Upside Gold Corp. (CSE: UG) (FSE:47I) has released its first exploration update for the 10,115-hectare Kena Gold-Copper Property in southeastern British Columbia, reporting surface rock sampling results that confirm multiple high-grade gold-silver-copper showings and define 22 priority diamond drill targets. The company's initial field program, completed in July 2025, focused on verifying historic showings and evaluating new exposures from recent logging roads.
Surface sampling returned values up to 26.1 g/t gold, 179 g/t silver, and 1.68% copper, supporting the interpretation of a large, multi-zone mineralized system. The results indicate that gold and copper mineralization extends beyond the boundaries of the historic Kena gold resource, which remains open laterally, along strike, and at depth. The company identified drill-ready targets both inside and outside the historic gold body, with several areas having minimal or no prior drilling.
CEO Sophy Cesar stated, 'The results support our exploration model and help define priority targets for follow-up diamond drilling beyond the existing lode gold bearing body.' The exploration work included collecting 141 rock geochemical samples and evaluating historic trenches and outcrops within the main lode gold body. Based on these evaluations, 22 proposed diamond drillhole collar sites were identified for follow-up testing.
Three areas beyond the Kena lode gold body are considered particularly promising. The Lower and Upper Euphrates Au-Ag showings, with historic production of 307 tonnes at 46.9 g/t Au and 249 g/t Ag, have recently become accessible via new logging roads. Nine grab samples from this area averaged 8.61 g/t Au and 31.6 g/t Ag, with no known drilling in the vicinity. The Cat, Shaft, Dighem, and Princess Cu-Au-Ag showings, aligned along the east side of the gold body over 1,200 metres, returned up to 1.68% Cu, 5.41 g/t Au, and 18 g/t Ag, associated with a strong IP chargeability anomaly. Only five reconnaissance drill holes have ever been completed in this area. The Kena Copper Zone and South Gold Zone, trending southeast for three kilometres, host multiple wide intersections of copper and gold from historic drilling, including 117 metres of 0.22% Cu and 0.14 g/t Au, and 90 metres of 0.9 g/t Au.
The historic resource at Kena, as reported in a 2021 technical report (SEDAR), includes an Indicated Mineral Resource of 32.1 million tonnes at 0.544 g/t Au for 0.561 million ounces and an Inferred Mineral Resource of 177.5 million tonnes at 0.486 g/t Au for 2.77 million ounces. However, Upside Gold's Qualified Person has not done sufficient work to classify this as current mineral resources, and the company is not treating it as such.
The Kootenay region of southeastern British Columbia has been historically overlooked for gold and copper exploration, offering opportunities for new discoveries. The company plans to advance the property with systematic exploration and drilling programs.
