ANGLER REELS IN HEFTY CATCH ON CASTAIC LAKE FISHING TRIP.

Byline: Dave Strege The Orange County Register

Troy Folkestad isn't easily rattled when it comes to catching trophy-size largemouth bass. After all, the angler is a fishing guide specializing in big bass.

But his nerves became frayed on one of the most impressive bass fishing trips in recent memory. Folkestad, from Mission Viejo, found himself shaking with excitement.

You'd be excited, too, if you caught 10 bass totaling 80 pounds, including a 14-pound, 1-ouncer and a 12-pound, 5-ouncer.

You'd be excited, too, if you were replacing smaller bass in your live-well with bigger bass, culling a limit of five bass weighing a combined 50 pounds, 1 ounce.

You'd be excited, too, if you caught eight bass on 12 casts and two that were lost weighed in excess of 10 pounds.

It happened to Folkestad recently at lower Castaic Lake.

A friend called Folkestad the night before to cancel, so he made the trip alone.

Folkestad got started at 8 in the morning and caught bass weighing 4 and 6 pounds.

``I caught them on crawdads, unfortunately,'' he said.

Like many anglers, Folkestad prefers artificial lures to bait. He once caught a bass limit weighing 47 pounds, 6 ounces at upper Castaic Lake, including a 14-pound, 14-ouncer bass.

``I feel more accomplished about that because they were all on artificial lures,'' he said.

Still, it didn't detract from this trip. Obviously.

Things were slow until 1 p.m., when Folkestad found a curious change in contour on a mostly sandy, even lake bottom. He couldn't spot fish on the depth finder, yet intuition prompted him to give it a try.

For the next 1-1/2 hours, Folkestad felt three strikes and got nothing. The fourth cast produced an 8-3.

He retied his line and baited another crawdad. He got another strike. This time he landed a 12-5. At this point, he was still calm. He is experienced at this, having caught 43 bass weighing 10 pounds or more.

``Then I thought, `Maybe I should try a trout lure,' '' Folkestad said. ``So I worked a 10-inch trout lure on the bottom, made a couple of turns of the reel and let it settle - boom, I got a bite.''

It was the 14 pound, 1-ouncer. He was on a roll. Three casts and three bass weighing 34-9. Another cast with the lure produced nothing, so he went back to crawdads.

Another bite. This time, Folkestad was forced to chase the fish with his trolling motor in high gear. After 75 yards, the fish fought itself free. Whoa.

``That's when I got real nervous,'' he said. ``I never get nervous because I catch quite a few trophy fish. But my knees started shaking and my hands started shaking.''

He repositioned the boat, tossed another crawdad and got bit again. Again he lost it.

The same routine resulted in an 8-pound, 2-ouncer followed by another 10-pound-plus bass that shook itself free.

``I couldn't believe it; I checked the hook each time,'' he said. ``I sharpened my hooks. It just happens.''

He went on to catch bass weighing 6, 6 and 7 pounds, then went in to verify his catch before it got too late. After that, Folkestad returned for one last cast. He caught a 7-pound, 6-ounce bass.

After getting photos, he released all the fish and celebrated with a Dr Pepper.

``I still shook until I was on the freeway driving home about half an hour later,'' he said. ``Boy was it a good feeling.''

The friend who canceled? It was Ronnie Kovach, host of Fishing Expeditions on KABC (790) radio in the Los Angeles area Saturday mornings.

Kovach talked on the air about one of the biggest mistakes he's made in his life: Having to cancel his trip with Folkestad.

It was a trip of a lifetime.