Kodiak hunt results in magnificent trophy
Posted: Sunday, July 17, 2005
Bruce Brock, Le Mars, accomplished a lifelong dream this spring when he traveled to Kodiak Island to hunt brown bear. His trophy squared more than 10 feet and ranks in the top 10 percent among the largest of the big bears taken by hunters.
The big brown bear winded the hunters and jumped into a large patch of alders.
"The guide told me to load my gun," Bruce Brock remembered. "He said, 'The bear is in here. He could be anywhere. If he comes, just point and shoot.'"
That's sound advice when you are stalking a Kodiak brown bear in heavy cover.
"We had been stalking that bear for nine hours," Brock said. "It was backbreaking."
But, worth it. At the end of the day, Brock had downed a wonderful trophy, a Kodiak brown that squared more than 10 feet.
It was a tough hunt that ended well. Here's how it came about.
Brock and his 23-year-old Aleut guide were on their third day of a 10-day hunt on sprawling Kodiak Island, home of the largest brown bears in the world. They spent their days lying on slopes of Bear Mountain, a looming, snow-capped peak across from a small lake where their tiny 12- by 12-foot outpost cabin served as headquarters for the hunt.
There had been plenty of bears to look at. Most, however, were females with cubs.
But, that's a good sign. The females attract the big boars who are intent on breeding. It's a dangerous time for the cubs because the big boars will kill them if they can so the female will come into heat again. That's why a female with cubs is a such a tough customer. A lot of males find out the hard way, and the female runs them off.
"We saw 32 bears one day," Brock said. "All sows with cubs. It was the worst hiking you've every done. Country that looks level is really a series of tussocks, big mounds, and everything that grows on the ground has thorns."
The brown bear is a distinct and separate race from the interior grizzly. They are found along the coast and islands of southern Alaska. They are the world's largest bear, the world's largest carnivore, and, some say, the world's most dangerous big game animal.
All of that comes home to roost when you're approaching a large brownie. Brock said they crossed the big bear's tracks, and they looked like someone had pressed a violin with big claws into the ground. The Kodiak was somewhere in the alder thicket. But where? And, what would he do when it became apparent he was being stalked?
"We had spotted the bear from about three and a half miles away," Brock related. "The guide saw him on a snow field and asked for a spotting scope. 'That bear is really heavy,' he said."
The hunters began their stalk at 11 a.m. They thought the boar might be heading to another sow grazing on another mountainside, so they headed there. They crossed a creek and set up for two hours near the sow waiting. Nothing happened.
So, the hunters began looking for the big bear. They hiked up the side of the mountain to get a higher position to glass. Nothing. They worked their way down. The only thing left was to find tracks.
"The bear trails are centuries old," Brock said. "They are worn deep into the ground."
It was a long shot, but they got lucky. They cut the big bear's trail. It lead into the alder thicket. It was 3 p.m. The hunters worked higher up and began glassing. Finally, at about 8 p.m. the bear stood up about a mile up the draw, and they could clearly see his profile.
For Bruce, this was the hunt of a lifetime. He's an experienced big game hunter with plenty of hunts behind him for mule deer, antelope and moose. He's shot three black bear. But, Kodiak bears were only a dream, a dream from childhood
"When I was a kid, 14 years old, I read Jack O'Conner's story "Monster of Kodiak Island," he said. "I never thought I'd get a chance to hunt there."
Born in Sioux City, Brock has been a hunter all his life. He makes his living as an auctioneer. The family business was originally located in Battle Creek, Iowa, but in 1994 moved to LeMars, where the Brock Auction Co., Inc., deals in real estate, farm, household and antiques.
After winning the1993 International Auctioneering Championship, Bruce found his talents in big demand. He began doing high profile auctions all around the country, including celebrity fund-raising auctions. However, his life hit a tough bump when he was diagnosed with lymphoma. Brock underwent a stem cell transplant in May of 2004 at Mayo Clinic. It was successful, and last winter he was given a "clean bill of health."
"It left me with a whole new perspective on life," he says. "Now I really appreciate the hunting and the outdoors. It all means so much more to me now. The Kodiak hunt was just another goal that I set and accomplished."
The bear hunt actually came about because of Brock's high-profile in the auction community. Brock was doing auctions for the Safari Club in Las Vegas and Reno, Nev., and his connections with a member hunter paved the way to Kodiak Island.
After spotting the bear again, Bruce and his guide began an hour and a half stalk.
"It was a killer hike," Bruce recalled. "We had to get above him, but the wind changed. We saw him head down the slope and into the alders."
It was at that patch of alders, when the guide told Bruce to load his gun.
"Up the that point, I wasn't nervous," Brock said. "Fifty yards later we found where the bear had winded us, and his tracks were confused. We followed and saw them go into some brush. The guide began climbing to get above the bear to spot him, but the bear heard him and crossed a stream going into a draw where he stopped and turned, giving me a quartering shot."
Bruce raised his Remington 700 bolt action .338 Winchester Magnum, found the bear's shoulder in the scope and fired.
The bear went down, but got up, and Bruce took another quick shot.
"Bear guides tell you to take the first careful shot, and then keep shooting at anything you can see on the bear," Bruce said. "I was able to fire twice before the bear disappeared into the brush.
"The guide tracked it and found him," Bruce said. "It was 9:30 p.m. and about to get dark. We left him, and headed back to the cabin."
The bear was estimated at 1,200 to 1,300 pounds. The hide squared 10-foot, 2-inches. The paw to paw measurement was 11-foot, 4-inches.
"It is a real trophy," Bruce said. "Only 10 percent or less of brown bears taken square 10 feet or bigger. The skull measured 26 3/16 inches."
The trophy is currently at the taxidermist. The full-body mount will be on display next January at the annual Safari Club International Show in Reno, Nev.
Larry Myhre is editor of the Journal. Reach him at (712) 293-4201 or email at: larrymyhre@siouxcityjournal.com
"The guide told me to load my gun," Bruce Brock remembered. "He said, 'The bear is in here. He could be anywhere. If he comes, just point and shoot.'"
That's sound advice when you are stalking a Kodiak brown bear in heavy cover.
"We had been stalking that bear for nine hours," Brock said. "It was backbreaking."
But, worth it. At the end of the day, Brock had downed a wonderful trophy, a Kodiak brown that squared more than 10 feet.
It was a tough hunt that ended well. Here's how it came about.
Brock and his 23-year-old Aleut guide were on their third day of a 10-day hunt on sprawling Kodiak Island, home of the largest brown bears in the world. They spent their days lying on slopes of Bear Mountain, a looming, snow-capped peak across from a small lake where their tiny 12- by 12-foot outpost cabin served as headquarters for the hunt.
There had been plenty of bears to look at. Most, however, were females with cubs.
But, that's a good sign. The females attract the big boars who are intent on breeding. It's a dangerous time for the cubs because the big boars will kill them if they can so the female will come into heat again. That's why a female with cubs is a such a tough customer. A lot of males find out the hard way, and the female runs them off.
"We saw 32 bears one day," Brock said. "All sows with cubs. It was the worst hiking you've every done. Country that looks level is really a series of tussocks, big mounds, and everything that grows on the ground has thorns."
The brown bear is a distinct and separate race from the interior grizzly. They are found along the coast and islands of southern Alaska. They are the world's largest bear, the world's largest carnivore, and, some say, the world's most dangerous big game animal.
All of that comes home to roost when you're approaching a large brownie. Brock said they crossed the big bear's tracks, and they looked like someone had pressed a violin with big claws into the ground. The Kodiak was somewhere in the alder thicket. But where? And, what would he do when it became apparent he was being stalked?
"We had spotted the bear from about three and a half miles away," Brock related. "The guide saw him on a snow field and asked for a spotting scope. 'That bear is really heavy,' he said."
The hunters began their stalk at 11 a.m. They thought the boar might be heading to another sow grazing on another mountainside, so they headed there. They crossed a creek and set up for two hours near the sow waiting. Nothing happened.
So, the hunters began looking for the big bear. They hiked up the side of the mountain to get a higher position to glass. Nothing. They worked their way down. The only thing left was to find tracks.
"The bear trails are centuries old," Brock said. "They are worn deep into the ground."
It was a long shot, but they got lucky. They cut the big bear's trail. It lead into the alder thicket. It was 3 p.m. The hunters worked higher up and began glassing. Finally, at about 8 p.m. the bear stood up about a mile up the draw, and they could clearly see his profile.
For Bruce, this was the hunt of a lifetime. He's an experienced big game hunter with plenty of hunts behind him for mule deer, antelope and moose. He's shot three black bear. But, Kodiak bears were only a dream, a dream from childhood
"When I was a kid, 14 years old, I read Jack O'Conner's story "Monster of Kodiak Island," he said. "I never thought I'd get a chance to hunt there."
Born in Sioux City, Brock has been a hunter all his life. He makes his living as an auctioneer. The family business was originally located in Battle Creek, Iowa, but in 1994 moved to LeMars, where the Brock Auction Co., Inc., deals in real estate, farm, household and antiques.
After winning the1993 International Auctioneering Championship, Bruce found his talents in big demand. He began doing high profile auctions all around the country, including celebrity fund-raising auctions. However, his life hit a tough bump when he was diagnosed with lymphoma. Brock underwent a stem cell transplant in May of 2004 at Mayo Clinic. It was successful, and last winter he was given a "clean bill of health."
"It left me with a whole new perspective on life," he says. "Now I really appreciate the hunting and the outdoors. It all means so much more to me now. The Kodiak hunt was just another goal that I set and accomplished."
The bear hunt actually came about because of Brock's high-profile in the auction community. Brock was doing auctions for the Safari Club in Las Vegas and Reno, Nev., and his connections with a member hunter paved the way to Kodiak Island.
After spotting the bear again, Bruce and his guide began an hour and a half stalk.
"It was a killer hike," Bruce recalled. "We had to get above him, but the wind changed. We saw him head down the slope and into the alders."
It was at that patch of alders, when the guide told Bruce to load his gun.
"Up the that point, I wasn't nervous," Brock said. "Fifty yards later we found where the bear had winded us, and his tracks were confused. We followed and saw them go into some brush. The guide began climbing to get above the bear to spot him, but the bear heard him and crossed a stream going into a draw where he stopped and turned, giving me a quartering shot."
Bruce raised his Remington 700 bolt action .338 Winchester Magnum, found the bear's shoulder in the scope and fired.
The bear went down, but got up, and Bruce took another quick shot.
"Bear guides tell you to take the first careful shot, and then keep shooting at anything you can see on the bear," Bruce said. "I was able to fire twice before the bear disappeared into the brush.
"The guide tracked it and found him," Bruce said. "It was 9:30 p.m. and about to get dark. We left him, and headed back to the cabin."
The bear was estimated at 1,200 to 1,300 pounds. The hide squared 10-foot, 2-inches. The paw to paw measurement was 11-foot, 4-inches.
"It is a real trophy," Bruce said. "Only 10 percent or less of brown bears taken square 10 feet or bigger. The skull measured 26 3/16 inches."
The trophy is currently at the taxidermist. The full-body mount will be on display next January at the annual Safari Club International Show in Reno, Nev.
Larry Myhre is editor of the Journal. Reach him at (712) 293-4201 or email at: larrymyhre@siouxcityjournal.com
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