woodcarver
Contributor
Bonaire April 23-May 19 2024
Most of these trip reports talk about things like resort or AirBnB amenities, rental truck companies, and food, either dining out or in, as much as the diving. As I am fortunate enough to have a brother that likes me living on the island, rentals, either room or transportation, are not something I deal with much. I’m also not much of a photographer, unlike my brother (shameless plug here, DSearle Photography), so what is posted are unedited pics from an old GoPro 4. If you want good photographs, go find some of my brothers, lol.
When it is just my brother and me, it takes a conscious effort to go to Van den Tweels or Pieter’s to buy groceries for self-prepared dinners. So much easier, but definitely with a price tag, to just go to one of the many restaurants available. So far, in 6 trips, I don’t recall a bad meal at any of the dozens of places we’ve eaten at. Prices vary from excellent food trucks in the $10-$20 range, to dinners at some of the top places at $50+ a plate. This trip, he and I did a (slightly) better job of preparing our own before the rest of the family arrived.
The rest of the family is what set this trip apart from others. While I arrived on the 24th of April, the rest of the family started trickling in on the 4th of May when my GF arrived. By the end of the day on the 11th, all three of our siblings along with their spouses, and our 90-year-old mother had arrived. From the discussion, we’re pretty sure this was the first time since 1975 all five of us had been together with Mom to celebrate Mother’s Day. Mother’s Day was special indeed this year.
About half of us dive, all three of the brothers now & one of our brother’s-in-law, along with my GF. Both sisters like to snorkel, and spent a fair amount of time doing so. Mom had to content herself with the pools at the houses we were house-sitting (did I mention my brother has some great friends?), as she had injured herself a few weeks prior and didn’t trust herself to get in and out of the ocean. We did find a way to get her safely, and comfortably, on and off the boat for a sunset cruise after the winds had diminished and the seas had calmed. To the benefit of all of us, my older sister’s husband doesn’t dive, but loves to cook. Between all of the various markets on Bonaire, he was able to source (almost) everything he wanted/needed for the evening meals. We ate quite well for the last week thanks to him.
The first 10 days were mostly solo shore diving, with a handful of boat dives with friends on a couple days. From Andrea II all the way down to Chogogo from shore, Rappel to Red Slave & Klein from the boat. The wind had been stronger for a while, and continued to blow hard the first couple weeks, so the wave action at the southern end of the island, and up at the sites where the island bends westward, was significantly larger and stronger than usual, much like Willemstoren Lighthouse usually is; didn’t even attempt the lighthouse this year due to the wave action. Not having to worry about the GF on entries/exits, I hit a number of sites that we had not done before.
The reef is alive! to contradict another thread here. While SCTLD has definitely had an effect on the specific types of hard coral it attacks, the other corals, sponges, fish and other animal life are still there and in number. Still feels like I’m swimming in an aquarium full of fish. It was interesting to see the success of the staghorn coral restoration that is actively going on. There were thriving patches full of fish in places I had not seen any before. Coral farm “trees” have proliferated all over as Reef Renewal has expanded their efforts.
There were also a fair number of brain coral colonies that appear to be unaffected by SCTLD. Reef Renewal is starting to try to “farm” some resilient strains of hard corals in their research on stemming the effects of SCTLD. Hopefully they can be as successful as they seem to be with staghorn. The reef will both survive and flourish in the coming centuries. I’ll enjoy it now, during my blip in time, whenever I can.
This trip was the first time I saw a loggerhead on the west coast, and a big, old one at that. Usually have to dive with East Coast Divers to see loggerheads. With a couple of brand-new divers, and the above average swell, we opted not to do a trip with them this year. One of my favorite dives, it was unfortunate to not get to dive White Hole or Turtle City this trip.
As one of my brother’s friends has a boat he let us use (have I mentioned my brother has some great friends?), I was also able to dive at Klein & some of the boat only sites for the first time. Unfortunately, Stinapa still has the northern sites in the park closed. Klein reefs look just like the main island reefs as far as condition goes.
Another first was lionfish hunting. One of my brother’s friends & regular dive buddies is an instructor on Bonaire for this. Great fun! First day of hunting I took 6 lionfish off the reef. By the end of the trip there were 18 fewer lionfish than when I arrived on island. Just what I needed, another hobby.
By early May, the wind had died back to normal, the wave action was diminishing back to normal, and the sediments in the water that were stirred as a result, especially in the shallows of the back reef, were starting to settle out. Visibility had been less than stellar the first couple weeks, so it was nice to having it returning to normal.
Water temps were a little up for this time of year. Depending on whose computer you looked at, 83*-86* at 40’, 81*-84* at 90’. Between the sensors and the conversion from C-F they all do, the computers were all arguing with each other; individual brands tended to agree with each other, but not with different brands. The water was warm; all the divers agreed on this.
With almost 200 dives just on Bonaire, only a few of them from a boat, I guess it doesn’t surprise me that Murphy caught me off-guard and sent a larger than normal wave to take my feet away when I wasn’t looking, on an entry at Soft Coral Garden. After a few minutes of bouncing off the rocks in the shallows, with no urchins joining in the fun thankfully, I was able to crawl out into water deep enough to get my mask & fins on and go dive. Turned out to be a great dive with the aforementioned loggerhead showing up towards the end, right after a green sea turtle and a southern stingray! Unfortunately, somehow, in the process of extricating myself from the surf bashing, I did something to my knee & shoulder; waiting for the doc’s office to call me back about an appointment. It also killed my Citizen dive watch; guess I smacked a rock harder than I knew. Swallowed a lot of vitamin I in the ensuing weeks, but kept diving. Entries & exits were given the proper attention after that.
A white frogfish at Bachelor’s Beach. Octopus at Something Special. A large green moray sleeping in the open at Mi Dushi. The loggerhead at Soft Coral Garden. Numerous hawksbill and green sea turtles. Several spotted eagle rays and a southern stingray. All the usual suspects on virtually every dive; 47 more on this trip. Bonaire is a beautiful place to spend time and dive. This trip was even better getting to share some of the time with family, including some that had never been there before. Already planning next year’s trip!
Trumpetfish that caught a graysby. Perhaps too big?
Most of these trip reports talk about things like resort or AirBnB amenities, rental truck companies, and food, either dining out or in, as much as the diving. As I am fortunate enough to have a brother that likes me living on the island, rentals, either room or transportation, are not something I deal with much. I’m also not much of a photographer, unlike my brother (shameless plug here, DSearle Photography), so what is posted are unedited pics from an old GoPro 4. If you want good photographs, go find some of my brothers, lol.
When it is just my brother and me, it takes a conscious effort to go to Van den Tweels or Pieter’s to buy groceries for self-prepared dinners. So much easier, but definitely with a price tag, to just go to one of the many restaurants available. So far, in 6 trips, I don’t recall a bad meal at any of the dozens of places we’ve eaten at. Prices vary from excellent food trucks in the $10-$20 range, to dinners at some of the top places at $50+ a plate. This trip, he and I did a (slightly) better job of preparing our own before the rest of the family arrived.
The rest of the family is what set this trip apart from others. While I arrived on the 24th of April, the rest of the family started trickling in on the 4th of May when my GF arrived. By the end of the day on the 11th, all three of our siblings along with their spouses, and our 90-year-old mother had arrived. From the discussion, we’re pretty sure this was the first time since 1975 all five of us had been together with Mom to celebrate Mother’s Day. Mother’s Day was special indeed this year.
About half of us dive, all three of the brothers now & one of our brother’s-in-law, along with my GF. Both sisters like to snorkel, and spent a fair amount of time doing so. Mom had to content herself with the pools at the houses we were house-sitting (did I mention my brother has some great friends?), as she had injured herself a few weeks prior and didn’t trust herself to get in and out of the ocean. We did find a way to get her safely, and comfortably, on and off the boat for a sunset cruise after the winds had diminished and the seas had calmed. To the benefit of all of us, my older sister’s husband doesn’t dive, but loves to cook. Between all of the various markets on Bonaire, he was able to source (almost) everything he wanted/needed for the evening meals. We ate quite well for the last week thanks to him.
The first 10 days were mostly solo shore diving, with a handful of boat dives with friends on a couple days. From Andrea II all the way down to Chogogo from shore, Rappel to Red Slave & Klein from the boat. The wind had been stronger for a while, and continued to blow hard the first couple weeks, so the wave action at the southern end of the island, and up at the sites where the island bends westward, was significantly larger and stronger than usual, much like Willemstoren Lighthouse usually is; didn’t even attempt the lighthouse this year due to the wave action. Not having to worry about the GF on entries/exits, I hit a number of sites that we had not done before.
The reef is alive! to contradict another thread here. While SCTLD has definitely had an effect on the specific types of hard coral it attacks, the other corals, sponges, fish and other animal life are still there and in number. Still feels like I’m swimming in an aquarium full of fish. It was interesting to see the success of the staghorn coral restoration that is actively going on. There were thriving patches full of fish in places I had not seen any before. Coral farm “trees” have proliferated all over as Reef Renewal has expanded their efforts.
There were also a fair number of brain coral colonies that appear to be unaffected by SCTLD. Reef Renewal is starting to try to “farm” some resilient strains of hard corals in their research on stemming the effects of SCTLD. Hopefully they can be as successful as they seem to be with staghorn. The reef will both survive and flourish in the coming centuries. I’ll enjoy it now, during my blip in time, whenever I can.
This trip was the first time I saw a loggerhead on the west coast, and a big, old one at that. Usually have to dive with East Coast Divers to see loggerheads. With a couple of brand-new divers, and the above average swell, we opted not to do a trip with them this year. One of my favorite dives, it was unfortunate to not get to dive White Hole or Turtle City this trip.
As one of my brother’s friends has a boat he let us use (have I mentioned my brother has some great friends?), I was also able to dive at Klein & some of the boat only sites for the first time. Unfortunately, Stinapa still has the northern sites in the park closed. Klein reefs look just like the main island reefs as far as condition goes.
Another first was lionfish hunting. One of my brother’s friends & regular dive buddies is an instructor on Bonaire for this. Great fun! First day of hunting I took 6 lionfish off the reef. By the end of the trip there were 18 fewer lionfish than when I arrived on island. Just what I needed, another hobby.
By early May, the wind had died back to normal, the wave action was diminishing back to normal, and the sediments in the water that were stirred as a result, especially in the shallows of the back reef, were starting to settle out. Visibility had been less than stellar the first couple weeks, so it was nice to having it returning to normal.
Water temps were a little up for this time of year. Depending on whose computer you looked at, 83*-86* at 40’, 81*-84* at 90’. Between the sensors and the conversion from C-F they all do, the computers were all arguing with each other; individual brands tended to agree with each other, but not with different brands. The water was warm; all the divers agreed on this.
With almost 200 dives just on Bonaire, only a few of them from a boat, I guess it doesn’t surprise me that Murphy caught me off-guard and sent a larger than normal wave to take my feet away when I wasn’t looking, on an entry at Soft Coral Garden. After a few minutes of bouncing off the rocks in the shallows, with no urchins joining in the fun thankfully, I was able to crawl out into water deep enough to get my mask & fins on and go dive. Turned out to be a great dive with the aforementioned loggerhead showing up towards the end, right after a green sea turtle and a southern stingray! Unfortunately, somehow, in the process of extricating myself from the surf bashing, I did something to my knee & shoulder; waiting for the doc’s office to call me back about an appointment. It also killed my Citizen dive watch; guess I smacked a rock harder than I knew. Swallowed a lot of vitamin I in the ensuing weeks, but kept diving. Entries & exits were given the proper attention after that.
A white frogfish at Bachelor’s Beach. Octopus at Something Special. A large green moray sleeping in the open at Mi Dushi. The loggerhead at Soft Coral Garden. Numerous hawksbill and green sea turtles. Several spotted eagle rays and a southern stingray. All the usual suspects on virtually every dive; 47 more on this trip. Bonaire is a beautiful place to spend time and dive. This trip was even better getting to share some of the time with family, including some that had never been there before. Already planning next year’s trip!
Trumpetfish that caught a graysby. Perhaps too big?
