Bonaire Trip Report – November 2010
Weather
Lots of rain this Thanksgiving week. We had a few days of sunshine and a few mixed days. When the rains really gets going so does the surf, and we chose a few boat dives for convenience and to save our bruised knees. Some dives were dark during the day due to the cloud cover. On the positive side the temperatures were a comfortable mid 80’s during the day and we appreciated the sunshine which we got about 50% of the time.
This was our third trip to Bonaire and our goal was to do sites that we had not done before. The meant driving north of the Bopec tanks and heading into Slagbaii park.
La Dania’s Leap drift dive was also high on our list. Due to weather and time we never got into the park but managed one dive at Taylor Made and the Leap drift to Karpata.
Let’s start with La Dania’s Leap. First off a big thank you to BT’s past posts for helping me find the dang thing in the first place. In the past the path was marked by a big swirl painted in the road and by a pile of coral rocks. Both are now history and have been replaced by a small green and yellow yin yang symbol. If time erases that marker all you have to do to find the site is remember to hit the reset on your mileage when you get to the start of the one way road. That’s were there is a wall with a small octagonal shaped sign reading “Karpata” on the left hand side. La Dania’s is 2.9 km from there.
Pull off the road to the right where there is room to park two trucks and the path is on the opposite side of the road. If you have not been here before you might want to survey the site before gearing up. The path is mostly iron shore coral with one steep section. Watch your footing and go slow and you will be fine. When you get to the shore, head to the right where the shoreline dips in to form a kind of U shape. Your entry is to the right of that. There is an area where you can sit (well kind of) and put your fins on and then take ONE step to the edge to step off. The drop is very close to the water’s surface, just a few feet and you can easily see that there is sufficient depth for a safe entry. If it makes you feel better, drop a small coral rock in the water to get an idea of how deep. (about 10 feet)
We were advised that this dive is best done on days of good weather to avoid getting “stuck” in the middle due to changing currents. We got the current change about half way to Karpata but it was an easy dive even against the current. The coral formations at La Dania’s are spectacular and seem to be a bit more pristine than other more heavily dived spots. In any case, this dive is wonderful and gives you that sense of risk and adventure with enough safety margin for an old but not bold diver.
North of Bopec
We did manage one dive at “Taylor Made” north of the Bopec Oil Tanks. I had never been there before but had Susan Porters excellent dive guide so I thought I knew what I was doing. Advice for the drive around includes going all the way to the entrance of Bopec (right next to the tanks, just outside the fence) before turning right and go up the paved hill before following the leftward bend in the road. Keep in mind that the road is not right near the tanks like it shows on the map. It is actually a ways away from the tanks so that all you can see are tall bushes. Keep on going and eventually you will turn toward the sea and go down another paved section of roadway. They pave difficult or steep sections of dirt roadway on Bonaire.
On finding Candy Land, Taylor Made, and Nukove, I would advise your purchasing Susan’s “Bonaire Shore Diving Made Easy” and doing some pre dive planning via Google Maps or Earth to see where the sites are. Susan’s book is full of local knowledge and supporting her efforts to keep information current is well worth the purchase price.
Did I mention that we got a bit of rain while on Bonaire? Well the road heading to Nukove is a dirt road and had quite a few huge puddles that had to be driven through. I was a be nervous about getting stuck but was later told that it really is not a problem on the island due to the hard coral base. Hope you find dry roads and sunshine when you head north. Again, some adventure without a lot of risk. During the day you will probably see at least one or two other groups of divers north of the tanks. Not the gaggle you get at Ol Blue or Oil Slick but you won’t be completely alone.
About the Coral bleaching that we have seen over the past few years. YEP! There sure is a lot of it. Through a conversation with a long time island resident I was advised that the bleaching is due to water temperature. The good news is that it is a reversible phenomenon that has cycled several times over the last few decades. Hopefully we will get to travel back to Bonaire to see the coral change back.
We mostly cooked for ourselves but did eat at one outstanding restaurant twice. (yep, that good) Richards is located on JA Abraham Blvd south of the Carib Inn and north of the Plaza. Fish, steak, it didn’t matter what was ordered, it was all excellent.
One last piece of advice that keeps coming back to haunt those who do not remember it.
ONE WEEK IS NOWHERE NEAR ENOUGH TIME ON BONAIRE.
Hopefully next time I will remember.
Best Fishes and Sunshine on your next trip down!
Scotty
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By Gregg Scott (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #9) on Monday, November 29, 2010 - 4:35 pm: 
