A "puzzling" absence of gold? Gotta love the language.
Seems pretty clear that this was a miss. Which says to me that we go back to the drawing board and figure out where to try next. The original intercepts showed promise, and the proximity to our gold producing neighbours provides the necessary incentive to continue the exploration on this early play.
But I would not hold my breath on the six remaining holes. It appears that a new approach is mandated.
crazydik