OP
Charred
Contributor
Thank you for all the replies! Saturday is sooo close I can almost taste the saltwater 
Easy sites to start the week
- Thread starter Charred
- Start date
Please register or login
Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.
Benefits of registering include
- Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
- A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
- You can make this box go away
Doctorfish
Contributor
If your wife is just recovering from an ankle fracture, you might think about boat diving as well. Entries would be a back roll and the DMs will usually help with the gear on exits. Boat dives are relatively cheap on Bonaire.
OP
Charred
Contributor
I am back from Bonaire and since this info was valuable to us, I'd thought I would reply what worked for us.
In general, all the southern sites we tried had easy entries. Specifically, Angel City, Alice in Wonderland, Hilma Hooker, Lake, Windsock, Invisibles and Pink Beach were all pretty easy. Tori's Reef was a pain but we entered/exited through the beach. I was not comfortable using the water channel because I couldnt tell if it was on/off as a water intake. Pink Beach was so trivial it wasn't funny. In fact, I remarked this was the easiest site ever out loud and then immediately stepped on rock in about 3-4 feet of water and my boot fell off (see below). Pretty funny. Harmless but funny.
For all the southern sites, we just geared up and walked in side by side. My wife did fine. She often was unsteady but holding her hand kept her upright.
The Northern sites were mixed. She hated Oil Slick because while the ground is solid and the exit is a ladder, the ground itself itself is very uneven. We moved her gear to the platform and she geared up there. This is the only site she complained about the uneven ground.
We also did 1000 Steps. I carried my tank and her tank up/down the stairs. Aside from the stairs, the entry is easy. The dive was great and worth carrying 2 tanks (at the same time!) up/down the stairs. I wanted to go back but time ran out of us. There were better dives (i.e. Karpata, Angel City, Lake) but this was definitely the most memorable "dive."
We also did Karpata which was challenging but we managed. The dive was worth it and the one way round about return. In fact, we did go back the last day for a second trip but the wind was up and the surf was too much for even me to consider safe. I should have seen that coming and stopped at 1000 Steps instead.
My one last comment was that I wish I had ankle/high top boots. I had hard soled low tops. I wear lycra dive socks and found myself slipping around in the my shoe on unsteady ground. I am sure it was really the fault of the socks but I need those to prevent blisters. My wife had high tops and had no problems with this.
In general, all the southern sites we tried had easy entries. Specifically, Angel City, Alice in Wonderland, Hilma Hooker, Lake, Windsock, Invisibles and Pink Beach were all pretty easy. Tori's Reef was a pain but we entered/exited through the beach. I was not comfortable using the water channel because I couldnt tell if it was on/off as a water intake. Pink Beach was so trivial it wasn't funny. In fact, I remarked this was the easiest site ever out loud and then immediately stepped on rock in about 3-4 feet of water and my boot fell off (see below). Pretty funny. Harmless but funny.
For all the southern sites, we just geared up and walked in side by side. My wife did fine. She often was unsteady but holding her hand kept her upright.
The Northern sites were mixed. She hated Oil Slick because while the ground is solid and the exit is a ladder, the ground itself itself is very uneven. We moved her gear to the platform and she geared up there. This is the only site she complained about the uneven ground.
We also did 1000 Steps. I carried my tank and her tank up/down the stairs. Aside from the stairs, the entry is easy. The dive was great and worth carrying 2 tanks (at the same time!) up/down the stairs. I wanted to go back but time ran out of us. There were better dives (i.e. Karpata, Angel City, Lake) but this was definitely the most memorable "dive."
We also did Karpata which was challenging but we managed. The dive was worth it and the one way round about return. In fact, we did go back the last day for a second trip but the wind was up and the surf was too much for even me to consider safe. I should have seen that coming and stopped at 1000 Steps instead.
My one last comment was that I wish I had ankle/high top boots. I had hard soled low tops. I wear lycra dive socks and found myself slipping around in the my shoe on unsteady ground. I am sure it was really the fault of the socks but I need those to prevent blisters. My wife had high tops and had no problems with this.
Similar threads
