Headed to Bonaire

[cdnfireman]

Great advice on the hard boots....lucky for us we are cold water divers...and have open footed fins for our Dry suits.....lucky enough that our F2 Hollis fins fit all our various dive footware lol !!!

 

[diversteve]

South of town:

Invisibles
Angel City
Salt Pier - can't dive if a ship is loading.
Vista Blue (with no current)
As mentioned by herman, start at Windsock. Easy entry to get your bearings. Probably some rays out there.
The Hooker is a deeper wreck.

North of town:

Bari Reef - your house reef
Cliff/LaMachaca
1000 Steps
Witches Hut
Karpata - more difficult entry
Rappel (boat dive only)

Forest off Klein Bonaire
Hands Off " " "

 

[diver 85]

If you have not heard this already, be sure to have HARD soled booties. The shore is mostly ironstone and coral rubble which is very hard on the feet, soft soled booties or worse yet full foot fins are a bad idea.

1 of our group(of ~30) had to have foot surgery upon returning from end of last summer trip---slipped on the way out @ the Hooker & messed up the outside of a foot..........He wasn't a happy camper, needless to say....

 

[tursiops]

1 of our group(of ~30) had to have foot surgery upon returning from end of last summer trip---slipped on the way out @ the Hooker & messed up the outside of a foot..........He wasn't a happy camper, needless to say....

This is why I do not recommend the HH as a shore dive. It is the only site where anybody I have traveled with (maybe 400 by now) has slipped and fallen.

 

[Doctorfish]

For newly certified divers, doing some boat diving and some shore dives at the house reef is a great starting plan. Nothing easier than rolling off a boat or dock and then climbing a ladder at the end of the dive. Bari is arguably, the best dive on the west side of the island anyway. Some of the sites only reachable by boat on Klein or Rappel and Karpata are excellent as well. Getting to know Bari reef in the daytime makes for easier navigation for night diving, and you are going to want to night dive.

You can always head off in the truck later in the day or in the week and explore some of the other sites. I particularly like Salt Pier, Something Special Cliff, Small Wall.

I've personally had some difficulties exiting in the rubble at the Hooker when the weather picked up while under. Always check the weather with the dive shop before heading out. Wind direction and speed will determine whether you should go north or south.

 

[diver 85]

This is why I do not recommend the HH as a shore dive. It is the only site where anybody I have traveled with (maybe 400 by now) has slipped and fallen.

IMO, the shore diving @ Bonaire is overrated....As I stated earlier, I'd much rather fall outta a boat than walk thru rocks---& waves.......Glad I went(was my 1st trip), but my money in the future for that kinda dive trip will be spent on LC or Brac(IMO, better diving @ the latter 2 ---anyway).......Since we started diving in '85(average of 2 jet diving trips a year since), we've always heard of Bonaire, just never pulled the trigger.....Group we travel with a lot wanted to go there---or Roatan for last summer.....I can now say Bonaire is in my rear view mirror........

 

[diverjen]

IMO, the shore diving @ Bonaire is overrated....As I stated earlier, I'd much rather fall outta a boat than walk thru rocks---& waves.......Glad I went(was my 1st trip), but my money in the future for that kinda dive trip will be spent on LC or Brac(IMO, better diving @ the latter 2 ---anyway).......Since we started diving in '85(average of 2 jet diving trips a year since), we've always heard of Bonaire, just never pulled the trigger.....Group we travel with a lot wanted to go there---or Roatan for last summer.....I can now say Bonaire is in my rear view mirror........

I appreciate your contribution to this thread, however, I feel like you are always posting on threads where people have already booked a trip to Bonaire and then discouraging them. This is not a should I go to Bonaire thread. We all know this is not your type of diving..... But many people love Bonaire and this style of diving, plus for a newbie or budget location its tough to beat, LC is almost twice the cost and many other places require more skill or experience. We see from your avatar what you like, no one promised big on B! Sometimes you have to try things to see if you will like it.

/off soap box

 

[diversteve]

I'd also do 1000 Steps by boat. It's not the carry down that's the problem...

Sometimes others have piled up coral rubble indicating the best entry point. It's not always where everybody parks. Look for breaks in the ironshore similar to this one also - it's a sand channel that leads out to deeper water. http://www.shorediving.com/Earth/ABC/BonaireS/Vista_Blue/c004508.jpg

Some of this info is old but the pictures haven't changed much. http://www.shorediving.com/Earth/ABC/index.htm You can see the entry points at the sites. And there's GPS coordinates for each site at the bottom left. Although you'll see the yellow rocks at most sites - they're on the road edge even if the dive entry isn't - i.e. http://www.shorediving.com/Earth/ABC/BonaireN/Karpata/pic1.htm

 

[cdnfireman]

again all tks for all the suggestions....question.....is it recommended/frowned upon to bring/use a diver down marker/float on a reel ?? I already know to NEVER move rocks/coral etc etc.....

 

[meagicano]

This is why I do not recommend the HH as a shore dive. It is the only site where anybody I have traveled with (maybe 400 by now) has slipped and fallen.

I found Karpata to be an awful entry (big concrete block, lots of moving rocks underfoot) and yet people keep recommending that site for shore diving!

I agree. HH was awful and except for the big tarpon, not worth the effort and risk of injury. Our exit was a lot better than the entry as the winds died down a bit in our hour underwater.

Honestly, OP? Take your time on the entries and check it out before gearing up. Watch people coming in and out, look for a pile of rocks or something to indicate the easiest entry point and if it looks bad - call the dive. The next site down will have a similar reef profile and could be easier to get in or out of.

My favourite dives in the South were Tori's Reef (nice, easy entry through the small channel) and Invisibles!