Curtiss, of Kotzebue, landed the 41 3/4-inch Dolly on a river he and Ubben are trying to keep a secret.

"Fishing in our favorite fishing hole in a river in Northwest Alaska," was how Ubben described the spot.

Rivers that yield 27-pound, 4-ounce Dollies are going to be hard to keep secret.

Ken Ubben held the record for largest Dolly for 10 years before his son and son's friend beat it last week. His Dolly weighed in at 20 pounds.

"He wanted to cook it," said Ken Ubben of Curtiss' monster fish. "But I said, 'you're taking it to town.'"

Curtiss followed Ubben's advice and is taking the trophy fish to the taxidermist.

"It's built like a big king," said Ken Ubben.

One onlooker, Sheetrock Tom, couldn't believe his eyes.

"That's never going to be beat, ever," he said.

<>The Arctic Sounder