LADY DOREEN
30 WATERLINE
Game fishing history in Lady Doreen There a piece of New Zealand game fishing history for sale at the bridge marina. The Lady Doreen teak decks have been trodden by the rich and famous and the boat has the reputation of catching more gamefish in her career than any other northland boat. Zane Grey’s son Dr Loren Grey, Lord Vesty G Harold Hopkins, former New Zealand Prime Minister Norm Kirk, the King and Queen of Nepal, Sir Robert Muldoon and a handful of Hollywood stars are among some of the notables who have chartered the Lady Doreen. She’s a traditional game fishing displacement design of carvel planked kauri with cabin topsides and main structure all of northland kauri –and was Snooks Fuller’s dream boat. “The story goes that when he was going to school he sketched this boat out on a school exercise book,” says Gulf Group Tauranga manager Brian Worthington. “At age 18 he made a model, then he and his father had it built by Bart and Wally Deming at Deming’s boat yard in Opua.” The Demings scaled it up off the model and Snooks and his father Norm helped build the Lady Doreen, which was launched in 1951. With her big open cockpit, berths for six, for up to ten days with freezers, fridges, ovens and toilets; the Lady Doreen was years ahead of the competitors.
She’s named after Snooks’ mother. The heaviest fish ever caught on the Lady Doreen was a black marlin weighing 380kg, caught by a 16 year old. The first world record fish was caught in 1957, a 192kg stiped marlin. In June 1972 Anne Clarke of Auck-
farmers for Idaho, but remained under contract with the boat for five years with right of renewal. The Lady Doreen was one of the first Bay of Island boat to move to light tackle for game fish, and was also a leader in the tag and release programme.
land hooked a 300lb thresher shark on 30lb line setting a women’s world record. Snooks sold the lady Doreen in 1975 to Delbert and Dulcie Clampert, potato
The previous owner spent $250,000 on refitting and restoring the Lady Doreen, says Brian, and after a year put her on the market again. The present owner is looking for $249,000.