[[email protected]]

I just got this story in my e mail and asked permission to share it.
I took these pictures of Anthony out on the Willamette yesterday.
I thought the story was great, and I can relate!!!

Look at this gorgeous boat, too! This was made by the original Dudley Nelson of Dud's plugs, and restored by Anthony Blazak, (Dudley Junior's cousin.)

I don't know when the boat was built, but it is gorgeous and a perfect river drifter!!!

Here is the story:

Outfishing Koler!

Jennie:
Did you end up taking any fish home from yesterday ? It was a weird day. There were lots of fish caught but I only
got that one. ( I am not complaining ) That was actually the first nice Sized one I have caught. Most of the fish I have
landed so far have been small. I even got one that was about Eight pounds. Two were in the Twelve to Fourteen pound
range. There are tons of fish in the river. All the wholes have been hot. This was the first time I could fish in front of
the dock there. The current was too strong the last time I tried. Yesterday was perfecto. The best part of the fish was
I caught it right under my cousins boat. Saturday I did the same thing. Steve Koler was right in front of me and I caught
a fish. Yesterday he was right behind me and I caught a fish. I feel better now. Last fall at the Ghost hole his wife
Linda did that to me Three times.
When we was young, many, many years ago in a galaxy far, far away. Steve, his brother Mike, my brother and I used to
fish together all the time. One year we were fishing at Mecca Flats on the Dechutes. It was May and the May Fly hatch was
in it's peak. Back then we had the river to our selves. Steve and I were fishing on a gravel bar. Steve yelled ( Dang, look
at this fish Tony it's huge " I was fishing the main stream and he was fishing the backwater. There was this tree over hanging the river and the mayflies were falling into the water. This big trout was laying there sucking them down.
Steve started to back cast his fly line. So I started right behind him. We were casting in Sync me right behind him.
Steve let go but his tippet wrapped around the end of a limb. " Dang " he yelled, but my line land perfect!
As he shook
his line to get it free about fifteen Mayflies started to fall but my Bug was the first to hit the water, Bahm ! the fight
was on. That fish started to head straight for Maupin. It was headed straight down the river and taking all my line with
it. When it got to the backing, the it hit the knott and the fish was gone. It busted my $1.25 Mayfly imitation right off! You lost my fish you (expletive deleted) " Yep ! It's not everyday I get to steal a fish from Steve Koler
but I have done it and I really enjoy it. When he steals one from me it's no big deal because that's what everybody expects.
So I will call that fish I caught yesterday one that I stole from Steve Koler.

Anthony

[ 04-22-2003, 08:55 AM: Message edited by: [email protected] ]

 

[Hoosier Daddy]

:shocked:
NICE BOAT!!!!

 

[[email protected]]

Isn't it AWESOME?

Some women like men. I like wooden drift boats. :smile: I find them much more sensitive.
(Oh OWWWWWWWE!)

I couldn't keep my eyes off of it, and I want to touch it and run my hands across the gunwales, and caress the chine. :smile:

They had a beautiful wooden drift boat at the Steelheaders Auction, and Bill had to pull me away from it.

Dudley built many Dories, but this one was designed specifically for river fishing. I loooooooooooooooove it!

Jen

[ 04-22-2003, 09:12 AM: Message edited by: [email protected] ]

 

[Digifish]

That is a boat! Do I see an interior motor well? Is that the top of an outboard?

 

[Hoosier Daddy]

I've seen a couple boats with lines like this one around OC area. I really like them. Look like they would fish great in the Willamette too.

 

[[email protected]]

The continuing saga....

Here is the latest from Tony:

As you all know by now I am enjoying a wonderful year of Spring Salmon fishing on the Willamette River in the Duds Plug. A common remark that I get when I am on
the river from the many fishermen that knew Uncle Dud and the Boat " Boy I would like to see all the fish that were caught in that boat " So I did a little calculation.


The boat was built in 1972.
Dud fished it until 1995 (Estimate) So lets say Twenty Three years.
Using an Average of 50 Salmon as a conservative number per year caught in the boat.


That's 50 X 23 = 1050 Salmon


Average of 15 Lbs. per fish = 15,750 Lbs or 7.8 Tons of Spring Chinook Salmon.


But then I called Dudley to confirm that he actually boated Fifty Spring Chinooks per Season and Dudley explained Fifty in the boat per year easy but one year he
actually counted One Hundred Twenty Salmon as the total.


So I think it is safe to say that these numbers are on the conservative side. I used the average of Fifteen pounds each because that is about the average I have seen.
Of course there are plenty of fish that weigh much more then that. I believe Duds largest Spring Chinook Salmon was Forty One pounds but that was before the
Duds Plug was built.


Also: Dud didn't catch all the fish himself as I think Oregon only allows Twenty fish per season per fisherman and Dud definitely didn't Cheat. However: If you are running
the boat and the people in the boat are using your gear and your plugs I think it is safe to say that the person running the boat is the fishermen. The other guys or Gals are
just holding the rods. ( Boy I hope I didn't step on any Ego's)


Plus if you add the Measly few fish I have caught this year ( Eight so far this year in the boat ). Plus all the fish I will catch in the future. You can safely say that the
Duds Plug is a workhorse.


I would love to have someone use their Graphics Editor and show the Duds plug holding all them fishy's. Paint Brush won't guite cut it.


Have a nice day !

 

[[email protected]]

There it is! :smile:

 

[willametteriveroutlaw]

Maybe he did keep 50 per year, he's got an unclipped fish in there. :grin: :grin: :grin: :grin:

 

[[email protected]]

LOL... Was searching for another post and found this one! Love it!

 

[Whethole]

Nice boat, nice fish, and nice story! I can totally relate to stealing fish from a rival buddy. Over the years we always joke about stealing fish from each other. Over the last couple of years i have been the river thief. Including taking a 35lb salmon from a hole on my third cast when he was fishing it for an hour. He threatened to call the sherrif for GTA grand theft adiposed!

 

[Joe Schwab]

Dudley Sr. took me out in that boat in the 80s and showed me how to fish the Dud's Plug. I caught two springers with him and confidently fished the Dud's plug for years after in my own boat. Was fishing out of Westport one day and nailed a nice springer on one. An old salt from the area came over and asked what I was using. I tossed one to him and he looked at it laughing like I was trying to pull a fast one. Little did he know!

Using one one day at the head of the channel, I made two passes and boated two springers. Fastest limit ever for me. I still have some hanging on the wall.

Beautiful boat, great story!

 

[Reelfun]

Back before the aluminum hatch, there were many boats like that. I grew up fishing hog lines with my father on the Columbia at Sundial beach. Our boat was a 16ft shepcraft that looked very similar to Dud's boat. We didn't have the the motor well like his. We were powered with a 1947 Johnson 5hp, no reverse, just spin the motor 180 degrees, and your top speed was maybe 5 MPH. No real hurry to get where you wanted to go. Everyone knew each other. So you just asked them to make a hole in the hog line. Those were really great days!!

 

[Orelk6x6]

Growing up, Dud Sr. let a buddy and I catch crawfish and bass fish off his dock. Loved all those salmon tails!!! He show us his plug making operation a couple times as well and always gave us some. I think I still have a few around. Good guy and helluva fisherman.

 

[Artwo]

Does someone have a really nice close up picture of a Dud's Plug?

The only picture I've seen wasn't very clear.......

 

[wannigan]

Does someone have a really nice close up picture of a Dud's Plug?

The only picture I've seen wasn't very clear.......

Yes, does anyone have a good picture of a duds plug?

 

[forestgrump]

Yes, does anyone have a good picture of a duds plug?

From the "Dry Docked" thread:

I still have some of his Dud Plug lures in original packaging. Hmmmm, wonder if walleye would like them trolled behind bottom walker?

 

[Joe Schwab]

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Joe Schwab]

Here are some I have! The white one was the most deadly. Dudley Sr. used to call prawns, "imitation Dud's Plugs"


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[fishchaser]

To this day, I looked to his boat house, to see how many fish they caught this year.