This is a Trip Report about adventure. I was moved to share this adventure in large part because of the magnificent trip reports by Vitaliy and Limpingcrab. The story starts with me, and my personal struggle to overcome a debilitating injury that left me unable to walk more than 10 feet at a time.

Last summer was the worst of my life, something happened to my lower back and some nerves were pinched and the major muscles in my left leg stopped responding to my mental commands. In short- I would fall down without warning; the sucker would just give up and drop me. Climbing was out of the question. I finally hooked up with a good doctor who understood my need to get back to climbing. He did some epidural shots right into my spine! This worked and in November I was able to lift my left leg off of the ground and push, but only just a weak push. I started slab climbing about 5.6 and I did my physical therapy daily. I slowly started to recover and last spring I started climbing at crags with zero approach. My good friend and long time climbing partner “Frumy” graciously invited me to come up to Bishop “anytime” and stay at his place. I have been making use of this base camp and my walking and climbing have been improving.

Reading Marty Lewis new GB to Mammoth Area Rockclimbing Vol 4. My interest was sparked by his description of the Corral and Double Dome at the Benton Crags. His statement about these domes being ... and I paraphrase. “This is the longest hike in all the Benton Crags... those who make the hike are rewarded with some fine sport climbing and tremendous scenery” ..... The fires of desire had been rekindled in my soul.

I let Frumy know of my desires and one Saturday morning we headed out to find the place. Marty’s excellent guide books leave you with with a sense of adventure, no spoon-feeding exact beta to you, you need to use your own sense of direction, path finding skills and grit to find the objective. We wandered around for about four hours and found nothing.


In short we were SHUTDOWN and needed to regroup and try again sometime in the future.
The next day Frumy had some business to attend to so I decided to go try out the new Fly Fishing Rig at Cottonwood. These small streams have small golden trout in them but it is a very good place to improve your skill and my casting skill needs lots of improvement.
The Dome was in my head all week long. I could not shake the desire that was burning deep down inside me for adventure. This desire had me trying hard at Stoney during the after work sessions.


I was able to convince another of my long time climbing partners, Yafer, to join in with US and our quest to find the DOME.

We were up and off to breakfast at the crack of noon.
On the drive to Benton Crags Frumy did a good job of hiding his apprehension of what awaited us.


I always get goose bumps at the sight of the objective, a cold IPA helped but I still had butterflies in my stomach at the start of the grueling 30 min hike that lay before us.

Even though Frumy and I had been up here the week before we still had trouble finding the way. Lots of looking for the cairns and footprints finally brought us to the entrance of the KEY Drainage that would lead us to the promised but well hidden crag.

About 100 yards past the TIKI you see the hidden dome

EUREKA!
a little shiver went through me as I gazed on the formidable climbing that awaited us.

Yafer was chomping at the bit so he grabbed the rope and went for the first lead.
Yafer really put out for the team, soon he was nearing the ultra steep climax of the route.


It is ours!!!!!!!


We enjoyed some of the other climbs, but soon the sun came over the top of the dome. Its fierce rays told us that the day at the Dome was over, it was time to retreat. So we partied some and beat a hasty retreat, vowing to return for more. Soon.

I hope you liked this TR, my first but not last, and I hope that this has fired the stoke in your own mind to get out and climb in the big unknown.