As I mentioned in the last post, the thing that draws me to Bonaire is the easy shore dives and the fact that I can cook my own food in an efficiency apartment without being at the mercy of crappy expensive restaurants. They don't have alot of vegetables there in their supermarkets but they do have the biggest carrots I've ever seen in my life.
Through out the years of going to Bonaire I have dived at most of their dive sites and there are a few now that I only go to on a regular basis.
My favorite spot is "windsock".
For some reason, hardly anybody dives here. It has an easy entrance, it's a fairly shallow site, you can't get lost and the reefs are the best on the island.
I've noticed divers seem to flock to the pain-in-the-ass entrance dives sites and then make a bee-line straight down to 60 feet or more. Maybe they think they are going to see "the good stuff". I can't quite figure that one out.
At "windsock," we've seen turtles, eagle rays, southern sting rays and this group of 'friendly" squids. We also like to dive "North Belnem" and "bachelor beach" which is on the same stretch as "windsock". Another spot that has an fairly easy entrance is "oil slick leap". When you decend and reach the mooring line that is the best part of the dive. As you swim northth it looks like a 'bone yard' of dead coral. I don't know if it was a result of a nasty storm or what. It's rather odd.
I also like 'the front porch' where the former Sunset House hotel was situated. There is a tug boat located there offshore in about 100 foot depth. It is an easy entrance as well. I call it the "poor man's Hilma Hooker". (The Hilma Hooker is a wreck dive up north. It is kind of a pain-in-the-ass entrance and you have to do a marathon swim out to the mooring.) I've done this dive many times before. The tug boat is home to a variety of moray eels. You really see alot of them during a night dive.
Close to the "front porch" is "bari reef" which is a pretty nice easy dive. If you keep swimming north you can end up near 'the lion's den" and eventually, "Captain Dons"(but it is a helluva swim!)
We end up at 'windsock" for most of the week. Thank God my husband has the same diving mind set as myself. He was perfectly happy diving 'windsock" most of the week.
One of my favorite sites was "the salt pier" but for some reason you are not allowed to dive there anymore.The dive master's state that it is a "matter of national security" that you are not allowed to dive there but at the same time, if you pay an additional $25.00 for a "guided dive " there then it is considered no longer a security threat (?)
I've noticed some changes in Bonaire over the years I've been there. For one thing, there is a tremendous amount of construction non-stop going on. I frankly, do not know who is buying these 'vacation homes". Some of the projects have been abandoned with building in shambles. Many of the native trees and brush have been torn down for building. A couple of years ago, the apartment I stay at had many hibiscus bushes and chibi chibi trees in the back. It was home for their endangered yellow fronted amazon parrots. I would see and hear them every morning. The trees are gone and now there are vacation homes, empty, in their place. I haven't seen those parrots in a couple of years. I've gone further inland in search of them but no luck.
The crime has also escalated as well. You are warned not to leave valuables in your car such as cameras, wallets, etc.. Now the thieves are now siphoning gas from the gas tanks from your rental cars and stealing tires leaving you stranded. The car rental companies now paint the tires of the cars to identify the tires. There are certain dive sites now the dive shops advise you not to go to anymore due to theft. If I see a vehicle pull up with tinted windows with teenage locals in it just 'hanging around" I don't dive there.
For the most part, the weather is pretty constant in Bonaire. They usually don't get hit by hurricanes. However, we did get hit with pounding rain all week. I really didn't mind since I was going to get wet anyways by diving. The only bad part was that our wetsuits never dried all week. By day two, the wetsuits were already starting to stink like the inside of a monkey house.
We got up at the crack of dawn to do our first dive of the day. It was rather interesting diving in the pouring rain at dusk. You could actually hear the thunder underwater. There was alot of fish activity. Thankfully, the lionfish had not wiped out the fish populations like they have in the Bahamas. I had thought another diver might have been around taking UW photos since I kept seeing bright flashes. It turned out to be lightning. This might not have been the best idea to go diving when it was lightning but I didn't realize this was happening until later.
After the rain, the mosquitoes and "no-see-ums" were pretty fierce. There is usually there is a leeward wind that keeps them at bay but hurricanes coming from the east and north were sucking the wind out of the area. There would be flash flooding as a result of the heavy rains on arrid soil.
This is kind of a funny story relating to the flooding rain. While my husband was using the bathroom I heard him yell for me to " Hurry! Come in here! Quickly!". The drain on the shower floor was burping and lifting up.
He was frozen on the pot.
Out came an antenae and then a brown elongated body came out from the drain.
It was a two inch long cockroach (palmento bug) pushing it's way out of the drain.
I chased it around the room till finally :"SQUISH!".
This problem with cockroaches happened only one other time before and it was because of heavy rains as well. They were finding their way through the sinks and drains. I'd find them in the cabinets happily poking their heads out of bowls and cups. This was the time my sister came along with us on our annual trip. There was one in her bedroom. The shadow at night amplified it's size so when she looked on the ceiling it appeared to be about a foot long. She woke me out of a sound sleep screaming, "there's a giant cockroach on the ceiling! Help! Quick come in here!"
I really do not know why I've been designated as "the bug buster".
Not only am I the designated bug buster but designated driver as well.
I guess it is because I can drive a standard (stick) truck.
The first couple of years when I had rented trucks I always got a nice little ford ranger truck.They were fun and easy to drive. The budget rental company had gotten rid of those little 'bang up" dive trucks and switched to these big ass F350 hilux trucks.
I mean these are gigantic monster trucks.
I can't even reach the pedals never mind see over the steering wheel.
I must look like Mike Dukakis in that infamous army tank photo.
WTF
I now have to ask for their smallest trucks which are basically F150's. I can reach the pedals but I can't see over the back seat. I have to have my husband jump out of the truck and direct me when I back up or parallel park.
On this visit to Bonaire we managed to do 13 dives. Most of the dives were over an hour long at 30 feet. I had came down with a cold on the first day causing havok with my ears so we missed one full day of diving. We spent the day driving around bird watching and iguana hunting.
In my next post I will post photos of birds and iguanas that I had photographed. (Yes, ME!)
Through out the years of going to Bonaire I have dived at most of their dive sites and there are a few now that I only go to on a regular basis.
My favorite spot is "windsock".
For some reason, hardly anybody dives here. It has an easy entrance, it's a fairly shallow site, you can't get lost and the reefs are the best on the island.
I've noticed divers seem to flock to the pain-in-the-ass entrance dives sites and then make a bee-line straight down to 60 feet or more. Maybe they think they are going to see "the good stuff". I can't quite figure that one out.
At "windsock," we've seen turtles, eagle rays, southern sting rays and this group of 'friendly" squids. We also like to dive "North Belnem" and "bachelor beach" which is on the same stretch as "windsock". Another spot that has an fairly easy entrance is "oil slick leap". When you decend and reach the mooring line that is the best part of the dive. As you swim northth it looks like a 'bone yard' of dead coral. I don't know if it was a result of a nasty storm or what. It's rather odd.
I also like 'the front porch' where the former Sunset House hotel was situated. There is a tug boat located there offshore in about 100 foot depth. It is an easy entrance as well. I call it the "poor man's Hilma Hooker". (The Hilma Hooker is a wreck dive up north. It is kind of a pain-in-the-ass entrance and you have to do a marathon swim out to the mooring.) I've done this dive many times before. The tug boat is home to a variety of moray eels. You really see alot of them during a night dive.
Close to the "front porch" is "bari reef" which is a pretty nice easy dive. If you keep swimming north you can end up near 'the lion's den" and eventually, "Captain Dons"(but it is a helluva swim!)
We end up at 'windsock" for most of the week. Thank God my husband has the same diving mind set as myself. He was perfectly happy diving 'windsock" most of the week.
One of my favorite sites was "the salt pier" but for some reason you are not allowed to dive there anymore.The dive master's state that it is a "matter of national security" that you are not allowed to dive there but at the same time, if you pay an additional $25.00 for a "guided dive " there then it is considered no longer a security threat (?)
I've noticed some changes in Bonaire over the years I've been there. For one thing, there is a tremendous amount of construction non-stop going on. I frankly, do not know who is buying these 'vacation homes". Some of the projects have been abandoned with building in shambles. Many of the native trees and brush have been torn down for building. A couple of years ago, the apartment I stay at had many hibiscus bushes and chibi chibi trees in the back. It was home for their endangered yellow fronted amazon parrots. I would see and hear them every morning. The trees are gone and now there are vacation homes, empty, in their place. I haven't seen those parrots in a couple of years. I've gone further inland in search of them but no luck.
The crime has also escalated as well. You are warned not to leave valuables in your car such as cameras, wallets, etc.. Now the thieves are now siphoning gas from the gas tanks from your rental cars and stealing tires leaving you stranded. The car rental companies now paint the tires of the cars to identify the tires. There are certain dive sites now the dive shops advise you not to go to anymore due to theft. If I see a vehicle pull up with tinted windows with teenage locals in it just 'hanging around" I don't dive there.
For the most part, the weather is pretty constant in Bonaire. They usually don't get hit by hurricanes. However, we did get hit with pounding rain all week. I really didn't mind since I was going to get wet anyways by diving. The only bad part was that our wetsuits never dried all week. By day two, the wetsuits were already starting to stink like the inside of a monkey house.
We got up at the crack of dawn to do our first dive of the day. It was rather interesting diving in the pouring rain at dusk. You could actually hear the thunder underwater. There was alot of fish activity. Thankfully, the lionfish had not wiped out the fish populations like they have in the Bahamas. I had thought another diver might have been around taking UW photos since I kept seeing bright flashes. It turned out to be lightning. This might not have been the best idea to go diving when it was lightning but I didn't realize this was happening until later.
After the rain, the mosquitoes and "no-see-ums" were pretty fierce. There is usually there is a leeward wind that keeps them at bay but hurricanes coming from the east and north were sucking the wind out of the area. There would be flash flooding as a result of the heavy rains on arrid soil.
This is kind of a funny story relating to the flooding rain. While my husband was using the bathroom I heard him yell for me to " Hurry! Come in here! Quickly!". The drain on the shower floor was burping and lifting up.
He was frozen on the pot.
Out came an antenae and then a brown elongated body came out from the drain.
It was a two inch long cockroach (palmento bug) pushing it's way out of the drain.
I chased it around the room till finally :"SQUISH!".
This problem with cockroaches happened only one other time before and it was because of heavy rains as well. They were finding their way through the sinks and drains. I'd find them in the cabinets happily poking their heads out of bowls and cups. This was the time my sister came along with us on our annual trip. There was one in her bedroom. The shadow at night amplified it's size so when she looked on the ceiling it appeared to be about a foot long. She woke me out of a sound sleep screaming, "there's a giant cockroach on the ceiling! Help! Quick come in here!"
I really do not know why I've been designated as "the bug buster".
Not only am I the designated bug buster but designated driver as well.
I guess it is because I can drive a standard (stick) truck.
The first couple of years when I had rented trucks I always got a nice little ford ranger truck.They were fun and easy to drive. The budget rental company had gotten rid of those little 'bang up" dive trucks and switched to these big ass F350 hilux trucks.
I mean these are gigantic monster trucks.
I can't even reach the pedals never mind see over the steering wheel.
I must look like Mike Dukakis in that infamous army tank photo.
WTF
I now have to ask for their smallest trucks which are basically F150's. I can reach the pedals but I can't see over the back seat. I have to have my husband jump out of the truck and direct me when I back up or parallel park.
On this visit to Bonaire we managed to do 13 dives. Most of the dives were over an hour long at 30 feet. I had came down with a cold on the first day causing havok with my ears so we missed one full day of diving. We spent the day driving around bird watching and iguana hunting.
In my next post I will post photos of birds and iguanas that I had photographed. (Yes, ME!)
Reading your trip reports makes me want to go back to Bonaire, V. It has wonderful diving and great weather(usually). Now if we could just perfect that three dimensional Xerox thingy, I'd not need to fly. I could just Zap there and back. Yeah. That's we we need.
ReplyDelete