December 2017 Scubaboard Microsurge

[darook]

Nice vid Trailboss!

 

[darook]

good video it has me excited.

Wheels up in 6 days.

I feel like a kid going to college, I have already packed.

Best news is, my wife's cert card came in the mail today, so no drama with that.

I would like some hints if you guys can think of any, my wife and daughter have a ceiling (floor) of 40 feet ish. (self imposed by a hard headed 13 year old)

I can take them to see the monument at the cliffs, and see the stern of the little wreck at captain dons. Any recommendations for a shallow shore diving, I was thinking I took them to salt pier.

Luckily, if everything holds out, I have a scubaboard connection that will let me get a deeper shore dive in.

Good video

The good news is that you can see pretty much everything Bonaire has to offer in 40' or less of water. Salt Pier is a good choice as well as some of the other southern sites. The first reef at Invisibles is shallow and is teaming with action. The long (a few minutes) swim out and back will let you see lots of Peacock Flounder, Palometa and trunk fish. The same can be said at Red Beryl which was definitely a favorite site of the crew last week. Something Special has a lot going on in less than 40' too. She will have a great time and you will get nice long dives at that depth too. Have a great time!

 

[wwguy]

Wheels up in 6 days.

I feel like a kid going to college, I have already packed.

LOL, you're ahead of me. We leave Idaho on Friday morning (spending Friday night in Atlanta) and I haven't even pulled my suitcases or gear out of the closet yet!

I would like some hints if you guys can think of any, my wife and daughter have a ceiling (floor) of 40 feet ish. (self imposed by a hard headed 13 year old)

I can take them to see the monument at the cliffs, and see the stern of the little wreck at captain dons. Any recommendations for a shallow shore diving, I was thinking I took them to salt pier.

Salt Pier will be perfect for her desired profile. There's plenty of room to roam there too. I think she'll be fine at most of the sites in town and farther south. The caveat will be that she'll have to stick to the sand flats and reef crest, and avoid dropping down into the deeper water. (That probably won't be a problem based on how you described her focused attention to her computer.) The Cliff will be great practice for this, as it offers the opportunity to enjoy diving along the top of the reef crest while enjoying looking down into the deeper water.

Some other sites she'll likely enjoy at 40' or less:
- Something Special, anywhere between Dive Friend's Yellow Sub pier north to the mouth of the harbour.
- Anywhere from the public entry to Bari Reef north to The Cliff.
- Cha Cha Cha, just south of the cruise ship pier. There's a DFB buoyancy course in the sand flats and some unique structures near the drop-off.
- Basically anything south of the Salt Pier.

FWIW at these shallow depths I've enjoyed discovering (or being discovered by) octopus, rays, seahorses, frogfish, turtles, and a host of other less exotic but equally beautiful marine life. The challenge for your patience and interest might be that after a while you might get a little bored diving out and back at the same depth, thus sometimes "suffering" seeing some of the same things going both directions. Oh the humanity!

If we get a chance to dive together next week, and if you're interested, I'll show you a seldom-visited shore dive opportunity fairly close to town with a bit of a "wild" feel where you can return later with her to "discover" this anchor in 25' to 30' of water:

 

[ijdod]

A lot of the dive highlights have been at or above the reef crest for me. I would not find a 40ft depth limit too limiting.

On the more adventurous side, one of the best shallow dive sites is Karpata, in my opinion. The entry/exit isn't the easiest, it does have an adventurous feel to it. If she can handle the entry/exit, Ladania's Leap -> Karpata is possibly an even more adventurous option, but I would strongly suggest checking both out first, and using your own judgement. (I have no experience with younger divers)

Invisibles has garden eels around the dive buoy at 30ft or so, they're usually (a lot) deeper.

 

[cjibber]

A lot of the dive highlights have been at or above the reef crest for me. I would not find a 40ft depth limit too limiting.

Apart from diving at the Hilma Hooker, being limited to 40ft would have very little impact on our diving in Bonaire. Unless you have a specific reason to go deeper you get longer dives and more light at that depth. We probably spend 90% of our time above 40ft.

 

[Trailboss123]

good video it has me excited.

Wheels up in 6 days.

I feel like a kid going to college, I have already packed.

Best news is, my wife's cert card came in the mail today, so no drama with that.

I would like some hints if you guys can think of any, my wife and daughter have a ceiling (floor) of 40 feet ish. (self imposed by a hard headed 13 year old)

I can take them to see the monument at the cliffs, and see the stern of the little wreck at captain dons. Any recommendations for a shallow shore diving, I was thinking I took them to salt pier.

Luckily, if everything holds out, I have a scubaboard connection that will let me get a deeper shore dive in.

Good video

in addition to all of the other well recommended dive sites, I would throw in Oil Slick Leap. The reef wall starts in 20 feet and is just a few fin kicks away from the entry and exit, which is one of the easiest on the island.

 

[darook]

Here is the little video I put together with footage we took topside and underneath the water last week. Pardon the scratch on the dome in some of the shots. It is buffed out now but I couldn't find any paste on the island to fix it while there.

 

[Trailboss123]

Here is the little video I put together with footage we took topside and underneath the water last week. Pardon the scratch on the dome in some of the shots. It is buffed out now but I couldn't find any paste on the island to fix it while there.

Nice Video Bruce!

 

[Squirrelly G]

A lot of the dive highlights have been at or above the reef crest for me. I would not find a 40ft depth limit too limiting.

On the more adventurous side, one of the best shallow dive sites is Karpata, in my opinion. The entry/exit isn't the easiest, it does have an adventurous feel to it. If she can handle the entry/exit, Ladania's Leap -> Karpata is possibly an even more adventurous option, but I would strongly suggest checking both out first, and using your own judgement. (I have no experience with younger divers)

Invisibles has garden eels around the dive buoy at 30ft or so, they're usually (a lot) deeper.

There are Garden Eels at about 20ft at Invisibles! Go straight out towards the buoy, and look to both your left and right - there about 3 pockets of them scattered about!

 

[Squirrelly G]

in addition to all of the other well recommended dive sites, I would throw in Oil Slick Leap. The reef wall starts in 20 feet and is just a few fin kicks away from the entry and exit, which is one of the easiest on the island.

The jump in is one of my favorite entries! The water is about 16' there, no worries about hitting the floor.