If you're a diver.........get to Bonaire!!!

2,180 Views | 16 Replies | Last: 5 yr ago by txags92
LSB_2002
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Just got back from a week in Bonaire! Amazing to say the least.

The town left some to be desired, but the diving more than makes up for it. Absolutely incredible! Too much GoPro video to sift through at the moment, but plan on adding later!
aeroag14
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I mean, that is pretty much the sterotype for Bonaire.

Best diving in the carribean and something to be desired on the rest of the island.

I have always heard it described as a diverbum island.
LSB_2002
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LSB_2002
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txags92
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Cool videos! Glad you had a good trip. As for the best in the Caribbean, I would say it is one of the 2-3 best, but Little Cayman and Turks and Caicos could be considered #1 too depending on what kind of diving and wildlife you prefer.
The Chicken Ranch
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I went 12 years ago. I need to go back.

Where did you stay? I stayed at Buddy Dive.
PlanoAg98
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Not a lot of sea life in those videos. Beautiful coral though.
LSB_2002
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PlanoAg98 said:

Not a lot of sea life in those videos. Beautiful coral though.
Here's one with a little more marine life!



There was no shortage of amazing fish on this trip. Filefish, Triggers, Groupers, Green Morays, Spotted Morays, Butterfly Fish, and on and on and on.....

LSB_2002
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The Chicken Ranch said:

I went 12 years ago. I need to go back.

Where did you stay? I stayed at Buddy Dive.
We did VRBO and rented a 6 bedroom, 7 bath place on the water just up the road from Captain Don's and Buddy Dive. It was perfect. We could walk out every morning and log a dive. Absolutely loved it.
BSD
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How is the snorkeling there? My son may be old enough to dive by the time I want to go, but the lack of maturity concerns me so being topside may be better for us!
PlanoAg98
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I'm going to the Bahamas in December and planning on a dive there. I don't dive often but looking for a good video camera for this trip. What do you recommend for < ~100 ft. dives?
LSB_2002
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BSD said:

How is the snorkeling there? My son may be old enough to dive by the time I want to go, but the lack of maturity concerns me so being topside may be better for us!
Several of the ladies on the trip who aren't certified snorkeled. You can see lots of stuff all over the island! They saw sea turtles lots of reef fish, as the visibility is more than sufficient to see down to the reefs without needing to scuba. We saw tons of folks snorkeling there. I'd say it would be perfect for him.
LSB_2002
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PlanoAg98 said:

I'm going to the Bahamas in December and planning on a dive there. I don't dive often but looking for a good video camera for this trip. What do you recommend for < ~100 ft. dives?
These videos were shot with a GoPro Hero 4 with a Backscatter red and orange filter (depending on depth). I was very pleased with the turnout. I am had no idea what they'd look like. Check out this video from my deepest dive. It shows the Garden Eels at 130 ft. I wasn't there long, but I believe the video was good with the set up I had.

The Chicken Ranch
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BSD said:

How is the snorkeling there? My son may be old enough to dive by the time I want to go, but the lack of maturity concerns me so being topside may be better for us!


You can snorkel and dive also. Most of the diving is shore diving, so you could easily snorkel also.

PADI runs an event called Kids Sea Camp www.familydivers.com. You don't have to be a PADI member or certified diver to go. Anyway, they do supervised age appropriate water activities for kids, while Mom and Dad can dive. Ultimately, your kid can get a Jr. Cert. when they are old enough - 12 I think. I'm a PADI Professional, but now an "alumni," but I do keep up with the goings on in the industry somewhat. Anyway, this event is held at many places each year and Buddy Dive in Bonaire is one of the places.

I think we'll do it when our kid is older. Right now she is just 4.

Just FYI.
maldivesag
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I've been to Bonaire 5 times and the quality of coral and macro life is awesome. Plus the ability to dive at your own leisure from the shore makes the best IMO.
jakeaggie84
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Best dive log/dive journal?? I haven't recorded my dives and want to start.
62strat
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I'm curious how different this is than commercial diving. I worked offshore with divers a bit, so became a bit familiar with it. I saw how most of the time they could only dive once a day, and would decompress in chambers after the dive, and many times were only down for less than an hour.

Is that all just really regulated by OSHA, or is leisure diving pretty strict as well?

How long are you down for say 120' deep dive? vs. a 20' dive? How do you decompress, and can you dive again that day?
txags92
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Totally different kind of diving. The max depth most recreational divers will go to with no decompression required is 130 feet. On straight air tanks, you have less than 10 mins of bottom time at that depth. Most recreational diving takes place at depths of less than 90 feet and due to loss of light color with depth, the best view is in the top 40 feet. The recreational dives are done with a computer that tracks your depth and decompression status. Doing multilevel dives to less than 90 feet, most recreational divers will get 40-60 minutes of bottom time per dive and can do as many as 4-5 dives in a day if they want (with proper surface intervals).

The way most boat diving operations are setup, you do 2 1-tank morning dives, eat lunch, and then have the option to do a third 1-tank afternoon dive. Bonaire is a bit different in that most of the diving there is shore diving, so people just take as many tanks as they plan to use and drive to where they want to dive. Because you are starting from shore, the dives are generally pretty shallow and long. Some places in Bonaire will do 2 morning boat dives, then give you tanks for unlimited afternoon shore dives. On liveaboard dive boats, it isn't uncommon to get 5 dives in a day or 4 day dives and a night dive.
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