Bruce Derstine:
CLASS OF 1972
Souderton High SchoolClass of 1972
Souderton, PA
Bruce's Story
My Life
I'm Living in Alaska, since 1999. Build log Igloos and am living in one that we have built in Palmer, the address is 1044 S. Old Glenn Hwy. You can Google up the map! Love hunting and fishing up here . Do a lot of hunting, Moose, Caribou, Dall Sheep, Brown and Grizzly bears, Wolves, Deer and Big Elk. Summers have 22 hours of daylight, winters are dark and cold, ( a good time to snuggle ). Best time to visit would be July and August (fisherman) September for the hunters. It's a beautiful state with a great Governer: Sarah Palin, do you agree?
This is part of MY STORY some parts are missing!
I grew up in Harleysville, Pa. and enjoyed hunting pheasants, and whitetail deer. Got into taxidermy, and loved driving my Harley-Davidson around town and the state. A friend, Robert Millar and I decided we needed to explore the country, so out of high school took 3 month and our bikes for a ride. We went on a tour ride to the Indianapolis 500, after the weekend headed to Montana, Seattle, Wa. then headed NORTH TO ALASKA. My big dream! Unfortunately it rained, snowed and had just down right bad weather for the two weeks I was there. Bob's bike broke so he headed back to Osburn, Idaho to be with a girl that he had met. I'm thinking his bike wasn't that bad broke! Met up again with Bob and headed down the California coast to Mexico. Lot's of stops in between fishing and hunting along the way. After Mexico we headed to Lost Wages, Nevada. Had a good time there and as we were heading out I had a wreck and totaled the bike and scraped myself up pretty good. Found out a few things on that 22,000 mile trip about myself and life. Well, I ended up moving to Colorado, started working in a logging camp, killing trees and supplying the country with renewable resources. After working with the wood materials, found out how much I like working Logs so got hired on with some Log Home building, construction outfits. Bought some property on the Elk River, Clark Co. I cut some 3' to 4' trees for a lodge, planned on building. While in Alaska, met a guy who had been working the pipeline, was building a large Log, home. He let me spend the night. Since that day always wanted one, so I cut the trees, skidded them out and started with the 4' dia. logs and scribe fit them on a 1500sf. foundation. Bought a cherry picker crane to stack the log. Guided Elk and mule deer hunter in Colorado. Killed some large Bull Elk, some good Mulies, 6' Mt Lion, Big Horn Ram with an arrow, Being a Taxidermist and mounted everything that I killed and ate all the meat. Which included snakes, alligators, raccoons, fox , lions, sheep, bears, etc. Consider myself a Trophy Hunter, which only means that I enjoy the outdoors so much and will hunt longer, as long as it takes, to kill the largest and smartest of any big game animals. I hunt with a bow, a muzzle loader, a rifle, shotguns, crossbows, and yes even spear, not much luck in that department. Right now 4/6/08 planning a float Grizzly hunt, here in Alaska in a month, with a friend from CLASSMATES, Cambria Dejesus. She has never been on a Grizzly hunt and is looking forward to this adventure! She will be the photographer and bait, been there, done that, just haven't made a kill as of this date. There has been a few chances at smaller bears, just took there picture and let them walk, (Trophy Hunting). We will be hunting close to a wild herd of Bison which will be calving at that time. The Gr...Expand for more
izzly and Wolves, love baby calf bison. We will be trying to increase the Bison herd. Will post some pixs if successful. Akbull
5/10/08
Well Cambria and I put in the Copper River, Ak. and realized that we were a little early this year, or the ice was a little late in melting. There was a lot of ice still along the embankment, not real cold, but had some good weather. As we started the float, we took a path that was shallow, only about a 1.5 foot of water flowing over the ice. We had to do our first portage. Emptied the raft and pushed the cooler and stuff about 200' to fast water. After that we stuck with all the fast water channels. We pulled out a few times to check the sand bars for bear tracks. I found a Hugh set of Grizzly tracks, but they were a few days old. Set up camp on the south side of the river. Found where some people long ago had cut a bunch of cabin size trees for a cabin. The first whites who explored the Copper river hiked up river, shot and caught all their food and built cabins along the way to winter in. It took them 4 years to find the Yukon and make their way to Nome. I figured they had cut all these trees with a hand ax. That they had built a cabin, where we had camped, and spent the winter.
On third day we walked another beach and found a lot of moose and caribou tracks no bear sign though. About noon I noticed a hugh ice berg in the center of the river and oared for all I was worth to get around it, but the wind was blowing real good and we hit this ice berg dead on. There was about a two foot gap under this berg, where the raft got caught and almost bucked me out. I had to grap the rope and haul myself back on board, the ice bent the oar lock and kick one of the oars overboard along with my coffee cup a black box full of our gear. The raft filled with water and beached us on a sand bar. If we could have caught up with the oar we could have continued and recover our black box . Neither happen and we had too abandon the trip. We were just getting into the wild bison herd where we saw some mothers and calfs. We would have camped there and watch the herd a couple of days, cause they attract bears when the new borns are around. On the drive back to our pull out there was a black bear on the edge of the road within 10' of the asphalt. to close to the road to shoot!!
Since that trip and the great adventure with Cambria, how she was able to hold it together in a time of distress. I figured that I would ask her to marry me and live our lives together. I have been married before and knew how hard it would be to make a marriage work, but since we believe our God had brought us together how could we fail?? The only way would be to let ourselves down, and let Satan in to destroy our love!
We were married on Aug. 30/08 and went on our Huntingmoon in the interier of Alaska for moose and bear. TO BE CONTINUED!
5/10/09
Well we survived the winter "snowbirding" in California, barely! No work to be had for me, so I hunted coyotes all winter and ground squirrels. At lease we had meat to eat and lots of fresh fruit.
We are getting our gear together for another adventure on the river. Our annual GRIZZLY bear float down the Copper River. Cambria had a carpal tunnel surgery, but she is doing good on the recovery. We will be putting in on the 20th of May. 10 ten days later then last year, so the ice should be gone, we're praying hard for that. We have a friend named Grrrrrrrrriz, going with us for the hunt. He'll have another boat in case of problems. Plus more room for meat and hides. more to come!!! Then Cambria Died! Very sad ending!
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