whether Dryden Gold will replicate Great Bear's success, the geological similarities and the district-scale potential offer an intriguing possibility for investors.

Metallurgical Considerations

Early metallurgical studies on gold mineralization from the property have yielded promising results. Kolb notes that the gold appears to be "clean," with high recoveries achievable through gravity concentration alone: "What we know so far of this, with the metallurgical studies that have been done, it's clean. It's 88% recovered by gravity. So you don't get better than that."

These preliminary metallurgical characteristics, if confirmed over a larger resource, could potentially lead to simpler and less costly processing options in any future mining scenario.

Near-Term Catalysts & Future Plans

Investors in Dryden Gold can look forward to several near-term catalysts that could drive interest in the stock:

• Results from the final phase of the current drill program, expected in the fall of 2023.
• Ongoing results from the re-logging program, which could expand known mineralization.
• Results from the summer field program, including follow-up work on the Hyndman discovery.
• A more extensive fall drill program, planned to start in September or October 2023.

Looking further ahead, Dryden Gold aims to continue expanding its understanding of the gold mineralization across its property. The company hopes to define a near-surface resource at Gold Rock while simultaneously pursuing new discoveries across its district-scale land package.

Wasser outlines the company's goals: "We've got really three things happening: this follow-up drill program on the discoveries, new high-grade shoots that we found or confirmed in that first drill program; we've got the re-logging, which... could really pull this together and start to make it look like we have something here to start with as a near-surface type of resource."

Market Considerations & Valuation

As with many junior exploration companies, Dryden Gold faces challenges in the current market environment. The stock has experienced significant volatility since its public listing in January 2023, trading between C$0.10 and C$0.40 per share.

Wasser acknowledges the difficulties facing junior explorers: "It's a very difficult business model, the junior explorers, there's no question about that. You know, the market always is very smart these days. They can kind of predict where your cash position is and what you've spent and where you're going and when the next time you have to raise capital."

However, the company believes it is significantly undervalued given the scale of its land package, the high-grade potential demonstrated by historical results, and the district-scale opportunity it represents. Management argues that the current valuation doesn't reflect the optionality inherent in the project – the potential for a major discovery that could attract the attention of larger mining companies.

Risks & Challenges

Investing in junior gold exploration companies carries significant risks, and Dryden Gold is no exception. Key risks include:

• Exploration Risk: Despite promising early results, there's no guarantee that Dryden will make an economic discovery.
• Financing Risk: As a pre-revenue company, Dryden will need to raise additional capital in the future, which could lead to dilution for existing shareholders.
• Market Risk: Gold prices and overall market sentiment towards junior mining stocks can significantly impact the company's valuation and ability to raise capital.
• Execution Risk: The company's success depends on the ability of its management and technical team to effectively explore its large land package and make discoveries.

The Investment Thesis for Dryden Gold

• District-Scale Opportunity: Dryden Gold controls a 60,000-hectare land package with numerous high-grade gold occurrences, offering multiple opportunities for discovery.
• Infrastructure Advantage: Excellent access via highways and existing power infrastructure reduces exploration costs and enhances development potential.
• High-Grade Potential: Historical results include bonanza grades, suggesting the potential for a high-grade deposit.
• Systematic Exploration: The company employs a rigorous, scientific approach to target generation and prioritization, maximizing the chances of discovery.
• Experienced Team: Management and technical team have experience with major mining companies and successful junior explorers.
• Near-Term Catalysts: Multiple upcoming results from drilling, re-logging, and field work could drive interest in the stock.
• Undervaluation Potential: Current market cap may not reflect the full potential of the company's assets and discovery potential.

Dryden Gold Corp represents a speculative but potentially high-reward investment opportunity in the junior gold exploration sector. The company's vast land package in an emerging gold district, combined with a systematic exploration approach and excellent infrastructure, positions it well for potential discovery success. While risks are significant, as with all junior explorers, the district-scale opportunity and high-grade potential offer substantial upside if the company can demonstrate the presence of an economic gold deposit. Investors should closely monitor upcoming exploration results and the company's ability to advance its understanding of the gold mineralization across its property. As always, thorough due diligence and an understanding of the risks involved in junior mining investments are essential.