After a couple of days in the marina we were all eager to get out into the mooring field that runs along the malecón (boardwalk, waterfront, whatever it is you want to call it, we always use the Spanish word for it) here in Bonaire. The water color is crazy and we were ready for a swim.
If there is one thing about land life that I wish Lowe could have it is fort building. That’s it. Just forts.
The view off the back of the boat. There is no anchoring anywhere in Bonaire, so the mooring field (or a marina) is it. Chatter amongst cruisers headed this way is definitely sounding nervous right now as there are only a couple spots left, and nobody seems to be leaving any time soon.
And our view off the front.
They really only dressed up this one small section of town to look like this, but it does give you that little bit of European village charm.
We’ve had flocks of flamingos flying over us on the boat. I don’t think anything looks less like a bird in flight than a flamingo in flight.
The kids got their own dive gear! While waiting a day for the regulators to be serviced, they popped the BCDs on and just swam around in those instead. We got out for our first dive here in Bonaire shortly after. The dive was at the “Something Special” site, which is just a few hundred yards from the boat. We saw what was far and away the biggest green moray eel I’ve seen in my life. He looked to be about as big as Lowe. We’re without an underwater camera at the moment as we wait for our new DJI camera to arrive in a few days. We could have bought another GoPro, but honestly, GoPros should all be labeled “Disposable Camera.” Anyway, looking forward to many more dives here. We bought the 15 tank discount card at the dive shop, so we’ve got at least that many ahead of us.
That line between light and dark is the distance it takes for the water to go from about ten feet deep to one hundred feet. All along that sharp drop is coral and fish. Even just snorkeling over the deep drop is fun. The platter-sized French Angelfish are like puppies, the way they come right up to you and follow you around.
18 Comments on “Settling Into Bonaire”
Wow, looks amazing! Is it pretty calm there being so close to the deep water?
Trade winds are always out of the east, and the moorings are along the west side. The way the boats are facing in the picture above is the way they always are. We get a steady breeze, with zero waves or swell.
Sorry to say, not always true. The wind can often shift and cause a lot of turmoil in the mooring field. Best to keep an eye on the weather. We witnessed this twice when there and it is darn-right uncomfortable. The local authorities will despatch a vessel to be ready to aid any vessel breaking a mooring line.
Yes, I’m aware that trade winds occasionally shift. I tend to answer in generalities for the non-cruisers.
Pat, we appreciate that.
We loved Bonaire! Hope you are there for hurricane season. Looking forward to a post from the donkey rescue center.
Pat cheers, on the trip South. I assume that your plans don’t include staying in Bonaire once Hurricane season cranks up. How many days/hours are you from a safe spot to ride one out? As a Mobilian we keep our Hurricane eyes/ears, TV’S wide open from June till November and it’s 16 days till June. Stay safe. Robbie
Bonaire, Curacao, and Aruba are outside the hurricane belt and virtually never get hit by anything. The ABCs are considered a hurricane season destination for cruisers every bit as safe and sound as Grenada.
We LOVED Bonaire. It is hard to imagine a better place to spend hurricane season.
While there you might want to make contact with Noustha Koeckhoven. She is an extremely talented award-winning underwater photographer. She speaks perfect English. Here is a link to her webpage highlighting some of her work: https://underwaterphotoshoot.com/work/
I believe Noustra is working at one of the local dive shops. If you find her, please tell her Mark and Cindy from Cream Puff said hello.
Enjoy your time there.
Mark and Cindy
One of my most favorite spots to go windusrfing. Chest level height, warm beautiful water, constant wind, and 10-year-old locals freestyling. Highly recommend, most forgiving to learn and home to ABK Boardsports, top notch windsurfing instruction. Great saladbar right on the beach and big fan of their in town Chinese food restaurant with some pool table fun for a night out depending on Covid’s interruption.
Enjoy!
Funny, we were sitting there today about the time you were typing this comment out. 🙂 Hard to believe that spot is natural.
Amazing color difference. Also can’t believe how big the kids are now.
Hi Pat, Ali and the Little Mexicans,
I don’t know if you’re familiar with Denison Yachting, a seller of GBs, but you’re either due kudos and a “Well played,” or “Heads up, you’re being exploited!”
https://www.denisonyachtsales.com/yacht-broker-listings/used-grand-banks-trawlers-for-sale/
TJ
Thanks, Tao. That image is in fact infringing on our copyright. Request to make this right has been sent to Denison Yachting. It will be interesting to see how they respond. Should tell us a lot about the company. Though the fact that a huge company like this, who clearly knows better, already tells me what I need to know.
Looks fantastic. So close to your boat for diving. Never ended up anchoring/mooring anywhere like that in Queensland. Enjoy!
Great place!!! ’94 or 5 can’t remember….hmmm , donkeys or burros were everywhere? Enjoy…you are growing them right! Goodonyas!
I checked out Noustha Koeckhoven’s website and while I found her work to be extremely creative, it was a bit too contrived for me. We are both photographers (mostly amateur my husband has sold a few pieces) so we’re always interested in seeing good work. We really like yours Pat!
Thank you, Maureen!
Just a note: Some of Pat’s work, is mine though. 🙂 🙂 🙂