Bonaire for newbies

[salth2owannabe]

I wouldn't consider anything secure on the beach (or in the truck) while you are in the water. I bring one of these -
Aquapac Medium Whanganui Electronics Case - 658 at nrs.com
Aquapacs and put anything I want secure (wallet, keys, batteries, sun glasses, point and shoot camera) in it and zip it in a BC pocket.
I've never had one leak yet down to about 100'.
Some folks bring lunch and drinks in a cooler, it may or may not be there when you get back.

 

[darook]

Definitely don't leave anything on shore other than flip flops and ratty clothes, extra tanks are fine. Every dive shop has their own paint scheme and will not fill a tank that is not theirs thus nobody messes with them. The advice to leave the truck unlocked and windows down is absolutely true. You can fill up some 2L soda bottles and use them as rinse when you are done. I usually will stop by the condo or a store between dives for a soda as you still need to do your surface interval.

 

[RJP]

RJP,

Logistically, is there anything else I should be prepared for after parking. For example, I've read enough of tripadvisor and sb to believe that I should park the truck with windows down or unlocked (or risk getting broken into) leaving the extra tanks in the back. At the same time, I'm imagining needing to either bring some drinks/snacks, extra batteries for gopro? or at least a couple small tools/emergency kits to the beach. Is this what you guys are doing or recommend doing? Are things left on beach fairly secure? If not, can you give me a list of what you recommend bringing in the truck. And what you suggest to leave behind.

Simple rule of thumb: Don't leave anything in the truck that you wouldn't willingly throw away.

I think the one thing that first-time visitors to Bonaire don't appreciate - I know I didn't the first time - is just how small the island is, and how easy it is to get around. Look at the circle I've drawn around the Dive Hut on the map below.

There are 58 dive sites within a 5-mile radius of where you're staying!

In fact, with the exception of a handful of sites up in The Park, you can easily drive from any dive site on Bonaire... back to The Dive Hut, swap your tanks, get fresh batteries, take a shower, change your clothes, make a few sandwiches... and then drive to any OTHER dive site on Bonaire... and still have 20 minutes left on your 1-hr surface interval! No need to bring tools, extra batteries, changes of clothing, a giant cooler full of food, etc, etc.

My buddy and I leave a few bottles of water and a couple of sandwiches in the truck. And we don't even leave them in a cooler. We leave them in a bucket of ice water... because petty thieves won't take the time to open a cooler to see what's in it. They will simply grab-n-go, hoping that you also stashed your wallet or something else of value in the cooler. This is why you hear of people having old tee-shirts and ratty shorts stolen. It's not because the thieves want your old clothes... it's because they're hoping you left $10 in the pocket.

I put a Visa card, my ID, the truck key, and a few bucks in the zippered pocket of the board shorts I wear into the water. I don't care if the first three get wet... and any merchant on Bonaire that won't accept wet currency (or wet patrons, for that matter) will be out of business within a week.

 

[thatericguy]

RJP,

Thanks for the insight! This is what I was looking for, so thank you. One other question - I have some of these Pinnacle Apex boots (Boots - Pinnacle Aquatics) that I've used for the past few years and used them in hawaii on some of the rougher shore entries for snorkeling. Would something like this be sufficient for the ironshore dives?

Thanks again,
Eric

Simple rule of thumb: Don't leave anything in the truck that you wouldn't willingly throw away.

I think the one thing that first-time visitors to Bonaire don't appreciate - I know I didn't the first time - is just how small the island is, and how easy it is to get around. Look at the circle I've drawn around the Dive Hut on the map below.

There are 58 dive sites within a 5-mile radius of where you're staying!

In fact, with the exception of a handful of sites up in The Park, you can easily drive from any dive site on Bonaire... back to The Dive Hut, swap your tanks, get fresh batteries, take a shower, change your clothes, make a few sandwiches... and then drive to any OTHER dive site on Bonaire... and still have 20 minutes left on your 1-hr surface interval! No need to bring tools, extra batteries, changes of clothing, a giant cooler full of food, etc, etc.

My buddy and I leave a few bottles of water and a couple of sandwiches in the truck. And we don't even leave them in a cooler. We leave them in a bucket of ice water... because petty thieves won't take the time to open a cooler to see what's in it. They will simply grab-n-go, hoping that you also stashed your wallet or something else of value in the cooler. This is why you hear of people having old tee-shirts and ratty shorts stolen. It's not because the thieves want your old clothes... it's because they're hoping you left $10 in the pocket.

I put a Visa card, my ID, the truck key, and a few bucks in the zippered pocket of the board shorts I wear into the water. I don't care if the first three get wet... and any merchant on Bonaire that won't accept wet currency (or wet patrons, for that matter) will be out of business within a week.

 

[RJP]

RJP,

Thanks for the insight! This is what I was looking for, so thank you. One other question - I have some of these Pinnacle Apex boots (Boots - Pinnacle Aquatics) that I've used for the past few years and used them in hawaii on some of the rougher shore entries for snorkeling.

I wear very similar ScubaPro Delta boots, and find them to be sufficient. Last time there I did hurt/bruise the outside of my right foot when I stumbled and put my foot down hard and awkwardly in shallow water. Short of wearing hiking boots, however, I'm not sure how I could have avoided that. For the most part, with boots like your's... as long as you take your time and exercise care you'll be fine.

 

[jimbeeler]

I also wore the Scubapro Delta boots (low top version) and they worked out just fine for me. They look comparable to the Pinnacle Boots.

Jim

 

[Manneca]

Once upon a time, I wore old sneakers on the iron shore and then tied them to my BCD. Oh, wait, I didn't have a BCD. I tied them to my horse collar.