deco_martini
Contributor
Another Bonaire trip in the bucket.
We stayed at Den Laman from Apr 30 to May 7th. We found an off season special at Den Laman, some reward tickets on Delta, and some vacation time.
After this second trip, I wanted to do a trip report but instead it sort of came out as an editorial.
Let's start with my last trip. We stayed at a dump called Golden Reef Inn because it was a cheap and the owner was nice on Scubaboard. We wound up getting ripped off for 700 dollars. It was cheap, off shore, and had no dive shop of its own. But it was so cheap it made sense. Air conditioning in the bedroom, a small kitchen, and a truck rental. We slummed it for a week and had a great time! (but then after we got ripped off while attempting to split our lodging fees, we actually paid just as much as staying somewhere less shady)
Dilemma: Cheap/Offshore vs Costlier/Shore
Answer:
1. if cost is a driver, dive in the low season peak and stay somewhere nicer for cheap,
2. if cost isn't a driver, stay on shore
3. if cost is a driver and you can't dive low season, stay in a dump
See this view? Like this view? So do I. And I was fine staying in a dump before. This was my view. It also had a great view of the dock at Den Laman. Dive Buddy Mike and I watched the other terrible divers at the resort make hilarious entry and exits, overzealous gear rinsing, and other comical things from our view. Watching a guy diving a DIR rig show how pro he was by walking down the dock dragging his regulator on the long hose behind him tumbling along the dock: priceless entertainment. Unlike the dump we stayed at before, we had full AC and a restaurant downstairs.
Dilemma: Lunch
Low season diving at a good place has a nice benefit. When we stayed at a dump, we had to worry about our lunches. We bought lunchmeats, breads, condiments, all of which have varying levels of freshness on a South American island. At Den Laman, we paid 60 bucks for a low season lunch plan. Six lunches. Any items on the menu or the specials. Variety really makes a vacation. One day maybe its an argentine steak sandwich. Maybe another day you eat creole fish with rice. The only problem is the portions are American sized and you have to stop halfway through the meal.
Answer: Slumming it might mean eating like a king with that view. If that is 60 bucks, do it and enjoy yourself. Just don't enjoy yourself too much and gain 20 pounds.
The one day the restaurant was closed we walked over to Elle's for fresh sandwiches on crispy baguettes. The day we left, we ate our sixth lunch before leaving the island. Kicking back and eating a Sunset burger while watching some of the new divers hilariously attempt their checkout dives was great. "Is she really backing up the stairs with her fins on? Are you kidding me."
Dilemma: Shore vs Boat Diving
Here is a 3 dive package in Honduras, Belize, The Caymans, Cozumel or anywhere else.
Be at the dock by X. The boat leaves by Y. The vendor sets the clock.
The reason we went back to Bonaire is because we enjoyed sleeping in if we wished and still doing 3-4 dives in a day. Its your vacation. You set the schedule. Park, dive. They even have rocks now to show you where to get in the water. Get underwater (you people who back paddle out to the reefs are killing me, seriously, stop that, you look hot, bothered, and silly; the 2 minutes you spend at 10 feet deep at the beginning of your dive profile aren't a problem).
Here is the problem, you check in at your dive shop and you see this.
Suddenly, boat diving sounds like a great idea. We had some divers sitting next to us on the plane back who were complaining about diving the same site 3 times from a boat because of the tyranny of the majority on their boat (they didn't stay at Den Laman).
DL does let you boat dive at extra cost if you want to. So if you know the boat is going to Karpata or the Klein you can still do it. However, the point of Bonaire diving is the freedom. Even if there is a dive babe at the front desk. (Note: HI CALIFORNIA!) You want someone to give you your dive profile? Fine. Go down between 75-45 feet, swim along the reef in one direction for about half your dive slowly ascending to 25-35 for the couple of minutes before you hit the turn around point, then turn around and head back in the 25-35 foot range. Seriously. That's it.
===========================
Now here is the more trip reporty part of this.
1. We found a snake eel at Invisibles. It is a non-moray eel that burrows in the sand with its head sticking out. We found it because we didn't back-paddle out to the reef to save that 50 psi you huff anyway when you finally go under hot and bothered from baking your face in the sun. No, not a sharptail eel, snake eel.
2. We saw a stingray, lobsters, barracuda, reef squid, and all the other things some guy was complaining 2 weeks ago about on this forum. Note to that guy: you just suck.
3. Night dives on the bari reef were always great. The moon was barely a sliver so it was nice and dark. 45 feet down, myself and Dive Buddy Mike turned off our lights and had a bio-luminescence kung fu fight. There so bright in the pitch, they appeared to have halos almost like bubbles around them.
4. Last night dive, we had the complete triple tarpon + black grouper + mutton snapper wolf pack following us. Pro tip: you will see nothing with the wolf pack on your ass. Find some other divers, turn off your light, and let them enjoy Charlie and gang.
5. Our last morning of diving it rained... We forced ourselves to go to oil slick and dive for the sake of diving. The dive sucked. Cold, dark, and the reef was barely alive. After lunch the rain broke, the sun came out, and we got in a last dive on the house reef at DL. Saw everything great. A hole full of juvenile spotted drums, sharptail eels, morays, shrimps, 2 mantis shrimps, a tiny juvenile lionfish, and of course the other 5000 fish swimming around that you sort of mentally filter out. Flounder, other stuff. It made a great last dive. Right off the dock. 45 feet deep.
6. Yes there was a once in forever whale shark sighting the week we were there. Yes, there was a manta sighting as well. Some french chick using the DL dive shop got pics. It wasn't an eagle ray. Note: sure, there might be a manta out in the deep blue past the reef. But the reef is why you went to Bonaire. Don't miss the awesome reef in front of you doing persistent manta, whale shark, orca, Jaws 3D checks out in the deep blue.
Also, if you were at DL that week and have underwater pics, send me a link. Even if you were dragging your regulator on the dock, walking up the ladder wrong, or providing other entertainment for me and Mike. We laugh, but we are laughing with you. Really. What? Oh come on lighten up. You were probably laughing at my suit all week.
We stayed at Den Laman from Apr 30 to May 7th. We found an off season special at Den Laman, some reward tickets on Delta, and some vacation time.
After this second trip, I wanted to do a trip report but instead it sort of came out as an editorial.
Let's start with my last trip. We stayed at a dump called Golden Reef Inn because it was a cheap and the owner was nice on Scubaboard. We wound up getting ripped off for 700 dollars. It was cheap, off shore, and had no dive shop of its own. But it was so cheap it made sense. Air conditioning in the bedroom, a small kitchen, and a truck rental. We slummed it for a week and had a great time! (but then after we got ripped off while attempting to split our lodging fees, we actually paid just as much as staying somewhere less shady)
Dilemma: Cheap/Offshore vs Costlier/Shore
Answer:
1. if cost is a driver, dive in the low season peak and stay somewhere nicer for cheap,
2. if cost isn't a driver, stay on shore
3. if cost is a driver and you can't dive low season, stay in a dump
See this view? Like this view? So do I. And I was fine staying in a dump before. This was my view. It also had a great view of the dock at Den Laman. Dive Buddy Mike and I watched the other terrible divers at the resort make hilarious entry and exits, overzealous gear rinsing, and other comical things from our view. Watching a guy diving a DIR rig show how pro he was by walking down the dock dragging his regulator on the long hose behind him tumbling along the dock: priceless entertainment. Unlike the dump we stayed at before, we had full AC and a restaurant downstairs.
Dilemma: Lunch
Low season diving at a good place has a nice benefit. When we stayed at a dump, we had to worry about our lunches. We bought lunchmeats, breads, condiments, all of which have varying levels of freshness on a South American island. At Den Laman, we paid 60 bucks for a low season lunch plan. Six lunches. Any items on the menu or the specials. Variety really makes a vacation. One day maybe its an argentine steak sandwich. Maybe another day you eat creole fish with rice. The only problem is the portions are American sized and you have to stop halfway through the meal.
Answer: Slumming it might mean eating like a king with that view. If that is 60 bucks, do it and enjoy yourself. Just don't enjoy yourself too much and gain 20 pounds.
The one day the restaurant was closed we walked over to Elle's for fresh sandwiches on crispy baguettes. The day we left, we ate our sixth lunch before leaving the island. Kicking back and eating a Sunset burger while watching some of the new divers hilariously attempt their checkout dives was great. "Is she really backing up the stairs with her fins on? Are you kidding me."
Dilemma: Shore vs Boat Diving
Here is a 3 dive package in Honduras, Belize, The Caymans, Cozumel or anywhere else.
Be at the dock by X. The boat leaves by Y. The vendor sets the clock.
The reason we went back to Bonaire is because we enjoyed sleeping in if we wished and still doing 3-4 dives in a day. Its your vacation. You set the schedule. Park, dive. They even have rocks now to show you where to get in the water. Get underwater (you people who back paddle out to the reefs are killing me, seriously, stop that, you look hot, bothered, and silly; the 2 minutes you spend at 10 feet deep at the beginning of your dive profile aren't a problem).
Here is the problem, you check in at your dive shop and you see this.
Suddenly, boat diving sounds like a great idea. We had some divers sitting next to us on the plane back who were complaining about diving the same site 3 times from a boat because of the tyranny of the majority on their boat (they didn't stay at Den Laman).
DL does let you boat dive at extra cost if you want to. So if you know the boat is going to Karpata or the Klein you can still do it. However, the point of Bonaire diving is the freedom. Even if there is a dive babe at the front desk. (Note: HI CALIFORNIA!) You want someone to give you your dive profile? Fine. Go down between 75-45 feet, swim along the reef in one direction for about half your dive slowly ascending to 25-35 for the couple of minutes before you hit the turn around point, then turn around and head back in the 25-35 foot range. Seriously. That's it.
===========================
Now here is the more trip reporty part of this.
1. We found a snake eel at Invisibles. It is a non-moray eel that burrows in the sand with its head sticking out. We found it because we didn't back-paddle out to the reef to save that 50 psi you huff anyway when you finally go under hot and bothered from baking your face in the sun. No, not a sharptail eel, snake eel.
2. We saw a stingray, lobsters, barracuda, reef squid, and all the other things some guy was complaining 2 weeks ago about on this forum. Note to that guy: you just suck.
3. Night dives on the bari reef were always great. The moon was barely a sliver so it was nice and dark. 45 feet down, myself and Dive Buddy Mike turned off our lights and had a bio-luminescence kung fu fight. There so bright in the pitch, they appeared to have halos almost like bubbles around them.
4. Last night dive, we had the complete triple tarpon + black grouper + mutton snapper wolf pack following us. Pro tip: you will see nothing with the wolf pack on your ass. Find some other divers, turn off your light, and let them enjoy Charlie and gang.
5. Our last morning of diving it rained... We forced ourselves to go to oil slick and dive for the sake of diving. The dive sucked. Cold, dark, and the reef was barely alive. After lunch the rain broke, the sun came out, and we got in a last dive on the house reef at DL. Saw everything great. A hole full of juvenile spotted drums, sharptail eels, morays, shrimps, 2 mantis shrimps, a tiny juvenile lionfish, and of course the other 5000 fish swimming around that you sort of mentally filter out. Flounder, other stuff. It made a great last dive. Right off the dock. 45 feet deep.
6. Yes there was a once in forever whale shark sighting the week we were there. Yes, there was a manta sighting as well. Some french chick using the DL dive shop got pics. It wasn't an eagle ray. Note: sure, there might be a manta out in the deep blue past the reef. But the reef is why you went to Bonaire. Don't miss the awesome reef in front of you doing persistent manta, whale shark, orca, Jaws 3D checks out in the deep blue.
Also, if you were at DL that week and have underwater pics, send me a link. Even if you were dragging your regulator on the dock, walking up the ladder wrong, or providing other entertainment for me and Mike. We laugh, but we are laughing with you. Really. What? Oh come on lighten up. You were probably laughing at my suit all week.
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