HDG High Desert Gold Corporation

High Desert Gold Corporation ("HDG" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE: HDG) announced today that the Company has signed an option agreement with Norvista Resources Corporation ("Norvista"), a private Canadian corporation headquartered in Toronto, on the Company's Canasta Dorada project located in Sonora, Mexico. Under the agreement, Norvista will commit a minimum expenditure of US$250,000 and maintain the property for six months. Prior to the end of this option period, Norvista can elect to purchase a 51% interest in a wholly- owned subsidiary of HDG, to be established ("Newco"), for US$1.5 million. Newco would be set up to hold all the HDG property interests in the Canasta Dorada Project. Norvista would be manager of the project under the direction of Mr. Rick Adams, most recently a founder and director of Castle Gold Corporation ("Castle Gold"). Under the agreement, Norvista will then be obligated to take Newco public within one year or risk losing operatorship.

Ralph Fitch, President and CEO, stated, "I believe this is an excellent opportunity for the Company and for our shareholders. The Newco will be led by several former members of the Castle Gold management team. Castle Gold successfully developed and operated two open-pit, heap-leach gold mines in Mexico and Guatemala, and was acquired by Argonaut Gold Corp. for gross proceeds of approximately Cdn$110 million during the first quarter of this year. Norvista's immediate focus will be to drill extensions of the mineralization already defined by HDG's initial drill program. This affords the Company the opportunity to advance Canasta Dorada without further expense to HDG or share dilution, while at the same time, allowing our management team to focus on advancing the two very promising new gold projects in our portfolio, Gold Springs in the US and San Antonio in Mexico."

Previous drilling by HDG at Canasta Dorada (see HDG PR 08-08, May 20, 2008) delineated an open-ended block of approximately 350 by 150 metres in the "Big Pit" area. The average of the grade and thickness of the holes in this block is:

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                       Average Width
                            (metres)                      Average Gold (g/t)
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Big Pit
 Mineralization                 15.7                                   0.614
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Includes Drill                       CD-07-001,2,6,7,8,10,11,12,13,13A,14,27
 Holes               The average width in these holes varies from 8-31 m and
                                  the average grade from 0.2 to 2.1 gpt gold
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It is important to note that a "nugget effect" is seen in drill hole assays, such that large 3 kg cyanide bottle roll assays are typically higher grade than the 30 gram fire assay results reported above. This coarse gold is seen in the twin holes CD-07-13 and 13a, where the assays from individual samples in these holes were typically 42% to 151% higher in the large bottle roll samples than in the smaller fire assay samples. The mineralized intercepts from these two holes were re-analyzed. The 3 kg bottle roll analyses increased the average grade in DDH 13 from 0.32 grams per tonne ("g/t") to 0.73 g/t over 21 metres, a 90.3% increase in grade, and in the second drill hole, DDH 13A, the grade increased 9.4% from 1.14 to 1.25 g/t over 23.5 metres (see HDG PR 08-26, dated December 5, 2008).

Approximately one kilometre to the southeast of the "Big Pit" area, drill hole CD-07-016, located in the "Placer Area" target, intersected the same flat-lying structural zone and exhibits strong alteration over greater thicknesses. This hole was located on the eastern edge of the very strong 800 metre by 800 metre gold anomaly in the soil that was previously reported (see HDG PR 08-01, January 18, 2008). The initial drill program will test whether the "Big Pit" mineralization extends in a semi-continuous zone to the "Placer Area"; a zone large enough to host an important resource should mineralization be confirmed by drilling.

HDG EXPLORATION UPDATE

Drilling is in progress at the Gold Springs project as was previously announced (see HDG PR10-12, June 7, 2010). Samples have been submitted to the assay lab in Reno, Nevada and the first results are expected back from the lab in July.

As previously reported, the Qualified Person on the Canasta Dorada project for the Company is Randall Moore, Executive VP of Exploration, and a certified professional geologist. Please see High Desert Gold Corporation's website, www.highdesertgoldcorp.com, for maps and drill hole locations.

ABOUT NORVISTA

Norvista Resources Corporation, founded by noted Canadian mining company executive, Gerry McCarvill, is a private merchant bank dedicated to making investments in the natural resource sector. Mr. McCarvill has been instrumental in the founding of a number of international mining companies with a value into several billions of dollars. Norvista is building a portfolio of mining companies designed to provide investors with a broad exposure to the sector. www.norvistaresources.com

ABOUT HIGH DESERT GOLD

The Company is a mineral exploration company that acquires and explores mineral properties, primarily gold, copper and silver, in North America. The major properties held by HDG are the Canasta Dorada gold property in Sonora, Mexico, the Gold Springs gold project situated along the border between Utah and Nevada and the recently announced San Antonio project in Sonora, Mexico. The Company is currently well funded for the planned exploration programs in 2010 and has only 22.9 million shares outstanding.

Certain statements contained herein constitute "forward-looking statements". Forward-looking statements look into the future and provide an opinion as to the effect of certain events and trends on the business. Forward-looking statements may include words such as "will," "would," "plans," "intends," "anticipates," "should," "estimates," "expects," "believes," "indicates," "exhibits," "targeting," "suggests," "potential," "interpretation" and similar expressions. Information concerning the interpretation of drill results also may be considered forward-looking statements, as such information constitutes a prediction of what mineralization might be found to be present if and when a project is actually developed. These forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and entail various risks and uncertainties. Actual results may materially differ from expectations, if known and unknown risks or uncertainties affect our business, or if our estimates or assumptions prove inaccurate. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. Except as required by law, HDG assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or any other reason. Additional information regarding risks and uncertainties that could affect the Company's business is contained in the Company's Management Discussion & Analysis of Financial Position and Results of Operations, which is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Contacts: High Desert Gold Corporation Richard Doran Executive Vice President (303) 584-0608 (303) 758-2063 (FAX) rdoran@highdesertgoldcorp.com