CCR in Bonaire!

Mixaddict · 4th July 2008, 21:28

Just finished up a week long trip in Bonaire. We stayed at Buddy Dive which worked out fine. The price was right and is conveniently located, and obviously caters to divers! They don't have any support at the resort for CCR, so we got fills and sorb from Walt Stark of Rec Tek Scuba, which is located at Capt. Don's right next door to Buddy Dive. info@rectekscuba.com

Walt is absolutely great! Instead of having to run back and forth for fills every day, he gave us a bunch of O2 and dil bottles pre-filled and that way we only had to go back twice during the week! He was also able to provide us with Helium for some Trimix dives we were doing. By the way, the Windjammer wreck is the only deep wreck on the island, but it is well worth the price, and hassle of the security procedures to do the dive. (It is located just off of shore next to the oil tanks on the island and is "high security!" We had to hurry and get out of the water due to the fact that a tanker was waiting to shove off!)

Any way, the diving is very relaxed and lots of pretty fish! I taught a Trimix class as well as a Hammerhead CCR class while I was here, and thanks to Walt, all of the logistics were very easy to deal with. He has tanks in various sizes, fills and sorb all easily accessible. I would highly recommend him!

Buddy Dive provides you with a small 4 door pickup as part of the package, so the shore diving is very easy and accessible. The boats were a little packed with up to 24 divers, but the ease of shore diving more than makes up for it. Breakfast is included as part of the package as well. The condos are clean and comfortable as well. $1000 for a week, was a killer deal! The diving was very easy going and we usually did 3-4 dives per day. It's not high voltage diving by any means, but it's nice to take it easy and relax every once in a while!

edasque · 4th July 2008, 22:23

Can you bring a non-diving girlfriend to Bonaire or is it pretty much diving only ?

**Gill Envy** · 4th July 2008, 22:48

Thanks for the report, i'm thinking about Bonaire at some point in the future. if you have any pics that show the current state of the reefs and fish populations that would be great.
thnkx,
g

jkaterenchuk · 4th July 2008, 22:55

Quote: (Originally Posted by edasque)

Can you bring a non-diving girlfriend to Bonaire or is it pretty much diving only ?

Depends what she wants to do. If she wants a layed back, soak up the sun, lay on the beach and read several books time then its fine. If she wants night life, restaurants and shops she would find that there is only a small downtown area that can be covered in a afternoon.

John

joe d · 4th July 2008, 23:37

Quote: (Originally Posted by jkaterenchuk)

Depends what she wants to do. If she wants a layed back, soak up the sun, lay on the beach and read several books time then its fine. If she wants night life, restaurants and shops she would find that there is only a small downtown area that can be covered in a afternoon.

John

You'd be really hard pressed to spend an entire afternoon in the downtown area unless you included a long lunch and a nap. It takes about 1-2 hours to cover the shops.

As for night life there is a casino that consists of about two dozen slot machines but not much more.

The truth is unless you dive or want to just totally chill-out there is nothing to do on the island.

Well, I guess you can always go down to the evaporative salt operations and watch the crystals form.

Mixaddict · 5th July 2008, 01:48

Quote: (Originally Posted by edasque)

Can you bring a non-diving girlfriend to Bonaire or is it pretty much diving only ?

I would have to agree with the other folks. There is virtually nothing else to do here besides dive. The beaches are pretty much non-existent. Kind of rock/coral beaches everywhere. Not much sand. But I guess that's why the diving is so great!

Mixaddict · 5th July 2008, 01:52

Quote: (Originally Posted by Gill Envy)

Thanks for the report, i'm thinking about Bonaire at some point in the future. if you have any pics that show the current state of the reefs and fish populations that would be great.
thnkx,
g

Hi Gill Envy,

I was pretty much teaching the whole time I was here, so didn't get an opportunity to do much photography. I was here 8 years ago, and the fish population and health of the reefs looks about the same to me today. There is a little hurricane damage from Lenny, but for the most part, things look real good by Caribbean standards. It's not like Indonesia or something, but certainly healthier than most locations I have been in the Caribbean. Easy to get to as well for us Americans and fairly inexpensive. You won't see much of the big stuff, but that pretty well describes most Caribbean places I have been, at least these days. Hope that helps.

Regards,
Randy

mixedgas · 5th July 2008, 03:41

Hey,
Just wanted to say hello! I have been to Bonaire with my wife over 15 times.
Great place and Walt has plenty of everything you need

Got to dive the Windjammer with Walt a few years ago....very nice!

If anybody needs more information let me know

Cheers! Jeff

PCDiver · 5th July 2008, 06:17

I think there is actually plenty to do for the wife if she is into sports: kayaking, mountain biking, climbing the mount 'forgot the name', surfing, kiting, dust golf, eating out (some great restaurants), sunset cruises, going to Klein Bonaire (small island), snorkling, ...

I did the Windjammer six years ago and was a great dive ... I think (OC on air :-))

You have to do the East side (wild side) for big stuff. Schools of eagle rays, nurse sharks, tarpons, all sorts of turtlles, ... We even say a Tiger shark three years ago.

ScubaAl · 5th July 2008, 11:26

Thanks for the report. Did you have any problems transporting your Rebreather from the US to Bonaire? The way things seem to be going with the airlines I was just wondering, for future reference.
Thanks, Al

4th July 2008, 21:28	#1 (permalink)
Mixaddict Always Learning! Current Rebreather/s: Inspiration Vision Evolution Other CCR Dolphin Other Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Other CCR Dolphin Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Draper, Utah USA Posts: 476	CCR in Bonaire! Just finished up a week long trip in Bonaire. We stayed at Buddy Dive which worked out fine. The price was right and is conveniently located, and obviously caters to divers! They don't have any support at the resort for CCR, so we got fills and sorb from Walt Stark of Rec Tek Scuba, which is located at Capt. Don's right next door to Buddy Dive. info@rectekscuba.com Walt is absolutely great! Instead of having to run back and forth for fills every day, he gave us a bunch of O2 and dil bottles pre-filled and that way we only had to go back twice during the week! He was also able to provide us with Helium for some Trimix dives we were doing. By the way, the Windjammer wreck is the only deep wreck on the island, but it is well worth the price, and hassle of the security procedures to do the dive. (It is located just off of shore next to the oil tanks on the island and is "high security!" We had to hurry and get out of the water due to the fact that a tanker was waiting to shove off!) Any way, the diving is very relaxed and lots of pretty fish! I taught a Trimix class as well as a Hammerhead CCR class while I was here, and thanks to Walt, all of the logistics were very easy to deal with. He has tanks in various sizes, fills and sorb all easily accessible. I would highly recommend him! Buddy Dive provides you with a small 4 door pickup as part of the package, so the shore diving is very easy and accessible. The boats were a little packed with up to 24 divers, but the ease of shore diving more than makes up for it. Breakfast is included as part of the package as well. The condos are clean and comfortable as well. $1000 for a week, was a killer deal! The diving was very easy going and we usually did 3-4 dives per day. It's not high voltage diving by any means, but it's nice to take it easy and relax every once in a while! __________________ Randy Thornton (MixAddict) Inspiration, Evolution,Hammerhead & Sentinel CCR Instructor
(Online)

4th July 2008, 22:23	#2 (permalink)
edasque French Erik Current Rebreather/s: Optima Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 262	Re: CCR in Bonaire! Can you bring a non-diving girlfriend to Bonaire or is it pretty much diving only ?
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4th July 2008, 22:48	#3 (permalink)
Gill Envy Shearwater Copis Divers Current Rebreather/s: Other CCR Other Rebreather/s: Evolution Other CCR Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: seattle Posts: 1,314	Re: CCR in Bonaire! Thanks for the report, i'm thinking about Bonaire at some point in the future. if you have any pics that show the current state of the reefs and fish populations that would be great. thnkx, g __________________ Gill Envy ...Because I wasn't born with gills! ><(°>><(°>><(°>><(°>><(°>><(°>><(°>><(°>
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4th July 2008, 22:55	#4 (permalink)
jkaterenchuk . Current Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Megalodon Classic Kiss Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: May 2006 Location: Lititz, PA Posts: 827	Re: CCR in Bonaire! Quote: (Originally Posted by edasque) Can you bring a non-diving girlfriend to Bonaire or is it pretty much diving only ? Depends what she wants to do. If she wants a layed back, soak up the sun, lay on the beach and read several books time then its fine. If she wants night life, restaurants and shops she would find that there is only a small downtown area that can be covered in a afternoon. John
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4th July 2008, 23:37	#5 (permalink)
joe d New Member Current Rebreather/s: Megalodon Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: DFW Posts: 24	Re: CCR in Bonaire! Quote: (Originally Posted by jkaterenchuk) Depends what she wants to do. If she wants a layed back, soak up the sun, lay on the beach and read several books time then its fine. If she wants night life, restaurants and shops she would find that there is only a small downtown area that can be covered in a afternoon. John You'd be really hard pressed to spend an entire afternoon in the downtown area unless you included a long lunch and a nap. It takes about 1-2 hours to cover the shops. As for night life there is a casino that consists of about two dozen slot machines but not much more. The truth is unless you dive or want to just totally chill-out there is nothing to do on the island. Well, I guess you can always go down to the evaporative salt operations and watch the crystals form.
(Online)

5th July 2008, 01:48	#6 (permalink)
Mixaddict Always Learning! Current Rebreather/s: Inspiration Vision Evolution Other CCR Dolphin Other Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Other CCR Dolphin Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Draper, Utah USA Posts: 476	Re: CCR in Bonaire! Quote: (Originally Posted by edasque) Can you bring a non-diving girlfriend to Bonaire or is it pretty much diving only ? I would have to agree with the other folks. There is virtually nothing else to do here besides dive. The beaches are pretty much non-existent. Kind of rock/coral beaches everywhere. Not much sand. But I guess that's why the diving is so great! __________________ Randy Thornton (MixAddict) Inspiration, Evolution,Hammerhead & Sentinel CCR Instructor
(Online)

5th July 2008, 01:52	#7 (permalink)
Mixaddict Always Learning! Current Rebreather/s: Inspiration Vision Evolution Other CCR Dolphin Other Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Other CCR Dolphin Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Draper, Utah USA Posts: 476	Re: CCR in Bonaire! Quote: (Originally Posted by Gill Envy) Thanks for the report, i'm thinking about Bonaire at some point in the future. if you have any pics that show the current state of the reefs and fish populations that would be great. thnkx, g Hi Gill Envy, I was pretty much teaching the whole time I was here, so didn't get an opportunity to do much photography. I was here 8 years ago, and the fish population and health of the reefs looks about the same to me today. There is a little hurricane damage from Lenny, but for the most part, things look real good by Caribbean standards. It's not like Indonesia or something, but certainly healthier than most locations I have been in the Caribbean. Easy to get to as well for us Americans and fairly inexpensive. You won't see much of the big stuff, but that pretty well describes most Caribbean places I have been, at least these days. Hope that helps. Regards, Randy __________________ Randy Thornton (MixAddict) Inspiration, Evolution,Hammerhead & Sentinel CCR Instructor Last edited by Mixaddict : 5th July 2008 at 01:53. Reason: correction
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5th July 2008, 03:41	#8 (permalink)
mixedgas New Member Current Rebreather/s: Megalodon Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: california Posts: 40	Re: CCR in Bonaire! Hey, Just wanted to say hello! I have been to Bonaire with my wife over 15 times. Great place and Walt has plenty of everything you need Got to dive the Windjammer with Walt a few years ago....very nice! If anybody needs more information let me know Cheers! Jeff
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5th July 2008, 06:17	#9 (permalink)
PCDiver Submerge Productions Current Rebreather/s: Inspiration Vision Other Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Belgium Posts: 971	Re: CCR in Bonaire! I think there is actually plenty to do for the wife if she is into sports: kayaking, mountain biking, climbing the mount 'forgot the name', surfing, kiting, dust golf, eating out (some great restaurants), sunset cruises, going to Klein Bonaire (small island), snorkling, ... I did the Windjammer six years ago and was a great dive ... I think (OC on air :-)) You have to do the East side (wild side) for big stuff. Schools of eagle rays, nurse sharks, tarpons, all sorts of turtlles, ... We even say a Tiger shark three years ago. __________________ >>>>> www.submergeproductions.com dedicated to promoting technical diving >>>>> Check out our dive show video interviews and Wreck dive videos >>>>> Now also on iTunes and Zune Last edited by PCDiver : 5th July 2008 at 06:19.
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5th July 2008, 11:26	#10 (permalink)
ScubaAl New Member Current Rebreather/s: Inspiration Vision Other Rebreather/s: Inspiration Vision Evolution Megalodon Classic Kiss Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Bloomington, Minnesota Posts: 41	Re: CCR in Bonaire! Thanks for the report. Did you have any problems transporting your Rebreather from the US to Bonaire? The way things seem to be going with the airlines I was just wondering, for future reference. Thanks, Al
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