Info SCTLD closures on Bonaire

[tursiops]

Agreed. SCTLD is all over the Caribbean to different degrees. Divers didn't bring SCTLD to Bonaire....and they certainly aren't going to be a significant source in spreading the disease. Totally agree we should do what we can, but I don't think it's much in the long run.

Agreed. I don't think STINAPA ever said or even thought that divers were a major source of the spread. Their goal all along haa been to try and slow the spread to buy time for understanding and possible mitigation. But divers might contribute to the spread, and daily decontamination is not that arduous. It might help, even if only a little.

 

[tursiops]

Agreed. I don't think STINAPA ever said or even thought that divers were a major source of the spread. Their goal all along haa been to try and slow the spread to buy time for understanding and possible mitigation. But divers might contribute to the spread, and daily decontamination is not that arduous. It might help, even if only a little.

By the way, as an unanticipated side benefit of the decontamination procedure, the gear room at Buddy Dive smells a lot better than usual.

 

[Mike Walker]

By the way, as an unanticipated side benefit of the decontamination procedure, the gear room at Buddy Dive smells a lot better than usual.

Maybe that was the plan all along....



re: Carlitos
Monday - open to 18:00.
Show up at 17:15.
CLOSED.....
I've burned way more fuel this trip chasing food than I have chasing fish...

 

[drrich2]

I did find the constant disinfection and rinsing multiple times a day such a PITA that while I’m glad I went and had a good trip, I certainly don’t foresee myself (or in general, understand) being one of those people with 5 or 7 or a dozen Bonaire trips under their belts. IMO it certainly wasn’t -that- good especially considering the rather high expense.

A bunch of days we ended up just not diving in the late afternoon or evening because of not wanting to rinse gear againnnnn.

I imagine SCTLD will become so ubiquitous that eventually the special requirements will end.

On whether Bonaire is 'that good,' for the benefit of others who may see this thread, a quick word. I consider Bonaire to have good general Caribbean diving, especially the gorgonian rich shallows of the far southern sites, and some of Karpata to the north. That said, I found Little Cayman and the outer atolls of Belize to have lusher reef, more 'big stuff' (including Caribbean reef sharks), and to be 'better' in terms of reef.

But I love Bonaire. The 'diving freedom' is the key; shore diving opens the way to dive when, whether and how you want unsupervised. That carries responsibility (i.e.: don't kill yourself) and costs some effort (lugging gear around and swapping tanks is a far cry from 'valet diving' on a liveaboard), but if you love the freedom, there it is. And for solo diving certified people (or discreet people who don't blab what they're doing), solo shore diving can be had in abundance.

I'm not disputing your opinion; I'm just saying it's a nuanced topic and some people would agree with you strongly, and some of us love it. Different (fin) strokes for different folks. Yes, I was in a bad pun mood...

 

[NDL_Diver]

Has STINAPA stopped updates? Been over 2 weeks since last update.

Or are we about to see change in reporting or measures?

 

[Diver-6873]

Has STINAPA stopped updates? Been over 2 weeks since last update.

Or are we about to see change in reporting or measures?

Timely updates and general communications from STINAPA have always been a challenge. Whether it’s resources, language translations (Dutch, English, Spanish, Papiamentu), or just how they work is sad but how it is.

 

[bubblealgae]

Heading to Bonaire in about three weeks. We're staying at Buddy Dive. I hadn't heard about all this until today. I had been hoping to do early morning dives at the house reef there then head elsewhere on the island for the rest of the day's dives, but it sound like that won't work if for example I hoped to dive the south end. Unless... Is there a way to do an acceptable rapid decontamination so we can dive orange early then head elsewhere (green/south) a few hours later?

 

[tursiops]

Heading to Bonaire in about three weeks. We're staying at Buddy Dive. I hadn't heard about all this until today. I had been hoping to do early morning dives at the house reef there then head elsewhere on the island for the rest of the day's dives, but it sound like that won't work if for example I hoped to dive the south end. Unless... Is there a way to do an acceptable rapid decontamination so we can dive orange early then head elsewhere (green/south) a few hours later?

Buddy Dive is Red, not Orange. Unfortunately there are other Red sites both north and south you can go to. Discuss with Buddy Dive your plans; they may have some creative ideas.

 

[bubblealgae]

Buddy Dive is Red, not Orange. Unfortunately there are other Red sites both north and south you can go to. Discuss with Buddy Dive your plans; they may have some creative ideas.

There seem to be two maps available. One shows infection status, where red means already infected and green means uninfected. The other map shows closures/quarantine status where red means closed and orange means risk of contamination. I don't mean to be dense, but are you telling me Buddy Dive is closed, or that it is infected? Thanks for clarifying, and I appreciate your point about reaching out to Buddy Dive - I've already sent them an email.

 

[tursiops]

The other map shows closures/quarantine status where red means closed and orange means risk of contamination.

What is the link for this map? There is only one official map, and that is from STINAPA.

Buddy Dive is Red, which does NOT mean closed. The only closed sites are Klein after 2pm, and north of Karpata....although if you drive into the Park they will decontaminate your gear and you can go diving.