The above-mentioned hole at the Main Zone, one of 30 mineralised zones on the property, also included 3.05m at 49.54g/t from 12.19m.

It was part of a seven-hole, 200m programme completed before the onset of winter, of which four holes intersected gold mineralisation.

CEO Scott McLean said the company had realised that the high degree of weathering near surface in the Cape Breton Highlands required "a different tool kit in order to explore more effectively".

He said RAB drilling had proved an effective tool to inexpensively and rapidly screen numerous targets moving forward.

The company considers the geology similar to that hosting First Mining Gold's Hope Brook deposit in Newfoundland and OceanaGold's Haile mine in South Carolina.

Transition entered an option agreement to acquire 100% of Highland in September, by spending C$1.5 million (US$1.1 million) on the property, paying $170,000 and issuing $175,000 in shares to the vendor over five years.

A week later it announced it had staked further prospective areas to the southeast, taking the landholding to more than 50km2.

The company reported working capital of $1.87 million (US$1.4 million) at the end of August and raised almost $200,000 ((US$150,000) in a private placement in December at 11.5c per flow-through share.

The explorer and its 39%-owned Canadian Gold Miner had announced a new gold zone, Behold, south of Kirkland Lake in Ontario last week, which did not garner the same share price reaction.

Transition shares, which have ranged from C20-6c over the past year, rose 7c to 15c yesterday, an 87.5% jump.

At that price it is capitalised at $6.5 million.