Solo diving on Bonaire

[divezonescuba]

This is total BS, if she had a basic open water certification, and some experience, and carried the proper redundant equipment, she should have been allowed to dive.

She did not have any redundant equipment.

Have you thought out the logistics of diving doubles for routine diving on Bonaire? Are you going to switch out cylinders between fills? I don't think the system is set up to quickly refill your doubles. I've only spent 6 weeks on Bonaire in the last year and a half. I'm sure doubles are used for tech diving, however, I've not seen a single diver with doubles. In fact, I've not seen a single diver with sidemount, either single or doubles, which would be considerably easier to deal with.

On the subject of the doubles tank rentals.

I rented a set of doubles from Dive Friends. They did ask me if I was tech certified or did I just want to rent a set of doubles. I got the impression that they would not rent doubles unless you were tech certified.

At the time, they had just taken over the Den Lamen dock, so they had no compressor access. I went to the cliff facility in hamlet oasis to have them filled in the morning and afternoon. It was good in a way because I could get thinner mixes of nitrox by alternating air and x32 fills.

Half of the people on our last trip in January dove two tank sidemount. It was way more convenient than dealing with the doubles for me.

 

[tursiops]

If I wanted to go to Bonaire and dive solo, and rent a set of double 80's with a manifold, which is what I have been diving since 1994, and I have and know how to use a DSMB, cutting tool, reels, lights, spare mask, etc. Where would be a good place to stay, and rent double tanks and weights, and a vehicle in Bonaire. I did try at Buddy Dive, and they told me I had to have a solo diver cert. Any suggestions???

Did BD tell you this to dive off their boats, or just to dive anywhere on the island?

 

[Scuba Lawyer]

Whoever the outfit is that is discouraging solo diving on Bonaire would not have been happy diving at Habitat back in the 1970's. It never failed that every so often Captain Don, drunk off his rocker, would start pounding on cabin doors at 2:30 AM yelling, "TIME FOR THE NAKED NIGHT DIVE AT KLEIN, TIME FOR THE NAKED NIGHT DIVE AT KLEIN..... GET YOUR WOMEN, GRAB YOUR GEAR, BOATS LOADING NOW.... " The boats would fill up with hungover, naked, semi-coherent divers who would dive with just tanks and backpacks and usually forget their dive light and scatter all over the reefs of Klein using only moonlight to guide them. Everyone was effectively diving solo (and drunk solo at that) and if you missed the boat on the return (head count? The boat drivers weren't sober either) you just hauled your rear up on the iron shore of Klein and waited for a boat to pick you up in the morning (hoping your scrapes and coral cuts on your sensitive areas didn't become infected). Now that was diving! Solo cert? Yea, right.

M

 

[gypsyjim]

I have no idea how many "solo" dives I have done on Bonaire...50 or more by now, I'm sure.
I was never dumb enough to ask, so nobody ever had to say No.

 

[tarponchik]

I have no idea how many "solo" dives I have done on Bonaire...50 or more by now, I'm sure.
I was never dumb enough to ask, so nobody ever had to say No.

"Don't ask don't tell" is the best option if you do not want to hear "No!"

I wish moderators here on SB banned the solo diving topic altogether. The more attention solo diving gets, the more restrictions we'll have in real life. I also wish the sidemount-doubles-redundant-ponybottle crowd shuts up once and for all. Hang whatever you like upon yourselves, dive with 5 tanks and 3 regs, but mind your own business.

 

[gypsyjim]

"Mind you own business?"

Good luck with THAT.

You would take away the entire reason for getting up each day from some who lurk on SB, just to pounce, to argue, brag and/or preach...

 

[nippurmagnum]

In my experience, Dive Friends Bonaire definitely discourages solo diving if you blurt out that you are planning on diving a particular dive site by yourself.

My wife and I rented tanks from DFB a couple of years ago, purely for the convenience of their 5 locations for swapping out tanks. In the course of a week, I dropped by all of their locations, and asked a number of their staff for recommendations on dive sites, particular marine life to look for, etc. Occasionally, I would mention that I had dived solo a particular site, and that always drew a frown and a reminder that I was not supposed to dive alone. And if I happened to blurt out that I was planning a future dive by myself, I had to then verbally assure them that I had misspoken.

FWIW, I found that the DFB staff was generally rather inexperienced, with few staff I encountered having spent more than a couple of years on the island. One of the staff gave me advice on how to dive Karpata, only to confess 5 minutes into the conversation that he had never dived that site himself (!). Another staffer looked puzzled when I said I wanted to check a tide table, to figure out the impact of tidal changes on current at one of the southern sites, saying that he had never heard of such a thing. I got very little useful advice.

This contrasted with two other dive shops I used -- GOOODDIVE and Div'Ocean -- who really provided good advice on dive sites, conditions, tide tables, etc. They seemed to cater to more experienced divers. Just saying.

 

[caruso]

Bonaire is sometimes referred to as the home of diving freedom. One context is with respect to solo diving. One of the larger firms on the island is now discouraging / preventing solo diving unless you have a TEC cert or a solo diving cert. You then have to sign a solo diver waiver.

I see absolutely nothing wrong with this Dive Ops approach to solo diving. They're pushing for safety and also protecting themselves from a lawsuit if someone without proper training goes diving on their own and becomes a statistic.

The Dive Ops on Bonaire are not prohibiting solo diving, they're just saying if you want to do it, get the training, get the right equipment, and get the certification just like many of us have already done, including myself.

Those who protest the rules the most loudly are ironically probably the first ones who will sue if they're injured on a dive. Or if they don't make it back, their heirs will be the ones saying "That irresponsible dive charter allowed them to dive alone without the proper certification! We need to take them to court and make them pay us a lot of money so that this sort of thing won't happen anymore!"

It was really disheartening to see a young woman whose significant other could not or would not dive, be told that she could not dive by herself. .

That "disheartened young lady" needs to realize that her Open Water Scuba certification does not give her the right to dive alone- at least not off someone elses boat or using someone else's gear.

 

[Ministryofgiraffes]

I suppose you could also just do the self reliant diver course with them on the first day and tick the box....I’m surprised that the allegedly discourage solo diving when they train solo divers....or do they frown on it after asking if people are solo certified and they are not?

 

[tarponchik]

Those who protest the rules the most loudly are ironically probably the first ones who will sue if they're injured on a dive. Or if they don't make it back, their heirs will be the ones saying "That irresponsible dive charter allowed them to dive alone without the proper certification! We need to take them to court and make them pay us a lot of money so that this sort of thing won't happen anymore!"

This statement is absolutely baseless. And, just so you know, I like Cayman Islands law that limits wrongful death recovery to $5,000, and lots of countries in the so called Third World have similar limits (Costa Rica's $25,000?). So when you don't make it back with your solo certificate, your pony bottle and all, your heirs may be surprised that it's not really worth sueing anybody.