During this co-op semester, I worked for Bayside Geoscience. They are a geological consultation company based out of Thunder Bay, Ontario. I found this position through networking on LinkedIn. My position in the company was as a Geological Technician. With Bayside being a consultation company this allowed me to work as a contract worker for 4 different companies this summer in a wide variety of roles.
In May, my role was as a supervisor for a soil sampling program for Manitou Gold. It was based out of Missanabie which is an hour and a half drive north of Wawa, Ontario. We worked in pairs traversing and collecting soil samples of the A-Horizon using a hand auger. Most of our days included at an hour of travel time using either trucks or boats and sometimes both. Our farthest traverses took us through two portages. After three weeks of sampling my work partner and I were moved to the geophysics crew and began doing magnetic surveys. This involved hiking up to 12km wearing a specialized backpack that measures the magnetic field of the earth. This was my favourite work as it allowed me to cover a lot of ground in a beautiful area.
After that, I worked briefly for Rio Tinto helping to tech and cut core from their nickel project in Northwestern Ontario. This was my introduction to drill core logging and cutting. I learned a lot from the geologists I worked with there. All the equipment was top of the line and extremely easy and safe to use. I then worked for Noront in The Ring of Fire, which is approximately 700km North of Thunder Bay. Over six weeks, we completed a pXRF survey on 14000m of historic drill core. We had an ATV set up with the survey gear and drove through the core farm and took readings every 3 metres on holes of interest. After the survey was completed, I had the opportunity to go out into the field. I was with the senior geologist and we were sampling different outcrops for age dating.
My final position was at the Young-Davidson Gold Mine in Matachewan, Ontario. I was there as a core tech for all their production core, which is the core that is being drilled underground to further develop the resource. This position was essentially like working in a warehouse, core would come in daily, we would tech it and put it in racks until the geologists could log it. It would then get sampled immediately and sent to the lab next door for assay. This position was educational, however my preference is working in an exploration environment.
My favourite part of the job this summer was getting hands on experience working with geologists. I worked alongside so many talented people that were unbelievably patient with any questions that I had. It helped me develop my knowledge specifically in the structure and formation of mineral deposits. I enjoyed every moment of this summer and can’t wait to get back in the field. I would recommend a position like this to anyone interested in a career in geology. After graduation, I plan on attending Acadia University and completed a B.Sc. in Geology. During the summers I will continue working in exploration and continue to develop my skills. This semester has really helped me to confirm that I am following the right career path and I’m excited to see what happens next!
Source Reference: Fleming College - Keaton Markham – Geological Technician (https://wpflemingcollege.com/ertblog/2022/07/25/keaton-markham-geological-technician/)
